Fanny and Alexander

Set in Sweden at the turn of the century, Ingmar Bergman's semi-autobiographical story tells of young sister and brother Fanny (Pernilla Allwin) and Alexander (Bertil Guve), whose comfortable lives change dramatically when their father dies onstage during a performance of 'Hamlet'. Their mother marries a puritanical bishop and the new family move into the bishop's draughty home, where the children are mistreated and their mother becomes consumed with regrets. Through the wide eyes of ten-year-old Alexander (Bertil Guve), we witness the great delights and conflicts of the Ekdahl family—a sprawling, convivial bourgeois clan living in turn-of-the-century Sweden. Intended as Ingmar Bergman’s swan song, Fanny and Alexander is the legendary filmmaker’s warmest and most autobiographical film, a triumph that combines his trademark melancholy and emotional rigor with immense joyfulness and sensuality. The film won the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, as well as Oscars for Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design and Best Art Direction.