Selma & Johanna - en roadmovie (1997)

Regisseur:

Ingela Magner

Drehbuchautoren:

Sara Heldt (writer)
Ingela Magner (writer)

Premierendatum:

29. August 1997 (Sweden)

Genre:

Familienfilm

Werbezeile:

De har fått nog. Och de vet vad som måste göras. Men jakten på rättvisa förvandlas snart till ett riktigt äventyr.

Plot:

Plot Keywords:

Road Movie

Filmpreise:

2 wins

Nutzerkommentare:

Echoes from happier childhood era

Besetzung

Kjell Bergqvist	...	Kjellman
Jakob Eklund	...	Göran
Grete Havnesköld	...	Selma
Jan Mybrand	...	Per
Anna Sjögren	...	Johanna
Johan Widerberg	...	Conny
Harriet Andersson	...	Karin
Lis Nilheim	...	Brita
Odile Nunes	...	Johanna's Mother
Martina Haag	...	Selma's Mother
Fredrik Ultvedt	...	Selma's Father
Barbro Hiort af Ornäs	...	Grandma
Anna-Lena Hemström	...	Teacher
Lakke Magnusson	...	Rektorn
Robert Sjöblom	...	Biljettförsäljare

Alternativ:

Aldrig mer (Sweden) (working title)
Aldrig mer 4B (Sweden) (working title)
Selma und Johanna (Deutschland) [de]

Länge:

91 Min

Produktionsland:

Sweden

Sprache:

Schwedische

Farbe:

Farbe

Altersfreigabe:

Norway:7 | Sweden:Btl

Drehorte:

Helsingborg, Skåne län, Sweden

Firma:

Cinetofon

Echoes from happier childhood era

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

This Swedish movie must be a nightmare for censors in countries that accept American Political correctness system of values. I believe many people in USA wouldn't agree with anything less than R rating.

The trouble is that this is by all means a children movie.

It is not very funny, it is - as title says - a road movie with not many adventures, and nothing much for adults. Kids might, however, enjoy it if not already been intoxicated by Japanese cartoons and Hollywood violence & body-function blockbusters (in which case they would turn the channel in first five minutes).

But many caring parents and social workers would lose their hair because of the messages in the movie and of behaving some (well, lets be honest: most) of the characters.

First we see a rigid school system and strict teacher that don't have enough understanding for pupils. In the end, however, a policeman (who was unsuccessful in school) helps a girl who has problems in learning (dyslexia?) just to make a revenge to that same school system. A weird person to help and a morally doubtful motif for doing it. And is it really a favor for a dyslectic girl to be only transferred to another class?

We see two 10 years old girls running away from home. They were alone during day (ask people in Eastern Europe or Asia at what age they have to leave kids alone, before alerting authorities!) and no one noticed they are missing till they left the town. There is no signal from the director that he doesn't applaud it. Yes, old writers had privileges to do it (Tom Sawyer, Emil and Detectives and other non-PC novels), but today it is considered totally unacceptable.

During their journey they meet many people and no one, I emphasize no one finds it strange to see two kids that age and get an idea to call police, or at least find out who they are and call their parents. Some of the people are even in public services like railway. One, however, mentions police, but only to frighten them, because they were hiding in his truck. And that's not all: one of the girl visits her grandmother who gives her money so the girls can travel abroad!

It is a simple kid's adventure movie. Nothing more and nothing less. But it is strange to see it made recently, in this paranoid world where PTAs create rules, social services peep through every window, media dig every worm and blow it to dinosaurs size to look sensational, everybody is building ramparts around themselves and hiding children in deepest corners... And everything is supposed to be safe and perfect. Then something happens that shows safety is still not 100 percent, so new rules are created, media, police and social workers start actions to fulfill it and again and again...

This movie looks like an echo from long forgotten better days of liberty, peaceful and happy childhood years. A world where children are free to walk through the streets and nothing will happen to them, but also no one will lose head (or job) because they did it. Can we rebuild such a world for the sake of future generations?

Other than that, it is a typical children movie, not on the top of Scandinavian production. The actors didn't impress me. Harrriet Anderson had a small role but did the great job, Kjell Bergqvist looked too much alike cops from German crime serials (Kommisar Rex, Cobra 11), Jakob Eklund was a bit annoying, maybe it was intentional, but not useful.. Johan Widerberg played good his interesting and well written role, but it was far from his work in Lust och fägring stor (directed by his father).

Watch it if you want to prove yourselves that movies like this can still be made. In some countries.