I taket lyser stjärnorna (2009)

Young adolescent girl Jenna's mother is dying, while at the same time Jenna is turning form a young girl into a young woman. So it is difficult for her to admit that she is afraid to loose ... See full summary »

Director:

Lisa Siwe

Writers:

Linn Gottfridsson (screenplay), Lisa Siwe (screenplay),

Stars:

Josefine Mattsson, Mika Berndtsdotter Ahlén, Annika Hallin

1 win.

Cast

Credited cast:
Josefine Mattsson	...	Jenna
Mika Berndtsdotter Ahlén	...	Ullis
Annika Hallin	...	Liv
Anki Lidén	...	Grandmother Ingrid
Samuel Haus	...	Sakke
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Nina Christensen	...	Carro
Madeleine Ekman	...	Madde the chef
Christer Fjällström	...	Göran
Deborah Fronko	...	Görans Wife
Charlie Gustafsson	...	Oscar
Johan Hallström	...	Pär
Marcus Jansson	...	Henke
Tova Johansson	...	Malin
Kim Lantz	...	Teacher
Måns Nathanaelson	...	Per

Storyline

Young adolescent girl Jenna's mother is dying, while at the same time Jenna is turning form a young girl into a young woman. So it is difficult for her to admit that she is afraid to loose her mother, instead she behaves contrary to how one would expect from her.

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Country:

Sweden

Language:

Swedish

Release Date:

30 January 2009 (Sweden)

Also Known As:

Glowing Stars

Filming Locations:

Vänersborg, Västra Götalands län, Sweden

Company Credits

Production Co:

Film i Väst, Filmlance International AB

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

User Reviews

Sad and deeply emotional. But with a unique kind of beauty.

Recap: The early teens is not an easy time, but Jenna is really struggling. Her mother is seriously sick with cancer and apparently in treatment, so her grandmother moves in with them. Jenna and her grandmother doesn't get along at all, since her grandmother doesn't accept that Jenna is growing up and wants to hang out with kids her age. The grandmother is driving Jenna and her mother apart, and it pains Jenna a lot because she loves her mother a lot. But Jenna finds an unlikely friend in Ullis, her neighbor and the schools most popular girl. But Ullis has her own problems with her mother, and together they seek desperately for an identity. Stability. But without any adults around they start to lose their grip. Unable to handle the dire situation Jenna rebels at any norm she can…

Comments: A pretty strong movie about how unfair life can be. How hard it is to grow up and being forced to handle the fact that her mother, her only parent, is about to die. And when there is little, if any, support from the adult world, the result is pretty predictable.

As movies goes, it is pretty predictable too. It follows the standard structure of "teenage growing up"-movies, but with an extra edge with Jenna's illness. Still, it is strong and emotional movie, one that is sure to affect you. It is not a movie that depends on a story, it is a movie that plays on a deep emotional level. It is really hard not to feel for Jenna and Ullis, and more than once tears were close.

So a warning is appropriate, this is not in any way a happy movie, or a movie that is rough but ends well ( I guess that this is the way that the movie differs from most others). This a deeply dark movie, even though it is also very realistic. It is in no way more dark or unfair than real life can be, and that is perhaps what I felt most. Jenna's fate is in no way unique, her story is a story that many can tell. But so you know, this is not a movie that will lift your spirit.

Still, it is a movie that I can recommend, if you are in the mood for it. It got its own kind of beauty, despite the sadness. Or maybe it is because of it. Anyways, I hope that is what I will remember.

7/10