Scandinavian Cinema
'Scandinavian' is an Alice grouping which includes Sweden, Norway, Finland, Denmark and Iceland. To find films from one of these countries specifically use the 'By Country' link on the left hand menu.
From the sublime to the ridiculous; from Bergman to Lars von Trier, there is something in this section for everyone.
Films from this region are often deeply personal and have a brutal honesty about them. Characters are often deeply flawed or troubled but not judged. The Dogme 95 collective (founded by Lars von Trier and Thomas Vinterberg) exemplifies this attitude in their manifesto. Not just the stories but the film-making process itself is absolutely 'no frills'. (Visit www.dogme95.dk for more details.)
Other notables in this section include the quirky Finlander, Aki Kaurismaki, Fridrik Thor Fridrikkson from Iceland and Norwegian, Erik Skjoldjaerg.
Pictured: "It's one of the most delicious parts I've ever played. I've never been such a bastard before." Stellan Skaarsgard on his role in the rivetting 'Zero Kelvin'
Together (2000)
7.5/10
Director: Lukas Moodysson
Starring: Emma Samuelsson, Gustaf Hammarsten, Michael Nyqvist, Lisa Lindgren
The year is 1975. Elisabeth tires of her husband, so she packs her bags, takes her children and goes off to her brother, Goran. Elisabeth is a fairly... Read more
Show Me Love (1998)
7.6/10
Director: Lukas Moodysson
Starring: Rebecca Liljeberg, Erica Carlon, Alexandra Dahlstrom
Aka 'Fucking Amal'. Elin and Agnes are two teenage girls growing up in a small Swedish town. Elin is bored with her life in a community where things a... Read more
Festen ( The Celebration ) (1998)
7.5/10
Director: Thomas Vinterberg
Starring: Thomas Bo Larsen, Henning Moritzen, Paprika Steen, Ulrich Thomsen
A hugely dysfunctional family arrives at a secluded hotel for a 60th birthday party for the family patriarch. Suffice it to say, things don't go as ch... Read more
The Idiots (1998)
6.8/10
Director: Lars von Trier
Starring: Bodil Jorgensen, Jens Albinus, Louise Hassing
Concerns a group of people who live in a villa in a small Danish town who share one interest: idiocy. Civilised and intelligent they pretend otherwise... Read more
BECK (1997)
7.4/10
Starring: Ingvar Hirdwall, Mikael Persbrandt
Commissioner Martin Beck and his eccentric partner Gunvald Larsson investigate murders in Stockholm, center of criminality in Eastern Europe. Read more
Insomnia (1997)
7.3/10
Director: Erik Skjoldbjaerg
Starring: Stellan Skarsgard
Disgraced Swedish detective Jonas Engstrom (Stellan Skarsgard) travels to northern Norway to solve a brutal murder in "Insomnia." Unable to sleep thro... Read more
The Other Side Of Sunday (1997)
7.1/10
Director: Berit Nesheim
Starring: Marie Theisen, Hildegun Riise, Bjorn Sundquist
Aka 'Sondagsengler'. This Academy Award nominee for best foreign film, set in 1950s Norway, is a lyrical, biting look at a small church community and... Read more
Pusher Trilogy (1996)
7.4/10
Director: Nicolas Winding Refn
Starring: Mads Mikkelsen, Kim Bodnia
The complete Pusher trilogy. Dubbed a Scandinavian 'Trainspotting' by critics, this edgy Danish drama follows a small-time drug dealer who loses his s... Read more
Pusher (1996)
7.4/10
Director: Nicolas Winding Refn
Starring: Mads Mikkelsen, Kim Bodnia
Dubbed a Scandinavian 'Trainspotting' by critics, this edgy Danish drama follows a small-time drug dealer who loses his stash during a police raid lea... Read more
Zero Kelvin (1995)
7.4/10
Director: Hans Petter Moland
Starring: Stellan Skarsgard, Gard B Eidsvold, Bjorn Sundquist, Camilla Martens
Visually stunning and psychologically intense, 'Zero Kelvin' finds three men at odds with the elements and each other when they embark on a fur-trappi... Read more