Gunn Wållgren Movies
- 1946
Begar (Desire) was based on a novel by Hans Severinsen. In near-excruciating detail, the film details the decline and fall of a drunkard, played by Olof Winnerstrand. Hilda Borgstroem co-stars as the woman who does her best to remain faithful to the tosspot Winnerstrand, but she's fighting a losing battle. At the time of its release, the film was compared unfavorably to Hollywood's The Lost Weekend, though it might seem better if seen today. Begar was a major flop in Sweden, instantly killing any plans (if any) for an American release. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Edvin Adolphson, Gunn Wållgren, (more)
- 1947
Gustav Molander's Woman Without a Face (originally Kvinna utan Ansikte) is distinguished by a screenplay by no less than Ingmar Bergman. Not a remake of Molander's A Woman's Face, as one might assume at first glance, the later film concentrates on the emotional turmoil experienced by an artist named Ruth (Gunn Wallgren). Unable to reach out to her friends and loved ones, Ruth puts her fate in the hands of the duplicitous Victor (George Funkqvist), who is Satan in everything but name. One wonders how this quintessentially Bergmanesque material would have been handled with Bergman himself in the director's chair. In America, Woman Without a Face was sold on the reputation of his male lead, up-and-coming matinee idol Alf Kjellin. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gunn Wållgren, Alf Kjellin, (more)
- 1947
Swedish filmmaker Hasse Ekman thrived on wearing several different production hats while working on his films, and Medan Porten Varstangd (While the Doors Were Closed) is no exception. In addition to producing, directing and writing the film, Ekman also essayed the leading role. Per the title, the story tells the audience just what happens when the doors of a sizeable family home are closed to the outside world. Naturally, the residents behave in a radically different manner than they do in public, none more different than ingenue Inga Lange. A big hit in Sweden, Medan Porten Var Stangd fared less well outside of its target audience. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Hasse Ekman, Tollie Zellman, (more)
- 1948
Together with Les Miserables, Hunchback of Notre Dame and A Christmas Carol, Dostoyefsky's Crime and Punishment is one of the most frequently filmed novels in literary history. This 1947 version emanates from Sweden, a country uniquely attuned to the "guilt trip" which dominates the latter portions of the novel. Director Hampe Faustman also stars as Raskolnikov, the misguided intellectual who endeavors to prove his superiority to his fellow man by murdering an elderly pawnbroker. Because he considers himself bereft of such bourgeois attributes as a conscience, Rasklonikov is certain that he'll get away with the killing. But he hasn't reckoned with the kindly, methodical detective Samlotov (Sigurd Wallen), who knows that there's still a glimmer of humanity left in the arrogant murderer-and intends to exploits that glimmer to bring Raskolnikov to justice. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gunn Wållgren, Sigurd Wallen, (more)
- 1948
Var Sim Vag translates literally as Different Roads. Director Hasse Ekman stars as Tage Sundell, a busy doctor. So dedicated is Sundell to his work that his wife Birgit (Guna Wallgren) begins to feel like the proverbial fifth wheel. When the couple finally drifts apart to pursue their "different roads," they find out how much they truly depend upon each other. Played more for comedy than drama, Var Sim Vag was another feather in the cap of the multitalented Hasse Ekman, and a box-office winner in virtually every Scandinavian province. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Hasse Ekman, Gunn Wållgren, (more)
- 1965
Edit (Tina Hedstrom) is a late-blooming teenage girl who asks her mother Helen (Gunn Wallgren) to get her an outfit designed for a model. After she gets the gown, she is disturbed when she has her first period, nearly three years after it was first anticipated. Gunna Bjornstrand plays Helmer, Helen's sweetheart in this offbeat coming-of-age drama. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gunn Wållgren, Gunnar Björnstrand, (more)
- 1977
This lavish period piece was filmed throughout Denmark, Sweden and Finland, and is based on a children's book by Astrid Lindgren. "Lionheart" refers not to the "Richard" variety, but to the Lion brothers: two boys who suffered illness and poverty in Stockholm in 1910. They are reunited after death to become tireless do-gooders. In the name of their imprisoned leader Orvar, the ghostly Lions fight side by side against oppression in the Middle Ages. Parents, take heart: the spectral brothers' battles won't be terribly fierce, since the film carries a "G" rating. Steffan Gotestam and Lars Soderdahl star in The Brothers Lionheart, which overcomes a slow beginning with a rousing finale. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Staffan Götestam, Lars Söderdahl, (more)
- 1981
In a characterization that twists and turns like an insomniac, (Ewa Froeling) does the best she can with the female lead, Sally. The "liberated" Sally (a social worker) first wants to marry, and did marry Jonas, the lawyer. She wanted a child and did have little Mia. She does not want another child, gets pregnant, and gets an abortion without telling Jonas ahead of time. She next wants a divorce, and gets one, leaving with Mia. Then she wants to live together with Simon, a teacher, but does not want to marry him - and she carries that out. Then she wants Mia to live with Jonas, and sends her away. When she sees Jonas is happily married again, and Mia is happy, she wants to be married too. Simon does not. She wants a child. Simon does not. She gets pregnant. Simon does not want the child. She goes for another abortion. To say that Sally does not know her own mind, is to assume that the character has one as she fluctuates between wanting marriage and wanting divorce, wanting a baby and wanting an abortion, not wanting marriage and wanting marriage, not wanting an abortion and not wanting a baby. There are only so many of these combinations that can go around before three lemons come up. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ewa Fröling, Leif Ahrle, (more)
Though he made allusions to his own life in all of his films, Fanny and Alexander was the first overtly autobiographical film by Ingmar Bergman. Taking his time throughout (188 minutes to be exact), Bergman recreates several episodes from his youth, using as conduits the fictional Ekdahl family. Alexander, the director's alter ego, is first seen at age 10 at a joyous and informal Christmas gathering of relatives and servants. Fanny is Alexander's sister; both suffer an emotional shakedown when their recently-widowed mother (Ewa Froling) marries a cold and distant minister. Stripped of their creature comforts and relaxed family atmosphere, Fanny and Alexander suddenly find their childhood unendurable. The kids' grandmother (Gunn Wallgren) "kidnaps" Fanny and Alexander for the purpose of showering them with the first kindness and affection that they've had since their father's death. This "purge" of the darker elements of Fanny and Alexander's existence is accomplished at the unintentional (but applaudable) cost of the hated stepfather's life. Ingmar Bergman insisted that Fanny and Alexander, originally a multipart television series pared down to feature-film length, represented his final theatrical film, though within a year after its release he was busy with several additional Swedish TV projects, and his final work, the 2003 Saraband (also produced for Swedish television), eventually received global theatrical distribution. Oscars went to Fanny and Alexander for Best Foreign Film, Best Cinematography (Sven Nykvist), Best Costume Design and Best Art Direction/Set Decoration. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Pernilla Allwin, Bertil Guve, (more)
