News

The distribution arm of Viaplay, the Scandinavian streamer co-owned by France’s Canal+ Group, has secured global sales rights to a trio of Nordic series “Adults,” “Suburbia” and “Second Run.”

Handled by Viaplay Content Distribution, the three shows are produced by Sf Studios-owned Flx, the leading Swedish banner behind “Solsidan” and “Welcome to Sweden.”

Adults” is a dramedy created by Amanda Högberg (“Love & Anarchy”) and Daniel Karlsson (“My Father Marianne”); and directed by Felix Herngren (“Bonus Family”), Måns Herngren (“The Restaurant”), and Adam Pålsson (“Meaning of Life”). The cast is led by Carla Sehn (“Love & Anarchy”), David Dencik (“Prisoner”), Simon Reithner (“Beck”) and Rakel Wärmländer (“Limbo”).

The show follows the life of Mathilda, whose perfect life derails when her boyfriend drops a surprise marriage proposal, leading her to navigate mounting pressures and a secret affair.

“Suburbia,” which has been commissioned by Warner Bros. Discovery, tells the story of Anders,...

Wicked, Oscar winner Anora, seasons 2 of Poker Face, starring Natasha Lyonne, and Landman, featuring Billy Bob Thornton, Demi Moore, Andy Garcia, and Sam Elliott, season 3 of Tulsa King, starring Sylvester Stallone, as well as Dexter: Resurrection with Michael C. Hall are among the high-profile titles coming to European streaming service SkyShowtime this year.

The streaming joint venture of Comcast and Paramount Global unveiled its slate, including new and exclusive series and first-run Hollywood films, on Tuesday. SkyShowtime also said that “a record number of local originals” will be coming to the service this year.

Among other TV hits, the fourth season of Mayor of Kingstown, starring Jeremy Renner, and season 2 of Seth MacFarlane’s comedy Ted are part of the content lineup for SkyShowtime this year, along with such fresh fare as mystery All Her Fault, starring Sarah Snook and Dakota Fanning, adventure series Atomic with Alfie Allen and Samira Wiley,...

On the heels of her breakout performance in The White Lotus, Aimee Lou Wood has now joined director Marc Forster's adaptation of Anxious People. Based on the Fredrik Backman novel, the film casts Wood as a robber who (unwittingly) takes strangers hostage after a bank heist gone wrong.

The White Lotus star Aimee Lou Wood will join Angelina Jolie in Anxious People, a feature adaptation of author Fredrik Backman's namesake novel.Deadline confirmed Wood has been cast as the story's catalyst and reluctant villain. David Magee developed the screenplay with Marc Forster set to direct; both have previously collaborated in the 2022 adaptation of Backman's A Man Called Otto. The film is currently looking for domestic and international distributors at Cannes, via WME Independent and Black Bear Pictures.

Per synopsis, Anxious People starts on "the day before Christmas Eve, [when] investment banker Zara (Jolie) begrudgingly finds herself mingling with a...

European streaming service SkyShowtime has revealed the cast and the first look images for its upcoming Swedish six-part original series “Where the Sun Always Shines,” shot on location in Mallorca and premiering exclusively on SkyShowtime on Nov. 10.

The show, created by director, writer and actor Felix Herngren, stars Claes Månsson, Suzanne Reuter and August Wittgenstein. They will join previously announced Erik “Jerka” Johansson (“Bonusfamiljen”), Rakel Wärmländer (“Limbo”), Per Lasson (“Tunna blå linjen”) and Lisa Linnertorp (“Solsidan”) in the dark comedy-drama’s ensemble, alongside Sofia Ledarp, Peter Magnusson, Ibrahim Faal, Inger Nilsson, David Batra, Christopher Wollter, Elvin Philipson, Iris Herngren, Elis Gerdt and Wojtek Goral.

“Where the Sun Always Shines” Courtesy of Eric Josjo

“Where the Sun Always Shines” follows Tom (Lasson) and Petra (Linnertorp), a successful couple who built up a large Ica Maxi store in Linköping and sold it for a record sum to live a life of luxury in Mallorca with their sons.

SkyShowtime has boarded a new original series, “Where the Sun Always Shines,” created and directed by Felix Herngren, the critically acclaimed Swedish writer-filmmaker behind “Sunny Side,” “Bonus Family” and “The 100 Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared.”

The six-part original series is led by a star-studded Swedish cast, including Erik “Jerka” Johansson (“Bonus Family”), Rakel Wärmländer (“Limbo”), along with Per Lasson (“Thin Blue Line”) and Lisa Linnertorp (“Sunny Side”). The dark dramedy series was filmed on location in Mallorca, Spain, and will be available to stream on SkyShowtime, a joint venture of Comcast and Paramount, later this year.

“Where the Sun Always Shines” follows Tom (Lasson) and Petra (Linnertorp), a successful couple who have built up a large Ica Maxi store in Linköping and sold it for a record sum. “They have been living a life of luxury in Mallorca with their sons for a month, ready to enjoy an eternal vacation.

Germany’s Beta Cinema has boarded international sales on Let It Rain, the next eature from A Man Called Ove director Hannes Holm.

Beta will introduce the film to buyers at next month’s American Film Market. It is heading into post-production after it wrapped shooting at the end of September.

Set in a small town in southern Sweden, Let It Rain follows a grumpy widower during the hottest summer in recent memory, who is suddenly thrust into the spotlight of a world-changing event.

Robert Gustafsson, star of Felix Herngren’s The 100 Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out The Window And Disappeared,...

Germany’s Beta Cinema has boarded international sales on Let It Rain, the new feature from A Man Called Ove director Hannes Holm.

Beta will introduce the film to buyers at next month’s American Film Market. It is heading into post-production after it wrapped shooting at the end of September.

Set in a small town in southern Sweden, Let It Rain follows a grumpy widower during the hottest summer in recent memory, who is suddenly thrust into the spotlight of a world-changing event.

Robert Gustafsson, star of Felix Herngren’s The 100 Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out The Window And Disappeared,...

Kevin Costner’s ‘The Gray House’ To Open Monte-Carlo TV Festival

The 63rd Monte-Carlo Television Festival, which takes place 14-18 June, has added a touch of star power. The Kevin Costner-produced civil war spy drama The Gray House will be this year’s World Premiere Screening. The limited series, which Costner’s Territory Pictures and Morgan Freeman’s Revelations Entertainment are making alongside Republic Pictures and Big Dreams Entertainment, will open the fest following a red carpet arrival and opening ceremony. The show, based on a true story, stars Mary-Louise Parker, Daisy Head (Harlots), Amethyst Davis (Kindred) and Ben Vereen (Roots) as the unsung women who turned the tide of the American Civil War in favor of the North. Paramount Global Content Distribution has international sales rights. Previous Monte-Carlo openers have included Harlan Coben’s Shelter, Last Light, Empire, Absentia, Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan and L.A’s Finest.

‘Quicksand’s Flx Gets New CEO

Joshua Mehr has been named CEO of Flx, the Swedish producer behind Netflix’s series Quicksand. Pontus Edgren, who part-owns the company alongside founder and Creative Director Felix Herngren and majority shareholder Sf Studios, is stepping down as CEO. According to a press release, Edgren has chosen to leave “on his own initiative” and has been “in dialogue with Flx’s owners for some time to ensure a smooth succession.” Mehr has been with the company as Head of Business Affairs since 2015 and is stepping up to the CEO post with “an extremely good understanding of the industry and Flx in particular,” said Iréne Lindblat, CEO off Sf Studios and Chair of the Flx board. Flx’s behind series such as Sunny Side, Love & Anarchy and Quicksand, feature films such as The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared and Comedy Queen,...

Danish debut feature helmer-writer Tea Lindeburg’s period drama “As In Heaven,” that portrays a fateful summer day and night in 19th century farming society, came away the biggest winner at the 44th Göteborg Film Festival, scoring on Saturday the best Nordic film kudo, this year worth approx. $44,000.

Meanwhile, Seidi Haarla of Finland’s Oscar-shortlisted drama, “Compartment No. 6” took the best acting prize. The film, helmed by Juho Kuosmanen, also nabbed the Fipresci critics nod.

Norway-born Dp Sturla Brandth Grøvlen claimed the Sven Nykvist Cinematography Award for his work on the Norwegian film “The Innocents,” directed by Eskil Vogt. The perfectly executed thriller about rival playmates with paranormal abilities also took the audience award for best Nordic film.

Danish helmer Simon Lereng Wilmont captured the best Nordic documentary title and a purse of approx. $27,000 for “A House Made Of Splinters,” a masterful portrayal of the children and daily life at an orphanage in Eastern Ukraine.

Energized by the second strong year in a row for Scandinavian cinema, a hybrid 45th Göteborg Film Festival will open with Christoffer Sandler’s “So Damn Easy Going” in main Nordic Competition, alongside Juho Kuosmanen’s “Compartment No. 6” and Eskil Vogt’s “The Innocents.”

Despite new theater capacity controls announced by Swedish prime minister Magdalena Andersson on Monday, Göteborg, which had anticipated the tighter restrictions, is pressing ahead with its plans for an on-site festival with select online screenings of some 50 films for Sweden, festival artistic director Jonas Holmberg told Variety.

Luca Guadagnino will receive an Honorary Dragon Award, attending the festival and participating in an on-stage conversation after the screening of “Call Me By Your Name” on Feb. 3.

Playing Lady Jessica Atreides in “Dune,” Rebecca Ferguson (“Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation”) will pick up a Nordic Honorary Dragon Award.

Produced by Sweden’s Cinenic Film, the company behind Sundance...

Mubi has unveiled their lineup for next month, featuring the exclusive streaming premiere of Frederick Wiseman’s masterful documentary City Hall, the late Monte Hellman’s final film Road to Nowhere, a trio of works by Stephen Cone, two films by Alain Resnais, the multi-month series Sex, Truth, and Videotape: French Feminist Activism, and Abel Ferrara’s Bad Lieutenant.

As a special addition in addition to the regular programming listed below, the new restoration of Meeting the Man: James Baldwin in Paris will be available as a free presentation celebrating Juneteenth, from June 18-19. Timed with the release of his latest gem Undine, a Christian Petzold retrospective continues with his earlier, essential films Yella, Barbara, Ostwärts, and The Warm Money.

Check out the lineup below, with links to reviews where available, and get 30 days of Mubi for free here. One can also check back for our new streaming picks every Friday here.

The Swedish dramedy series is based on Fredrik Backman's novel of the same name. Stockholm-born filmmaker-actor Felix Herngren is working on a new Netflix Original production, entitled Anxious People. Herngren is best known for his successful comedy The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared (2013), which grossed over €44 million worldwide, and the Swedish TV series The Sunny Side, the saga of which was brought to a close by a feature of the same name, The Sunny Side, released in 2017 and directed in tandem with his brother Måns Herngren. Anxious People, penned in its entirety by Camilla Ahlgren, centres on a hostage drama that unfolds during an open house. A failed bank robber locks himself in with an over-enthusiastic real-estate agent, two bitter Ikea addicts, a pregnant woman, a suicidal multi-millionaire and a rabbit. In the end, the robber gives...

As it seeks to bolster its production input, the centenary Nordic major Sf Studios has acquired a majority stake in thriving Swedish outfit Flx, the company behind the Netflix show “Quicksand” and some of Sweden’s most popular series, including “Solsidan” (pictured), and the popular movie “The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared.”

Under the deal with Sf Studios, Flx’s founder Felix Herngren and CEO Pontus Edgren will remain significant shareholders and keep spearheading daily operations at the company which will continue operating as an independent production company under its own brand. The pact has yet to be approved by the Swedish anti-trust board.

Michael Porseryd, CEO at Sf Studios, pointed that both companies have been collaborating for several years as part of a distribution deal covering the theatrical release of Flx’s movies. “This is the next step bringing us together,”

“The team at Flx,...

ABC’s comedy pilot Steps is staying alive. ABC Studios has picked up the options of the entire cast of the project, starring Once Upon a Time alumna Ginnifer Goodwin alongside Kyle Bornheimer, Barry Rothbart, Ryan Michelle Bathe, Julie Hagerty and Cameron Boyce.

Steps, based on the Swedish format Bonus Family, is currently being retooled by the pilot’s writer Kristin Newman (The Muppets). Picking up the cast certainly is a promising sign though there has been no decision on reshooting the pilot yet.

Steps, from ABC Studios and studio-based Mandeville TV, revolves around four adults in three houses raising three kids after two divorces — together. The pilot was in serious contention for a series pickup in May and was also brought up in the immediate aftermath of ABC’s cancellation of Roseanne, when the network considered picking up another comedy series to fill the void. (ABC ultimately replaced Roseanne with spinoff The Conners.

Lille, France — Beta Film subsidiary Good Friends Filmproduktion, whose groundbreaking TNT Comedy original “Arthur’s Law” plays Saturday at Series Mania, has acquired the German remake rights to hit Swedish format “Bonus Family.”

Good Friends is in final negotiations for a German broadcaster to take the reversion.

“Bonus Family” was produced by Flx, whose credits include “The 100 Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window And Disappeared” and its sequel, “The 101-Year Old Man Who Skipped Out on the Bill and Disappeared.”

It was created by these movies’ director, Felix Herngren, and his second wife, Clara Herngren – appropriately enough, given “Bonus Family” turns on people initiating relationships with new partners who already have children.

Netflix acquired the series’ first two seasons, presented outside Sweden, where the series played very well on pubcaster Svt, as a Netflix original outside Sweden, its first totally Swedish show.

“The producers themselves are in a patchwork family,...

It's official. Will Ferrell is The 100 Year-Old Man. The improv icon will be starring in the comedy for CBS Films. The script for this hilarious caper will be based on author Jonas Jonasson's bestselling novel The 100 Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared. Not only is Ferrell set to play the lead, he'll also be producing the movie.

Will Ferrell is playing senior citizen Allan. The elderly man manages to escapes from his nursing home on his 100th birthday. While he goes on the run, it is revealed that Allan took part in several different defining events from the 20th Century. It's a lot like that little seen movie from 1994 called Forrest Gump. The movie was already made in Sweden. In that version, Allan had a fateful meeting with President Harry S. Truman. And he also had a memorable run-in with Robert Oppenheimer, the guy who created the atomic bomb.

Agreement comprises co-production and distribution of all of Flx’s projects in development.

Scandinavian film distribution and production outfit Ab Svensk Filmindustri and Swedish production company Flx have signed an exclusive output agreement.

The deal, which covers the Nordic region (Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Norway and Iceland) and comprises co-production and distribution, will relate to all projects that Flx has in development.

Run by Felix Herngren, Pontus Edgren and Niclas Carlsson, Flx’s credits include Oscar-nominated comedy The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out Of The Window And Disappeared, which grossed more than $51m worldwide, as well as TV series Boy Machine, Solsidan and Torpederna.

The company plans to make “major investments over the next few years”, read a release, with Edgren adding that they had found “a strong partner” in Svensk Filmindustri.

Svensk Filmindustri recently announced the appointments of Tim King as executive vice president production and Lars Bredo Rahbek as head of production.

The Academy's seven finalists for Best Makeup and Hairstyling at the 2016 Oscars include a critically acclaimed action-adventure, an epic Western, two gangster movies, and at least one title few, if any, awards watchers were predicting to contend: director Felix Herngren's Swedish literary adaptation "The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed out the Window and Disappeared." Notably, neither "The Danish Girl" nor "Carol"—two of the films most favored to receive attention in this category, made the shortlist. Read More: "Oscar Predictions 2016 Update" On January 9, members of the Academy's makeup artists and hairstylists branch will screen a 10-minute excerpt from each of the seven shortlisted films, of which three will be nominated. This year's Oscar nominations will be announced live on January 14, with the ceremony to follow February 28. Read the full list of films shortlisted for Best Makeup and Hairstyling below: "Black...

Exclusive: In a further sign of Scandinavian content’s global appeal, Anonymous Content and Paramount TV are developing Legbreakers, an English-language version of the hit Swedish drama Torpederna. The original series airs on Sweden's TV4, where it has proved a ratings juggernaut. Legbreakers will be exec produced by Anonymous Content's Chad Hamilton and Steve Golin. Torpederna showrunner Felix Herngren also will serve as exec producer along with Pontus Edgren, managing…...

Picking the best movies that come out in any given year is no easy feat. With over 800 movies released theatrically, there’s plenty to digest. As we reach the halfway point of the year, we decided to publish a list of our favourite movies thus far, in hopes that our readers can catch up on some of the films they might have missed out on. Below, you shall find the list of the top 30 films of 2015 to date, a list that ranges from independent horror films to documentary to foreign films and so much more. Here’s is part two of our three part list.

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20. The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared

Eccentrically layered yet simple in plot, the Swedish adaptation of Jonas Jonasson’s novel does a fine job in balancing satire with tenderness. Telling the story of Allan Karlsson (Robert Gustafsson), a 100-year-old explosive enthusiast...

A cute walk through history with an unwilling history-maker.Felix Herngren’s comedy has made a big splash in European markets but is going to have tougher going in the USA. Although the film will probably unseat the reigning champion “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo” at the box office, its extreme creativity is hamstring by its pronounced lack of dynamic. A remarkable stream of outrageous and funny episodes, one could take the first, replace it with the middle or last, and have the same film.The Swedish-language comedy is co-written by the director and Hans Ingemansson. Based on the novel by Jonas […]...

Morbid and droll in the manner of several other recent Scandinavian exports, The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed out the Window and Disappeared rarely manages to also be funny. Allan Karlsson, the centenarian in question, is played by 49-year-old Robert Gustafsson. Old age has made his character no less of a hellion; Felix Herngren's adaptation of the bestselling Jonas Jonasson novel begins with our hero being shipped off to a nursing home after TNT'ing the fox that killed his beloved cat Molotov, whom he proudly proclaims meant more to him than anyone else in his life. Allan liberates himself from his geriatric confines shortly thereafter, happening upon a briefcase stuffed with cash at a bus station and gaining a much younger enemy in the process. As he go...

The Hundred Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared was first described to me as “a European Forrest Gump with lots of explosions,” and I was sold! After watching it, I’m pleased to report that this description is dead on. Adapted by director Felix Herngren from Jonas Jonasson’s bestselling book of the same name, The 100 Year Old Man is a loose-limbed, historically sprawling shaggy dog of a movie. Enjoyment is predicated on your acceptance of the ridiculous and, most importantly, of you being able to appreciate the sight of a terrified skinhead being squashed to death by an elephant’s butt.

We open with the titular 100-year-old Allan Karlsson (Robert Gustafsson) mourning the death of his beloved cat at the hands of a fox. Clutching a stick of dynamite in his withered hand, he shuffles through the snow and plants it in the ground. Boom. No more fox.

Shot in the Dark: Herngren’s Tiring Road Comedy Overplays Gimmick

Before you can even wrap your mind around its cumbersome title, you’ll be immediately comparing The 100-Year-Old Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared to the structure of the famed American title it clearly resembles, Forrest Gump. Certainly less schmaltzy and more acerbic than that film, the concept wears thin rather quickly as we struggle through a stilted present day scenario considerably padded with useless flashbacks that extend the running time to a screeching two hours of comic buffoonery apparently going on behind major world events.

On the eve of his one hundredth birthday, spry elder Allan Karlsson (Robert Gustafsson) bails out of his ground level window and takes off into the Swedish countryside. A mix-up at the train station finds him in possession of a large suitcase of money, whose owner, an angry skinhead, alerts his cohorts of the mishap.

For all of us who feel Robert Zemeckis's Forrest Gump is a sentimental, condescending, apple pie enema to cinema lovers, and David Fincher's The Curious Case of Benjamin Button somehow missed the mark, we finally have an entry in 'the man who bumbles through history' nano-genre to call our own. Do not let the maladroit title fool you, Felix Herngren's big-screen adaptation of the bestselling novel by Jonas Jonasson is a Swiss fucking watch in the plotting department, and savagely amusing in its come-what-may temperament. It sneaks up on you in similar ways as Jo Nesbo's Headhunters, even as it dazzles with the sweep of history.After a tone-setting and highly unfortunate incident involving a sweet kitty, a hungry fox, and a bundle of dynamite, one of cinema's...

[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...

Toh! reveals an exclusive clip from "The 100-Year Old Man Who Climbed out the Window and Disappeared," a Swedish comedy that Music Box Films opens stateside on May 8.  After a long and colorful life working in munitions and getting entangled in the Spanish Civil War, the Manhattan Project, and other definitive events of the 20th century, Allan Karlsson finds himself stuck in a nursing home. Determined to escape on his 100th birthday, he leaps out of a window and onto the nearest bus, kicking off an unexpected journey involving, among other surprises, a suitcase stuffed with cash, some wicked criminals, and an elephant named Sonya. Robert Gustafsson plays Karlsson in this film directed by Felix Herngren, known for TV comedies in Sweden. This was a Euro fest and box office hit back in 2013 and 2014. THR praises the film's "inventive plotting and infectious irreverence for historical details."...

Billy Crystal tried to explain to TV critics why he’s starring in a new FX comedy series based on a 2004 Swedish series Ulveson And Herngren, that starred comedians Felix Herngren and Johan Ulveson as they put together a sketch program – rather than start from scratch. Crystal, who’s also one of the writers and EPs on The Comedians, explained it’s because he hadn’t had any thought of doing a TV series “and then this show came along and there were 12 episodes” and it was…...

There’s a reason you go to film festivals, and it doesn’t always have to do with the lineup of movies. You could probably convince yourself that you’ll eventually watch The Imitation Game on Netflix, but the real reason to actually make a point and see it at a place like Ciff is that there’s nothing quite like a festival audience. Watching any movie with a large group of people who are dedicated to film and to being attentive and active during a screening can inherently enhance the experience of watching it. When you’re watching a crowd pleaser, that experience can increase tenfold, in that you’re actually watching that film with a crowd that’s waiting to be pleased.

In the case of the first two films I saw this weekend at Ciff, the Brazilian coming-of-age drama The Way He Looks, and the outrageously dark...

Crass comedy in the form of The Inbetweeners 2 ruled the Australian box-office last weekend while James Cameron's Deepsea Challenge 3D sank ingloriously.

Doctor Who fans turned out in reasonable numbers for the Sunday cinema screening of the first episode of series 8 while Nick Cave.s new dramatised documentary had its admirers.

Nationwide takings slipped by 4% to $12.6 million, according to Rentrak.s estimates, as four titles each pulled in more than $1 million.

The Australian location of the Inbetweeners sequel no doubt contributed to the comedy.s strapping $3.15 million debut, $3.25 million including previews. That was 10% bigger than the 2011 opening of the original, which wound up earning $9.2 million.

Superhero fans are still discovering Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy, which breezed through its third outing fetching $2.7 million (down 36%), which propels its haul to $19.1 million.

Word-of-mouth is sustaining romantic drama The Hundred-Foot Journey, which eased by just 16% to $1.7 million, banking a hearty $5.7 million in 11 days.

This past Wednesday, August 6th, saw the close of the 18th edition of Montreal's Fantasia Film Festival; and now that the dust has settled, we have the full list of this year's award winners plus the Fest's dates for 2015.

From the Press Release:

Returning to its home at Concordia University after the location’s massive 2013 renovations, the acclaimed Fantasia International Film Festival, North America’s longest-running genre film fest, benefited from having three theaters in which to screen its record 160+ films.

Among the numerous highlights that took place during the three-week festival were the crowd-pleasing, revelatory world premieres of Leo Gabriadze’s Cybernatural (review here), Sarah Adina Smith’s The Midnight Swim, and Bennett Jones’ I Am A Knife With Legs. Also of note were massively successful screenings of Richard Linklater’s Boyhood, James Gunn’s Guardians Of The Galaxy, Lee Su-jin’s Han Gong-ju, Keishi Otomo’s Rurouni Kenshin – Kyoto Inferno,...

For all of us who feel Robert Zemeckis's Forrest Gump is a sentimental, condescending insult to cinema audiences everywhere, and David Fincher's The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is not a helluvalot better, we finally have an entry into 'the man who bumbles through history' nano-genre to call our own. Do not let the maladroit title fool you, Felix Herngren's big screen adaptation of the bestselling novel by Jonas Jonasson is a Swiss fucking watch in the plotting department, and savagely amusing in its come-what-may temperament. It sneaks up on you in similar ways as Jo Nesbo's Headhunters, even as it dazzles with the sweep of history.After a tone-setting and highly unfortunate incident involving a sweet kitty, a hungry fox, and a bundle of dynamite, one of...

[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...

An absurdist mock epic that is hilarious, outrageous, and completely insane. It’s like a bonkers Swedish Forrest Gump. I’m “biast” (pro): nothing

I’m “biast” (con): nothing

I have not read the source material

(what is this about? see my critic’s minifesto)

Rarely has a film’s title been so bold, so bald, so straightforward, so lacking in pretense, pretension, or bullshit as that of The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared. To escape the dreadfully cheery imminent celebration of his 100th birthday, Allan Karlsson (Robert Gustafsson, who is actually only half that age) climbs out the window of the retirement home he was sentenced to after an unfortunate mishap with dynamite, and disappears. Not to our eyes, of course, only to those of the horrible busybodies in the home who want to limit his fun. Allan really likes blowing things up,...

The hit book heads to the big screen - Simon checks out The 100 Year Old Man

I hear the book's really good. In fact, Jonas Jonasson's The 100-Year Old Man Who Climbed Out Of The Window And Disappeared is something of a phenomenon, earning rave reviews and selling lots of copies. And it starts, as the film does, with its title. Allan Karlsson is 100 years old. He's spending his birthday sat in an old people's home, surrounded by fuss that he doesn't really want. So he elects to climb out of the window, and begin a quite incredible life adventure.

In fact, as we learn throughout the story, he's already lived many life adventures, meaning we get to spend time with current Allan and past Allan, with the story jumping between the two. The film casts Robert Gustafsson in the title role, and he captures the mischief and coincidence...

★★★☆☆It was perhaps inevitable that Swedish author Jonas Jonasson's popular 2009 novel, The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared, would make it to the big screen. A tale which straddles multiple decades and features a host of colourful supporting characters, it's a book which almost seemed primed for cinematic treatment upon conception and now comes to life courtesy of director Felix Herngren. Swedish comedian and actor Robert Gustafsson plays the titular role of Allan Karlsson, once an explosives expert/obsessive with a penchant for vodka, now a dithering old gentleman who escapes from his care home as celebrations are being organised for his centenary.

With the release of The 100 Year Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared impending, we had the pleasure of speaking to the man at the helm, Felix Herngren. We discussed what inspired him to adapt this from the original novel, why he chose Robert Gustafsson for the lead role Allan, and how he balanced the comedy with the more poignant elements of the narrative. He also tells us how Alan Ford (Brick Top from Snatch) came to be involved…

The 100 Year Old Man is of course a novel originally – was it a book you always wanted to bring to the big screen, or were you actively on the lookout for ideas for a screenplay?

My friend Henrik Jansson-Schweizer, who is also a producer on the film, called me up a few years ago and said that I had to read this book it would make a fantastic film.

Based on the popular Jonas Jonasson novel of the same name, you’ll be thrilled to hear that this Felix Herngren production remains wholly faithful to the somewhat descriptive, elongated title. As this offbeat, surrealistic comedy, as promised, tells the wondrous story of The 100 Year Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared.

The titular protagonist is Allan Karlsson (Robert Gustafsson), a mischievous elderly resident, with an inclination to blow stuff up from time to time. One day, he escapes out of the window at his care facility to go for an adventure, taking the train to the first place that springs to mind. En route, he inadvertently finds himself the owner of a stranger’s bag – which soon transpires to have millions of euros within it. Suddenly he becomes the target of a dangerous gang of criminals who the money belongs to. However this is not the...

Following last week’s first wave of programming announcements, the Fantasia International Film Festival has revealed its second wave of programming, which includes a screening of Ju-On: The Beginning of the End and a 40th anniversary screening of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, where Tobe Hooper will be presented with a lifetime achievement award:

“Official Closing Film – Abel Ferrara’s Welcome To New York

Fantasia will close its 2014 edition with the North American Premiere of Abel Ferrara’s Welcome To New York, the controversial latest from the legendary filmmaker behind such landmarks as Bad Lieutenant, King Of New York, New Rose Hotel and the recently re-released Ms 45.

Welcome To New York is loosely based on the Dsk scandal and stars the iconic Gérard Depardieu in one of the bravest performances of his career. Co-starring is the equally sensational Jacqueline Bisset.

Abel Ferrara will be on hand to host this special evening,...

We're back with more titles heading to the 2014 Fantasia Film Festival as well as a few new images and word on a Lifetime Achievement Award for Tobe Hooper. Read on for all the details!

From the Press Release:

Following last week’s first wave of programming announcements, the Fantasia International Film Festival is proud to unveil additional highlights to rev you up for our July 10th Press Conference, where our full 2014 film lineup will be revealed.

Official Closing Film - Abel Ferrara’s Welcome To New York

Fantasia will close its 2014 edition with the North American Premiere of Abel Ferrara’s Welcome To New York, the controversial latest from the legendary filmmaker behind such landmarks as Bad Lieutenant, King Of New York, New Rose Hotel and the recently re-released Ms 45.

Welcome To New York is loosely based on the Dsk scandal and stars the iconic Gérard Depardieu in one of...

The 18th Fantasia International Film Festival’s second lineup of films was unveiled Thursday, and it features the closing night film on August 5, Welcome to New York directed by Abel Ferrara (Bad Lieutenant, Ms. 45).

Ferrara will be present to talk about his latest film, starring Gérard Depardieu and Jacqueline Bisset. The film was received with warm reviews after appearing out of competition at Cannes and at the Edinburgh International Film Festival.

The Fantasia Film Fest runs July 17 to August 5 in Montreal, and the full lineup of films, in addition to the ones already announced, will be released July 10.

View the whole press release of second wave lineup announcements below.

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Fantasia Announces Second Wave

Of 2014 Programming Montreal, Thursday June 26, 2014 – Following last week’s first wave of programming announcements, the Fantasia International Film Festival is proud to unveil additional highlights to rev you up for our July 10th Press Conference, where...

Abel Ferrara’s controversial Dsk feature to receive North American premiere at the genre festival, which has announced its second wave of programming.

Welcome to New York will receive its North American premiere as the closing film of this year’s Fantasia International Film Festival.

Abel Ferrara’s controversial feature, loosely based on the Dsk scandal, is part of the second wave of programming for the Montreal-based genre festival, along with the international premiere of Masayuki Ochiai’s reboot Ju-on: The Beginning of the End.

The second wave includes three additional world premieres – Tim Grabham & Jasper Sharp’s The Creeping Garden, Joseph O’Brien’s The Devil’s Mile and Chad Archibald’s The Drownsman – while the likes of Brian O’Malley’s Let Us Prey and Maximilian Erlenwein’s Stereo receive their North American premieres at this year’s edition.

Nicholas McCarthy’s At the Devil’s Door (formerly Home), Wong Jin’s From Vegas to Macau...

The event led by Toronto International Film Festival founder Bill Marshall is set to run from June 19-22.

Gala premieres include the world premiere of Restrung, Mike Enns’ portrait of Disney animator Randall Wyn Fullmer, the North American premiere of Felix Herngren’s Swedish Blockbuster The Hundred Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out Of The Window And Disappeared and animation Ribbit featuring the voices of Sean Astin and Russell Peters.

The roster includes Emilio Aragon’s A Night In Old Mexico starring Robert Duvall, Stuart Murdoch’s God Help The Girl and Ira Sachs’ gay-marriage drama Love Is Strange with John Lithgow and Alfred Molina.

The Canadians-At-Cannes shorts curated by Danny Lennon include Kyle Thomas’ The Post, Moira Sauer’s The Provider and Felix Lajeunesse and Paul Raphael’s The Sparkling River.

The line-up includes two shorts films from the 1950s starring Peter Sellers – Dearth Of A Salesman and Insomnia Is Good For You.

“Just as Tiff...

The event led by Toronto International Film Festival founder Bill Marshall is set to run from June 19-22.

Gala premieres include the world premiere of Restrung, Mike Enns’ portrait of Disney animator Randall Wyn Fullmer, the North American premiere of Felix Herngren’s Swedish Blockbuster The Hundred Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out Of The Window And Disappeared and animation Ribbit featuring the voices of Sean Astin and Russell Peters.

The roster includes Emilio Aragon’s A Night In Old Mexico starring Robert Duvall, Stuart Murdoch’s God Help The Girl and Ira Sachs’ gay-marriage drama Love Is Strange with John Lithgow and Alfred Molina.

The Canadians-At-Cannes shorts curated by Danny Lennon include Kyle Thomas’ The Post, Moira Sauer’s The Provider and Felix Lajeunesse and Paul Raphael’s The Sparkling River.

The line-up includes two shorts films from the 1950s starring Peter Sellers – Dearth Of A Salesman and Insomnia Is Good For You.

“Just as Tiff...

Robert Gustafsson has been called “the funniest man in Sweden.” Meh. Must be an acquired taste. For the uninitiated, the comedian’s mugging in a role that Peter Sellers might have aced in the 1960s is arguably one of the chief reasons that The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared sputters after an enjoyably antic start. Felix Herngren’s adaptation of the bestselling novel by Jonas Jonasson is an absurdist comic fable about an ordinary man who keeps stumbling into extraordinary circumstances. It plays like a broadly farcical Forrest Gump with elements of Zelig – only laced

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Tenth edition of the Glasgow Film Festival to host a record 60 UK premieres; Under the Skin to receive Scottish premiere as closing film.

Wes Anderson’s The Grand Budapest Hotel will receive its UK premiere as the opening film of this year’s Glasgow Film Festival (Gff) on Feb 20.

With the festival celebrating its tenth edition this year, its opening gala recalls their first-ever closing gala, Anderson’s The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, which will also receive a screening during the festival on Glasgow’s Tall Ship.

Jonathan Glazer’s Under the Skin, which was partly shot in Glasgow and stars Scarlett Johansson as a predatory alien seductress, will receive its Scottish premiere as the closing film on March 2.

Premieres

This year’s edition (supported by Glasgow City Marketing Bureau, EventScotland and Creative Scotland) will feature a record 60 UK premieres, including Michel Gondry’s Mood Indigo; Sandra Nettelbeck’s Mr. Morgan’s [link...

Hoàng Phi in Nước (2030) by Nghiêm-Minh Nguyễn-Võ

The following titles join the previously announced films screening as part of the Panorama section:

Asabani Nistam! (I'm Not Angry!), (Reza Dormishian), Iran - International Premiere

Blind, (Eskil Vogt), Norway / Netherlands - European Premiere

Difret, (Zeresenay Berhane Mehari), Ethopia - European Premiere

Fieber (Fever), (Elfi Mikesch), Luxembourg / Austria - World Premiere

Güeros, (Alonso Ruízpalacios), Mexico - World Premiere

Highway, (Imtiaz Ali), India - World Premiere

Ieji (Homeland), (Nao Kubota), Japan - World Premiere

In Grazia di Dio (Edoardo Winspeare), Italy - World Premiere

Love Is Strange, (Ira Sachs), USA - International Premiere

Mo Jing (That Demon Within), (Dante Lam), Hong Kong, China - World Premiere

Na kathese ke na kitas (Standing Aside, Watching), (Yorgos Servetas), Greece - European Premiere

Night Flight, (LeeSong Hee-il), Republic of Korea - World Premiere

Nước (2030), (Nghiêm-Minh Nguyễn-Võ), Vietnam - World Premiere

Patardzlebi (Brides), (Tinatin Kajrishvili), Georgia / France

Risse...

World premieres include A Long Way down, starring Breaking Bad’s Aaron Paul and Pierce Brosnan, and The Two Faces of January, the directorial debut of Drive screenwriter Hossein Amini starring Viggo Mortensen, Kirsten Dunst and Oscar Isaac.

The Berlin International Film Festival (Feb 6-16) has unveiled the 18-strong line-up for its Berlinale Special strand, including nine world premieres.

Stand-outs in the list include the world premiere of A Long Way Down, an adaptation of Nick Hornby’s bestseller about four people who meet on New Year’s Eve and form a surrogate family to help one another weather the difficulties of their lives. It stars Breaking Bad’s Aaron Paul, Pierce Brosnan, Toni Collette and Imogen Poots.

Also receiving its world premiere will be con artist thriller The Two Faces of January, the directorial debut of Drive screenwriter Hossein Amini, which stars Viggo Mortensen, Kirsten Dunst and Inside Llewyn Davis’ Oscar Isaac.

Mexican actor Diego Luna...

Mongrel Has Date With ’100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out A Window’ Canada’s Mongrel Media has acquired the Swedish hit The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out A Window And Disappeared. Felix Herngren’s film is an adaption of Jonas Jonasson’s best-selling novel. It’s scored big in Scandinavia so far, earning $11.4M in 12 days of release in Sweden, and has been the top movie from the region at the box office in Norway and Denmark. The film is the lighthearted story of a healthy centenarian who decides it’s not too late to start over. When Allan (Robert Gustafsson) lands in a nursing home, he refuses to celebrate his 100th birthday and instead escapes out a window to embark on a journey that involves a suitcase of cash and a gang of criminals. Flashbacks reveal that Allan also played a key role in 20th century history when he was pals with U.

Mongrel Media has acquired all Canadian rights to The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out The Window and Disappeared.

Felix Herngren’s (pictured) adaptation of Jonas Jonasson’s bsetselling novel opened top in Sweden on December 25 and earned $11.4m in its first 12 days. It ranked as the number three film in Norway and Denmark.

The film tells of a healthy centenarian who decides it not too late to start over. Robert Gustafsson stars.

Mongrel Media – in its 20th anniversary year – negotiated rights with Studiocanal and plans a summer release.

The Swedish comedy The 100 Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out The Window and Disappeared is laughing all the way to the bank. The adaptation of Jonas Jonasson's best-seller about a centenarian who escapes his nursing home and goes on a adventure across Sweden, has broken local box office records since its release Christmas Day, selling more than 762,000 tickets for a gross of more than $10 million in the territory. That already tops last year's number one Swedish film, Waltz for Monica, which sold just over half a million tickets in the territory. Directed by Felix Herngren,

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