
Acting
Gunnar Björnstrand
Born 1909-11-13 · Stockholm, Stockholms län, Sweden
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Gunnar Björnstrand (November 13, 1909 – May 26, 1986) was a Swedish actor known for his frequent work with writer/director Ingmar Bergman. He was born in Stockholm. He appeared in over 120 films. Björnstrand at first had trouble finding work but got an engagement in Helsinki with his wife 1936-1938. Back in Stockholm he met Ingmar Bergman, at that time a mostly unknown theatre director. In the 1940s he got his first major film roles, making a breakthrough with the 1946 movie Kristin kommenderar. He was a versatile actor who could play tough and tender as well as comedy and tragedy. His daughter Veronica Björnstrand is also an actress. One of his most famous roles was as the worldly squire who makes such a contrast to his austere and spiritual master in Bergman's most famous film The Seventh Seal. Description above from the Wikipedia article Gunnar Björnstrand, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia
Acting credits
8.1When disillusioned Swedish knight Antonius Block returns home from the Crusades to find his country in the grips of the Black Death, he challenges Death to a chess match for his life. Tormented by the belief that God does not exist, Block sets off on a journey, meeting up with traveling players Jof and his wife, Mia, and becoming determined to evade Death long enough to commit one redemptive act while he still lives.
The Seventh Seal
1957
8.1Crotchety retired doctor Isak Borg travels from Stockholm to Lund, Sweden, with his pregnant and unhappy daughter-in-law, Marianne, in order to receive an honorary degree from his alma mater. Along the way, they encounter a series of hitchhikers, each of whom causes the elderly doctor to muse upon the pleasures and failures of his own life. These include the vivacious young Sara, a dead ringer for the doctor's own first love.
Wild Strawberries
1957
8.0After a seven-year absence, Charlotte Andergast travels to Sweden to reunite with her daughter Eva. The pair have a troubled relationship: Charlotte sacrificed the responsibilities of motherhood for a career as a classical pianist. Over an emotional night, the pair reopen the wounds of the past. Charlotte gets another shock when she finds out that her mentally impaired daughter, Helena, is out of the asylum and living with Eva.
Autumn Sonata
1978
8.1A young nurse, Alma, is put in charge of Elisabeth Vogler: an actress who is seemingly healthy in all respects, but will not talk. As they spend time together, Alma speaks to Elisabeth constantly, never receiving any answer.
Persona
1966
7.3A traveling magician and his troupe arrive in a Swedish town in the 1840s, where their act is scrutinized by local authorities and a skeptical medical official. Their stay leads to a series of confrontations that test the boundaries between performance, belief, and deception.
The Magician
1958
7.8As children in the loving Ekdahl family, Fanny and Alexander enjoy a happy life with their parents, who run a theater company. After their father dies unexpectedly, however, the siblings end up in a joyless home when their mother, Emilie, marries a stern bishop. The bleak situation gradually grows worse as the bishop becomes more controlling, but dedicated relatives make a valiant attempt to aid Emilie, Fanny and Alexander.
Fanny and Alexander
1982
9.01830 Värmland, Sweden. Master Karl Arthur Ekenstedt comes to aid the Minister at Crosss Church. He falls in love with Charlotte Löwensköld, housekeeper in the rectory. They get engaged. Charlotte is full of life, energetic and practical. Karl Arthur struggle with his faith and God.
Charlotte Löwensköld
1979
5.8"I Slew" - Hospital drama of a doctor who thinks that he killed a patient on the operating table.
Jag dräpte
1943
7.3The banker Marcus falls in love with the young ballet-dancer Maj who works at the opera. To meet her he takes a job there but Maj is in love with Osvald Berg, the big star of the opera. To wake Osvald's interest for her she asks Marcus if he could play deeply in love with her. Plot summary by nL.
Miss April
1958
7.4Early in the 20th century, middle-aged lawyer Fredrik Egerman and his young wife, Anne, have still not consummated their marriage, while Fredrik's son finds himself increasingly attracted to his new stepmother. To make matters worse, Fredrik's old flame Desiree makes a public bet that she can seduce him at a romantic weekend retreat where four couples convene, swapping partners and pairing off in unexpected ways.
Smiles of a Summer Night
1955
The plot revolves around a sadistic doctor, a macabre gravedigger, an innocent girl, sabotage, sex and violent death. The beautiful Vivi Sander is living a rough life and is deeply in debt. She tries to force her family to sell the house to make ends meet. Vivi's car crash after a sabotage. She is injured and brought to a medical center where she meets the perverted Dr. Wester.
Sadist
1966
7.9A Swedish pastor fails a loving woman, a suicidal fisherman and God.
Winter Light
1963
7.0Love triangle between Svante, his fiancee Inga and Sophie, a girl from a rich family.
Swinging at the Castle
1959
8.5A loving couple on an escapade, ending in a hotel room in the underworld. When the floor waiter shows up, the woman feel she has seen him before. And suddenly she discovers who he is.
The lift that went down into hell
1969
7.1Don Juan is sent from Hell to Earth with a mission: to seduce a virgin in order to spoil her pure wedding. The mission becomes frantic when Don Juan falls in love for the first time in centuries.
The Devil's Eye
1960
4.8A man and a woman are cheated on by their respective partners and decide to get their revenge.
Oppåt med Gröna Hissen
1952
7.5In the midst of a civil war, a pair of former violinists in a tempestuous marriage oversee a farm on a rural island. In spite of their best efforts to escape their homeland, the war impinges on every aspect of their lives.
Shame
1968
6.4The four wives of four brothers share stories of their marriages as they wait for their husbands in a small, secluded cottage.
Waiting Women
1952
6.5Sweden, 1782. Jacob, a young noble, somewhat wild and vehement, returns from his studies in France. After his absence, he returns home happy, but is even happier of meeting his beloved sister Charlotte again. However, she has been promised to the Baron Alsmeden, a man of great influence at court, and this fact will awake a feeling like jealousy in Jacob.
My Sister My Love
1966
3.7On his death-bed, Per Henrik Pistolekors must promise his father two things: first of all to kill king Gustav III, which his father hates. Second, to take his half-sister Annarella to Stockholm to find her a rich and noble husband.
Lockfågeln
1971
8.0Cecilia is in hospital after being subjected to an attempt on her life. Her husband is called to the hospital. Cecilia deliriously mentions a mutual friend. The husband seeks out the friend.
Caged Women
1947
7.8Karin hopes to recover from her recent stay at a mental hospital by spending the summer at her family's cottage on a tiny island. Her husband, Martin, cares for her but is frustrated by her physical withdrawal. Her younger brother, Minus, is confused by Karin's vulnerability and his own budding sexuality. Their father, David, cannot overcome his haughty remoteness. Beset by visions, Karin descends further into madness.
Through a Glass Darkly
1961
4.6Married couple have romantic interludes in the summer, she at their summer cottage, him in the apartment in town.
Summer Place Wanted
1957
5.0Solidarity with the border people. Equal rights for the sexual deviants. Kristoffer Lohman is a young solicitor who collects stories and knowledge of different perversions. This has affected and changed his own sexual life. Sara, a young well-behaved and adorned woman, becomes interested in Kristoffer's activity.
Tabu
1977