A Swedish Love Story / En Kärlekshistoria
(Fiction, Sweden, 1969, 114’, C, Fr ST)
by Roy Andersson
with Ann-Sofie Kylin, Rolf Sohlman, Anita Lindblom

Synopsis
Two adolescents meet and cautiously fall in love in beautiful surroundings during the peak of an idyllic Swedish summer. Oblivious to social boundaries, they innocently create their own milieu in contrast to the distorted relationships, disillusionment, and world-weariness of adult life around them.
Reviews
“The minimalism of [Andersson’s] narrative reaches into dark zones, where we can see the exposure of wasted lives, the mediocrity of everyday life… and the necessity, despite everything, to avoid wallowing in despair. The radiant beauty of Annika and Pär and their emotional fusion affirms a state of miraculous grace: that grace which occurs prior to the decay of the fesh and the compromises of adulthood.” Jean A. Gili, Positif, june 2008
“My first movie, Swedish Love Story—it was good, I think. It’s very good for that style. It has good acting, and it’s very spiritual and very impressive. But I felt that I couldn’t go further with that style.” Roy Andersson, interviewed by Ignatiy Vishnevetsky, mubi.com, August 2009