My Life as a Dog (1985)
"Mitt liv som hund" (original title)

A boy and his brother don't get along well. In order to let their ill mother rest, they're separated and sent each one with their relatives.

Director:

Lasse Hallström

Writers:

Reidar Jönsson (novel), Lasse Hallström,

Stars:

Anton Glanzelius, Tomas von Brömssen, Anki Lidén

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 15 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Anton Glanzelius	...	Ingemar
Tomas von Brömssen	...	morbror Gunnar
Anki Lidén	...	Ingemars mamma (as Anki Liden)
Melinda Kinnaman	...	Saga
Kicki Rundgren	...	moster Ulla
Lennart Hjulström	...	konstnären
Ing-Marie Carlsson	...	Berit
Leif Ericson	...	farbror Sandberg (as Leif Ericsson)
Christina Carlwind	...	Fru sandberg
Ralph Carlsson	...	Harry
Viveca Dahlén	...	tvättande kvinna
Arnold Alfredsson	...	Mannes farfar (as Arnold Alfredson)
Fritz Elofsson	...	Mäster
Didrik Gustafsson	...	Arvidsson, dying old man befriended by Ingmar (as Didrik Gustavsson)
Jan-Philip Hollström	...	Manne, the boy with green hair

Storyline

Ingemar lives with his brother and his terminally ill mother. He may have a rough time, but not as bad as Laika - the russian dog sent into space... He gets sent away to stay with relations for the summer. While there, he meets various strange characters, giving him experiences that will affect him for the rest of his life.

---

Plot Keywords:

boy | dog | soccer | small town | old man | 

---

Taglines:

Det kunde ha varit värre. Jag har faktiskt haft tur. Om man jämför...

---

Genres:

Drama | Comedy

---

Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Country:

Sweden

Language:

Swedish

Release Date:

24 March 1987 (USA)

Also Known As:

My Life as a Dog

Filming Locations:

Boda glassworks, Kalmar län, Sweden

Box Office

Gross:

$8,345,266 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

FilmTeknik, Svensk Filmindustri (SF)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Fujicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

Sound editing: When Ingemar's walking next to the river kicking metal drums, two of the drums are very different in appearance, but give off exactly the same sound.

---

Quotes

[first lines]
Ingemar: I should have told her everything. Mom loved stories like that. It's not so bad if you think about it. It could have been worse. Just think how that poor guy ended up who got a new kidney in Boston. He got his name in all the papers, but he died just the same. And what about Laika, the space dog? They put her in the Sputnik and sent her into space. They attached wires to her heart and brain to see how she felt. I don't think she felt to good. She spun around up there for five ...

---

Connections

Referenced in Mystery Science Theater 3000: Last of the Wild Horses (1994)

---

Soundtracks

"Far, jag kan inte få upp min kokosnöt"
(original song title "I've Got a Lovely Bunch of Coconuts")
Written by Fred Heatherton (joint pseudonym of Elton Box, Desmond Cox and Irwin Dash)
Lyrics by Povel Ramel
Performed by Povel Ramel

User Reviews

Swedish Charmer

This Swedish film offers a different kind of story and a strangely appealing one.

Anton Glanzelius is good as the 12-year-old who not only stars in the movie but does a good job narrating it as well. When he finds himself in a tough situation, he always compares himself to something worse, such as a Soviet space dog and its unfortunate lot. The tomboyish-looking young girl who flirts with him, Melinda Kinnaman, is fun to watch, too. I wonder what she looks like now as an adult?

For kids that young, I thought there was a little too much emphasis on sex, but mostly it's just natural curiosity of what the other sex looks like, and the intentions are innocent.

Overall, it is a charming film with almost all (one exception: his older brother) likable people.