Allan Edwall Movies

In this Scandinavian melodrama, a Swedish lieutenant journeys to a lonely island off the coast of Lapland for a summer of badly needed rest and relaxation. Once there, the soldier rents a hunting lodge from an aging local. Soon he encounters his landlord's lovely daughter who, while finding the stranger attractive, is put off by her innate distrust of men. With patience, he shows that men can indeed be trusted; he also introduces her to love. Unfortunately, the girl gets quite jealous when her father's lovely mistress also begins flirting with the stranger. The father is an abusive and jealous man; he cannot help but notice that his formerly passive daughter and mistress have begun standing up to him. To get even, he sends for the wealthy baron who once courted his daughter. He then informs his daughter that her lover, the soldier, has also been carrying on with his mistress. The lass disbelieves him until she sees the truth for herself, and the utterly distraught young woman agrees to marry the baron. The father then makes a play for his former mistress who spurns him and flees into the snowy mountains. It is an unfortunate coincidence that the soldier should choose that time to fire a signal shot to his lover, for his gun triggers off a deadly avalanche that sweeps the hapless mistress to her doom. The father goes mad with grief and burns down his hunting lodge. Later the lieutenant tries to smooth it all over with the daughter, but she is disconsolate and rejects him. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Inspired by a medieval Swedish ballad, Ingmar Bergman's The Virgin Spring (Jungfrukallan) begins with a scene of unspeakable brutality and ends with an image of uncommon beauty. 15-year-old Birgitta Peterson, on her way to church to light candles for the Virgin Mary, is raped and murdered by two older men. The men look for shelter at the home of Birgitta's father (Max Von Sydow), who murders the bestial killers in cold blood. When the deed is done, Von Sydow, a deeply religious man, begins to question the efficacy of a God that would allow his daughter's death, then permit so bloody a retribution. Then, a fresh, virgin spring bubbles from the ground where his daughter had been lying a few moments before. Taking this natural phenonenon as a sign from above, Von Sydow vows to erect a church on the spot where Birgitta met her doom. The winner of the "best foreign picture" Academy Award, The Virgin Spring currently exists in several versions of varying lengths; the longest, and most graphic, is the original Swedish cut. Believe it or not, this hauntingly beautiful film served as the basis of The Last House on the Left (1972). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide