UNDERBARA ÄLSKADE  (2006)

(SUDDENLY)

ROLE:  Lasse

GENRE: Drama

COUNTRY: Sweden

SWEDEN RELEASE: December 22, 2006

 
Synopsis

When a tragic car accident claims the lives of a mother and her youngest son, husband Lasse and their older son are left to fight their grief alone. Lasse, in the grip of almost suicidal depression, is urged to take his son Johan to their summer house on an island off Stockholm, where the two continue to avoid even mentioning their lost loved ones. Neighbors and grandparents are supportive in sometimes disruptive, sometimes intimate ways, and Johan gets genuine, tender loving care from a local young woman named Helena  But it's up to each of them to put down their demons - if they can.

 
Cast & Credit Details


Michael Nyqvist - Lasse
Anastasios Soulis - Jonas
Moa Gammel - Helena
 Catherine Hansson - Lotta
 Philip Zandén - Simon
Sten Ljunggren - Sven
Anita Wall - Ingegerd

* * * * *

Director - Johan Brisinger
Screenplay - Johan Brisinger & Mikael Bengtsson
Cinematography - Henrik Stenberg
Music - Henrik Lörstad
 

96 minutes

 
Production Notes:

The film took home the audience prize at the 2007 Swedish Film Institute’s Guldbagge Awards, Sweden’s equivalent of the Oscars.

The original Swedish title, Underbara älskade, means Wonderful Beloved.

Read interview with Michael

 
Publicity Stills
 
Promotional photo shoot - December 13, 2006


 
Film Commentary

"It's a beautiful film that grips emotionally and never lets go. When Nyqvist cries, we cry. And we know exactly how he feels... This is a hard-hitting drama with whose characters we firmly connect. Nyqvist has oodles of appeal as he draws us into his emotional state with an invisible fishing line, inviting us on his journey."   ...Louise Keller, Urban Cinefile

"Michael Nyqvist has that masculine appeal that transcends the macho stereotype... He has sex appeal for the thinking woman. But he's also a terrific actor who handles quiet dramas like this with great verve. Of course the quiet is superficial, but he can also explode brilliantly... The film's rich but subtle textures, the deliberate pace and the sparse yet glorious setting all combine to make this a truly satisfying film for the discerning cinephile."  ...Andrew L. Urban, Urban Cinefile

"The writing is deft and economical. The cast - including the wonderful Michael Nyqvist -  are all great. And the storyline is satisfying and well rounded."  ...Stuff.co.nz

"A polished, highly impressive debut from Swedish director-writer Johan Brisinger, Suddenly is a superbly-crafted meditation on loss, grief and redemption... Heading the uniformly excellent cast, Nyqvist gives a finely calibrated study of a man caught between grief, rage, guilt, self-pity and despair, and Soulis is an exciting talent."  ...Don Groves, sbs.au.com