Displaying items by tag: Matias Nohrborg

BEING BO WIDERBERG

Sweden, 2025, 105 minutes, Colour.

Directed by Jon Asp, Matias Nohrborg.

An interesting documentary on Swedish film director, Bo Widerberg, outstanding film directing career in the 1960s, his chequered career during the succeeding decades. He died in 1997.

There were two ways of being Bo Winterberg. There was his personal life. There was his professional life. This film gives strong emphasis to both aspects of his being.

Born in 1930, growing up in Malmo (which was significant for him in his early films), he was encouraged by his mother, intending to be a writer, spent time in Paris, producing a book and short stories. He then became interested in film, writing and commentary, eventually moving into directing.

The great advantages of this documentary is the amount of clips included from his significant films. With commentary about them from a variety of talking heads, especially Tommy Berrgren, the star of most of his significant films of the 1960s, with observations by significant European directors like Roy Andersson, Oliver Assayas, Lars von Trier, Mia Hansen-Love, as well as a number of the actors who appeared in his films, there is a great deal to appreciate.

Almost immediately, he was recognised internationally, especially at the Cannes film Festival. His goal the romantic and star, Pia Degermark, won the best actress award at Cannes 1967. His social history, Adalen 30, won the Grand Prize, his social history, Joe Hill, won the special jury prize,  1971. And he was nominated three times for an Academy award, Ravens Gate, 1964, Adalen 30, 1969, All Things Fair, 1997 – the latter winning an award at the Berlin Film Festival.

But, Bo Widerberg was a difficult man and experienced times of depression. While he was praised in the 1960s as a great Swedish director like Ingmar Bergman, the film reveals his way of being as a person and personality. There are his relationship with women, former wives and partners, difficult relationships with his children (who are interviewed for this film as well as ex-wives and partners). Which means then that we hear very personal comments about Widerberg. And, he was difficult with his cast, with technicians, his demands. But, there are happy sequences of him, especially in Cannes. A combination of his personality and work as a director is his attempt to make a film in Hollywood, his demands, falling out with the producers, having to complete the film, Joe Hill, in Sweden.

So, while audiences and critics and festivals admired his work, this film reminds us that many artists, many who have the touch of genius, could be erratic in their behaviour, sometimes disturbed personalities.