PELLE THE CONQUEROR
Denmark/Sweden, 1988, 150 minutes, Colour.
Max Von Sydow, Pelle Hvenegaard, Kristina Tornquist.
Directed by Bille August.
Pelle the Conqueror won the Oscar for Best Foreign Film of 1988. Its star, Max von Sydow, was nominated for an Oscar as Best Actor.
Belle August has adapted a long 19th century novel for the screen. It treats of Denmark at the turn of the century - the Swedish migrants, life on the land and farms, rugged harshness, and the desire and dream to go to America. The style of the film is very much that of the 19th century novel - most shots taken with fixed camera rather than tracking. The action taking place within the frame - and a succession of incidents one after the other without much emphasis given to causality. This gives something of a static and episodic tone to the film - but makes it very much a 19th century story.
Max von Sydow gives a complex performance as the strong and weak Lasse. Pelle Hvenegaard is very good as the young Pelle. A film which is a tribute to the resilience of the human spirit.
1.Impact of the film? Scope and length? Adaptation of a popular novel? Oscar winner?
2.The Danish atmosphere? The novel, the 19th century? The perspective of 19th century history and culture? Change?
3.The landscapes, the seascapes, the vivid changing of the seasons? The farm, the fields and crops, the sheds and the cattle? The school, the houses? The mansion? Costumes and decor? Musical score?
4.The narrative development of the film, episodes without much causality? The framing of the action, the audience observing, little tracking and modern techniques of film-making? The vision of this world presented for the audience to observe?
5.Lasse and Pelle and their arrival, from Sweden, the immigrants to Denmark? The memories of Bengta? The significance of the move, their dreams of a better and easier world, arrival, harsh, no jobs, hired, settling in the shed? The rough work? The manager and the trainee, hardship, the meals, their relationship with the rest of the group, Erik and his surliness? The trainee and his brutality to Pelle with his trousers and beating? The anger of Lasse? His inability to sustain the anger? Subservience?
6.The mansion, the owner, his reliance on the manager and the trainee, the cattle, the work in the fields, the crops, the harvesting? The autocratic nature of authority? The trainee and his lording it over others? The manager and his harshness with Erik? The build-up to the harvest, the revolt against the manager, the uprising of the workers? The settings of poverty, wages, their status?
7.Lasse and his life, work, his love for his son, sharing the dreams, the father's and the son's bonds, the son admiring his father, his not being able to read, listening to his son with the catechism, the attraction to the widow, paying attention to her, sending Pelle, the building up of the relationship, his reputation, the children's attacks on Pelle? The carnival, the widow's husband's returning from the sea, Lasse and the decision to leave, his being ready, but unable to go? Pelle being offered the job of trainee, dressing for it, the pride of his father? The farewell? Lasse finishing his life on the farm?
8.Pelle and his age, hopes, the work, his friendship with Rum and playing with him, learning, the language, the brutality of the trainee and the incident of the beating, his despising his father for his weakness, the detail of life on the farm, the school, the passing of the seasons, religion and the catechism, going to the store and doing messages for the owner, the drink? Seeing the owner and his wife, the coin? The shock brutality of his beating Rum? The widow, going to visit her, the class and his humiliation? The fight? The return, his witnessing the seasons, continuing to work? The episode of the castration and its effect on him? The niece and her presence, pregnancy? The building up of experience, being offered the job of trainee? Friendship with Erik, Erik and his dream of leaving, Erik's accident? Pelle finally deciding to leave? To America?
9.The owner, the wife and her drinking, his bastard children around the countryside, Rum and his mother, the shouting at the gate? The arrival of the niece, her place in the household, prim and proper, his seduction of his niece, her pregnancy, having to leave? The violence of his wife castrating him? His subdued life after that, just going about the house? The dominance of the wife? Her love for her husband, her drinking, the humiliation, her relationship with her niece, the castration, ruling the household?
10.Erik and his hopes, the festival, full of life, wanting to leave, the revolution, the accident, his becoming a vegetable, the manager caring for him?
11.Rum, disfigurement, his relationship with his mother, playing with Pelle, the beating and its severity, his running away, hoping to be in the carnival, his delight in the carnival?
12.The episode with the niece, her arrival, in the country, her being seduced, the humiliation, her leaving?
13.The girl in the town, her love for the boy, her pregnancy, the death of the baby, the police coming?
14.Audiences viewing this slice of life of Denmark in the 19th century? The perspective of Pelle? Ordinary people, the setting, the scope, the nature of society? The view of this way of life in retrospect? European? Universal?
