This film, set on the Swedish island of Öland, opens shortly after the Second World War when we see a young man, Nils Kant, shoot two German soldiers. Then as he escapes on a train he guns down the policeman who was about to arrest him. The action then moves forward to 1993 when protagonist Julia Davidsson visits the island to see her father. She left after her young son disappeared twenty years previously; it was assumed that he had drowned but her father and one of his friends are convinced that he died in the nearby grassland and that somehow the killing is connected to Nils Kant. When Julia finds her father's friend dead, after an apparent accident, she decides to stay a few more days on the island. While there she befriends the local policeman who assures her that it was impossible that Kant was involved as he'd seen the body of Kant before he was buried in 1968 after years on the run in Cuba. When a child's sandal is sent to Julia's father it becomes apparent that somebody else wants the case reopened. As the story progresses we learn more about what happened to Nils Kant after he left the island and ultimately discover what happened to Julia's son all those years ago.
This Swedish film is a fairly routine offering; an enjoyable mystery in an interesting setting but feels more like a one-off TV drama than a film. There are some tense moments and a bit of a twist at the end although I'm sure most viewers will suspect the culprit even if they don't work out the details. Lena Endre does a solid job as Julia and is ably supported by Tord Peterson and Thomas W. Gabrielsson as her father and policeman Lennart Henriksson respectively although not speaking Swedish I can't comment on whether the actors playing islanders have the correct accents! The Öland setting, with its windswept scenery, adds to the haunting feel of mystery. Overall this may not be as dark as many mysteries coming out of the Nordic countries at the moment it is a decent enough mystery.
These comments are based on watching the film in Swedish with English subtitles.
This Swedish film is a fairly routine offering; an enjoyable mystery in an interesting setting but feels more like a one-off TV drama than a film. There are some tense moments and a bit of a twist at the end although I'm sure most viewers will suspect the culprit even if they don't work out the details. Lena Endre does a solid job as Julia and is ably supported by Tord Peterson and Thomas W. Gabrielsson as her father and policeman Lennart Henriksson respectively although not speaking Swedish I can't comment on whether the actors playing islanders have the correct accents! The Öland setting, with its windswept scenery, adds to the haunting feel of mystery. Overall this may not be as dark as many mysteries coming out of the Nordic countries at the moment it is a decent enough mystery.
These comments are based on watching the film in Swedish with English subtitles.