The Saga of Gosta Berling (1924) and Swedish silent cinema

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I'm sure Kino will do a great job with the DVD.

To me, Victor Sjöström is not necessarily fatalist, although I can also be a bit too optimistic when I'm watching his films. My impression of him is very much affected by the first of his movies that I saw, Körkarlen (The Phantom Carriage). It's based on a story by Selma Lagerlöf. Selma Lagerlöf could be rather moralistic, and Körkarlen has been described as a "nykterhetspamflett", a piece of propaganda against alcoholism (is there anything wrong with that?). The story has never been counted among the classics, it's not one of Selma's best. But Victor Sjöström transforms it into one of the best movies of Swedish cinema. It's my personal favourite, because it's more than a document over social issues: it's a timeless redemption story. It's wonderfully atmospheric as well, and with a good restoration and a good sountrack, a beautiful film.

This story is about hope and forgiveness, though the main character, Victor Sjöström's David Holm, is sort of the villain of the piece. The central struggle in the story is him against himself. Victor Sjöström was interested in internal struggles like that, they are present in many of his films, and often a person's moral, good side would triumph, even if the ending was unhappy. That's the way it seems to me, after seeing a number of his films and reading about his work, hence why I think they carry hope. I could be making a generalization though. It's been a while since I watched his later films.

I agree with you, the lack of sugarcoating and false sentimentality is very appealing. That's what I love about them.

A new book has been published here about male silent film stars in Sweden. It's on my to-buy list, and I think there is bound to be some information about Lars Hanson there, for those of you interested in his life. I'll see what I can find when I read it.