The Wings
(Vingarne)

Mauritz Stiller, Sweden, 1916

FEATURING
Egil Eide
Lars Hanson
Lili Bech
Albin Lavén

One of Mauritz Stiller’s most conceptually interesting films, The Wings is unfortunately only preserved in fragmentary form. The original self-reflexive structure was considered too disorienting for many audiences upon its initial release, so the frame story was cut for international export. More recently, the film has received critical attention as both a drama about muted homosexual love and a stylistic anomaly for this period with its nuanced mixture of close-up and long shots.

Ingeborg Holm
(Give Us This Day, Margaret Day)

Victor Sjöström, Sweden, 1913

FEATURING
Hilda Borgström
Aron Lindgren
Erik Lindholm
Georg Grönroos

With its creative use of deep focus, meticulously choreographed blocking, and engagement with contemporary social issues, Ingeborg Holm set Victor Sjöström apart as a director and serves as one of the key artistic starting points for the Swedish cinematic tradition. Based on author Nils Krok’s firsthand experience with the Swedish welfare system, the film’s moving drama about widow Ingeborg Holm’s descent into poverty and maltreatment by the bureaucracy sparked a debate that eventually led to significant welfare reforms.

Christopher Oscarson