Amanda Ooms Movies

In a series of remarkable events inspired by a true story, Maria Heiskanen stars as Maria Larsson, a Finnish mother and housewife who devotes all of her attention, care, and consideration to the well-being of her family -- but, like many homemakers, does so at the expense of her own identity and self-awareness. Not that her dockworker husband, Sigge (Mikael Persbrandt), particularly deserves such consideration; a brutish, alcoholic lout, his evenings consist of making life hell for Maria and their daughter with tyrannical, abusive behavior. Then, as the dockworkers go on strike and the family's economic situation plummets, a ray of hope appears, in the form of a Contessa camera won in a local lottery. Unsurprisingly, Maria at first attempts to pawn it to reel in extra monies, but store owner Sebastian Pedersen convinces her otherwise; he teaches her how to use it, and she begins taking gorgeous, haunting photographs with the unaffected, instinctive perceptions of a young child. As the woman's self-discovery builds and her identity takes on form and definition, Sebastian unofficially takes her on as a protégée and quietly witnesses romantic feelings for her building inside of him. Meanwhile, Sigge's life falls to pieces when the authorities connect him with the catastrophic explosion of a British vessel. Maria's daughter, Maja (Callin Öhrvall), narrates. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide

The Forsyte Saga was a remake of the classic 1960s British miniseries which put the PBS anthology Masterpiece Theatre on the map. Whereas the original version covered all of John Galsworthy's novels about the upper-crust Forsyte clan, requiring 26 episodes to do so, the remake took in only the first two books, running five episodes in Great Britain and seven episodes when it was exported to the U.S. (several sequels were, however, promised should this "trial balloon" prove successful). This was more than ample time to detail the fortunes and follies of the Forsytes as they made the sometimes painful transition from the Victorian to the Edwardian era. The focus was on frosty, tradition-bound Soames Forsyte (Damian Lewis), whose sincere but sterile relationship with his beloved wife Irene (Gina McKee) was complicated by Irene's fondness for iconoclastic architect Bosinney (Ioan Gruffudd). And in another branch of the Forsyte family, Old Jolyon Forsyte (Corin Redgrave) was vexed by the bohemian lifestyle of his son Young Jolyon (Rupert Graves). Budgeted at ten million dollars and running approximately eight hours, the "new" Forsyte Saga debuted in the U.K. on April 7, 2002, and in the U.S. courtesy of PBS on October 6 of that same year. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this puzzling thriller, a woman steals a Stockholm cab and races off without realizing that a man with a gun lies hidden in the back. He points his weapon at her and forces her to head north. They drive through the dark night and in the morning discover that a motorcyclist is following them. The strange trio end up on a mysterious road filled with many plot twists and sharp turns and in the end, things are somewhat explained. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

This historical drama is based on the true story of controversial medical pioneer Franz Anton Mesmer. In 18th century Vienna, Mesmer (Alan Rickman) believes that many of the favored medical treatments of the day -- most notoriously the inducement of bleeding to remove harmful "humors" from the body -- are both dangerous and ineffective to the patients they are intended to treat. Mesmer believes that gentler methods could have a more positive impact on his patients. Believing in what he calls "animal magnetism," Mesmer uses magnetic currents and the power of suggestion to treat patients; the medical establishment of the time regards him as a lunatic, so he performs most of his treatments on the poor, who cannot afford to pay a doctor, forcing Mesmer's well-to-do wife (Gillian Barge) to support the family. Mesmer receives a great deal of publicity when well-known pianist Maria Theresa Paradies (Amanda Ooms) suffers a severe seizure during a recital; while several physicians in attendance want to submit Paradies to an immediate bleeding, Mesmer applies his magnetism techniques, which prove to be effective in calming the young woman. Paradies was tremendously grateful to Mesmer and began seeing him regularly as a patient; she soon developed an emotional attachment to the doctor that became something of a public scandal. In time, the public's anger over Mesmer's unorthodox techniques and his perceived affair with Paradies forced him to leave Vienna for Paris, where he became the toast of the city's wealthy and privileged -- until the French medical community demanded that Mesmer prove the effectiveness of his techniques. Noted playwright Dennis Potter wrote the screenplay. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

At one time, even the great Buster Keaton was a regular visitor of the mental health, alcoholic rehabilitation-center system. Since main-character Micha is obsessed with Keaton and everything that has to do with him, it is appropriate that after trying to pull a stunt on the public highways in imitation of the master (driving blindfolded), he winds up there as a result of the inevitable accident. The genial residents of the asylum have taken it over, following the death of the real doctor, and are having a grand old time there. They have elected O'Connor (Donald Sutherland) to run the place, perhaps because of his basement snake collection. One person after another dies in unintended mishaps, and the gardener (also an inmate) cheerfully disposes of the corpses. This odd international production features cinematography by the famed Sven Nykvist (who shot so many of Ingmar Bergman's films) and is the product of the stunning visual imagination of the esteemed art-house director Rebecca Horn. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

To all appearances a hippie misplaced in time, Sara (Amanda Ooms) arrives in Oslo from Karachi bearing a suitcase full of heroin and is promptly picked up by the police. In order for the authorities to find out the real reason for her having the suitcase, she is hidden away at a policeman's vacation home. She is a really odd, jittery person, prone to teasing her policeman guard sexually by doing such things as painting her nude body and parading before him. The beleaguered cop manages (barely) to resist her blandishments and is able to prevent her from harming herself. Meanwhile, the mystery of the missing suitcase begins to have interesting consequences, leading to a final shootout between the police and the bad guys. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

Originally titled Broderna Mozart, the Swedish The Mozart Brothers stars Etienne Glaser as a highly unorthodox opera director. His plans to stage Don Giovanni in bizarre, inappropriate costumes, and to have the orchestra members take singing roles, enrages the conservatory opera company that has engaged him. Glaser is motivated by the "voice of God"--God being in this instance Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, whose ghost commiserates with the innovational director from time to time. The Mozart Brothers was itself directed by Suzanne Osten, daughter of a leading Swedish film critic. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide