Olof Aas Movies

Jenny Hesselquist and Gosta Eckman star in this drama about a young woman who contemplates the murder of her much-older husband after she falls in love with a dashing young soldier. When her resentment of the husband becomes more than the woman can bear, she buys a ring filled with poison from a traveling friar. The husband overhears the friar tell about the sale at an inn, as does the father of the soldier, who also covets the wife. Later that evening, the husband asks his wife to bring him wine, and as the wife fumbles with the ring, she clumsily drops the poison from the ring into the wine. In disbelief, the husband witnesses her actions in the reflection of a mirror and drops dead from a heart attack, without ever touching the poison. The soldier's father tries to get the wife to drink the wine, but instead, the young cavalier takes the cup to his lips. At the last minute, the widow knocks it from his hands, and she is found guilty of murder and is sentenced to die in a raging bonfire. Before the woman is executed, a sacred image in the village starts to bleed, signifying someone has been wrongfully accused. The dead husband's spirit returns to guide his wife safely through the flames, and blood continues to drip from the image until her innocence is proclaimed. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi

Also known as Thy Soul Shall Bear Witness, The Phantom Chariot was the most famous of Swedish director Victor Sjöstrom's pre-Hollywood films. Based on a novel by Selma Lagerlöf, the film is predicated on an ancient Scandanavian legend. It is said that each year, on St. Sylvester's Night (New Year's Eve), a phantom chariot materializes to carry off the souls of those who have sinned. On one such occasion, David Holm (played by Sjöstrom) is forced to recall his past misdeeds, especially his brutal treatment of his wife. Holm's only hope for salvation lies in his performing a spectacular act of selflessness. As the chariot approaches, Holm despairs: how can he possibly be redeemed before the clock strikes twelve? Sjöstrom's masterful direction is superbly complemented by Julius Jaenzon's multi-exposure cinematography. When artists like Victor Sjöstrom and Mauritz Stiller were lured away by Hollywood, their exodus very nearly brought the wrath of "The Phantom Chariot" on the entire Swedish film industry. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi