Summer with Monika (1953)

A pair of teenagers meet one summer day, start a reckless affair and abandon their families to be with one another.

Director:

Ingmar Bergman

Writer:

Per Anders Fogelström (screenplay)

Stars:

Harriet Andersson, Lars Ekborg, Dagmar Ebbesen

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Harriet Andersson	...	Monika Eriksson
Lars Ekborg	...	Harry Lund
Dagmar Ebbesen	...	Fru Lindström, Harry's faster
Åke Fridell	...	Ludwig Eriksson, Monikas far
Naemi Briese	...	Monikas mor
Åke Grönberg	...	Verkmästaren, Harrys arbetskamrat
Sigge Fürst	...	Johan, lagerbasen på Forsbergs
John Harryson	...	Lelle, Harrys rival
Georg Skarstedt	...	Harrys far
Gösta Ericsson	...	Forsberg, direktör för glas
Gösta Gustafson	...	Forsbergs kamrer
Gösta Prüzelius	...	Försäljare hos Forsbergs
Göthe Grefbo	...	Lagerarbetare hos Fersbergs
Arthur Fischer	...	Chef för grönsakslagret
Torsten Lilliecrona	...	Chaufför på grönsakslagret

Storyline

Harry Lund is a nineteen-year-old man who meets Monika, a romantic, reckless and rebellious seventeen-year-old, and they fall in love. They leave their families and jobs in their small town, Harry gets his father's boat and they spend the summer together in an isolated island. Monika gets pregnant, and Harry decides to marry her. He grows up, gets a job and returns to his studies, trying to improve their lives and raise their daughter June, while Monika just wants to have fun.

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Plot Keywords:

summer | boy | island | 1950s | teenage boy | 

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Taglines:

...the Story of a Strange Girl

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

Sweden

Language:

Swedish

Release Date:

9 February 1953 (Sweden)

Also Known As:

Monika

Filming Locations:

Ornö, Stockholms län, Sweden

Box Office

Budget:

SEK 484,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Svensk Filmindustri (SF)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min 62 min (re-edited)

Sound Mix:

Mono (AGA Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Exterior scenes in the archipelago was recorded without sound of a small working crew accommodated at the parish clerk, teacher and musician Philip Olsson (1904-1977) at Ornö.

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Quotes

Monika Eriksson: Harry, why do some people have all the luck while others are miserable?
Harry Lund: Monika, we have each other.

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Alternate Versions

First US release, marketed for the drive in theater circuit, ran only 62 minutes, was dubbed, and featured a different score by jazz musician Les Baxter.

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Connections

Featured in Deux de la Vague (2010)

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Soundtracks

HELAN GAAR
Traditional

User Reviews

early Bergman

It seems be not a Bergman. but, maybe, except the language, one of social British drama from "50. it is not a question about death, meanings, relations. but a portrait of a couple. it is not provocative. only a simple story, with admirable cinematography, about people and choices and their price. a portrait of an age more than of characters. beautiful for each detail. impressive for the expected end. powerfull for splendid performance of Harriet Andersson. and for sensitive work of Lars Ekborg. a film of Stockholm. simple, realistic, touching and bitter. interesting for Ingmar Bergman art evolution but, in same measure, for the use of a strange beauty of people and places.