Carlo Barsotti Movies
The Dogma 95 movement has seen some searing looks into the human condition but rarely a romantic comedy -- until now. Veteran Danish filmmaker Lone Scherfig spins this deadpan look at a group of lovelorn outsiders living in a grey corner of Copenhagen. After the perennially foul-tempered minister of a local church is fired after doing great injury to the organist, Andreas moves to the area to take over the parish. Staying in a hotel until his predecessor can be wrested from the rectory, Andreas befriends the establishment's scatter-brained manager, Jørgen, who is utterly in love with a beautiful Italian barmaid working at a nearby pub run by Hal-Finn. When the irascible Hal-Finn is chastised by the bar's owner for his unkempt appearance, he goes to a local salon where he meets Karen, a comely hairdresser harried by her grasping mom. Meanwhile, Andreas falls for a lethally klutzy pastry shop assistant named Olympia. This film was screened at the 2001 Toronto Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anders W. Berthelsen, Peter Gantzler, (more)
- 1991
Guiseppe (Paolog Migone), living in Italy in the 1950s, knows that he is poor and his country is poor. Nonetheless, he has a little romance going on with Maria and passes much of his time pleasantly enough, playing billiards at a local eatery. However, when he hears from his friend Franco that Sweden is a "paradise" and that he can earn big money there, he picks up stakes and heads to this unlikely land of milk and honey. He gets his first intimation of things to come when he and other immigrants from southern Europe are routinely deloused at the border. Then he heads off into the countryside to find his friend Franco. It turns out that he works at a pretty grim factory for lower wages than he had bragged of, and that "paradise" consists of a barracks that the immigrant workers live in. All the same, Guiseppe gets a job at the factory and tries to make the best of it. However, not only is his daily billiards game not possible, but the local people take a dim view of Italians dating their women -- especially if the women are married. It's soon time for him to consider moving back to his home. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gian Luca Favilla, Giacomo Poretti, (more)
- 1986
This police thriller is set in a Stockholm precinct and centers on the issue of drugs and police brutality. Three male cops (Stefan Sauk, Marvin Yxner, and Sven Holm) and one patrolwoman (Pia Green) play fast and loose with their billy clubs against any addicts, punks, or alcoholics that might be disturbing the high-rent district near their precinct station. The station Captain has his job cut out for him trying to keep the four rogue, over-the-edge cops in line, as well as managing the renegade chief narc officer, and still having time for his trombone and love life. According to this film and Stockholm statistics, charges of police brutality are commonly dismissed (in 1986, 95 out of 100 such cases in Stockholm were thrown out). ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sven Wollter, Stefan Sauk, (more)
- 1986
This well-executed biographical docudrama is a plunge into the madness (and the sanity) of a writer living life on its rawest edges. Agnes Von Krusenstjarna (Stina Ekbland) was a Swedish novelist (1894-1940) whose works ranged from the idyllically romantic to crushingly sardonic, sexually explicit autobiography. Von Krusenstjarna teamed up with the eccentric bisexual David Sprengel (Erland Josephson) and continued to suffer bouts of mental instability that Sprengel felt were best cured by sexual abandon. Von Krusenstjarna was not a model of emotional health when she first met Sprengel. She had inherited madness from her family while at the same time passionately rebelled against the narrow-minded mores of her genteel but poor parents. With his own wildly unorthodox behavior, Sprengel both helped and hindered Von Krusenstjarna throughout their turbulent relationship. Audiences will be enthralled by the clash of Von Krusenstjarna's inner and outer realities, but should be aware there is an abundance of sexually explicit material here. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Stina Ekblad, Erland Josephson, (more)
