Pelle the Conqueror (1987)

The end of the 19th century. A boat filled with Swedish emigrants comes to the Danish island of Bornholm. Among them are Lasse and his son Pelle who move to Denmark to find work. They find ... See full summary »

Director:

Bille August

Writers:

Martin Andersen Nexø (novel), Bille August (screenplay)

Stars:

Pelle Hvenegaard, Max von Sydow, Erik Paaske

Won 1 Oscar. Another 21 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Pelle Hvenegaard	...	Pelle
Max von Sydow	...	Lassefar
Erik Paaske	...	Forvalter / Foreman
Björn Granath	...	Erik (as Bjørn Granath)
Astrid Villaume	...	Fru Kongstrup / Mrs. Kongstrup
Axel Strøbye	...	Kongstrup
Troels Asmussen	...	Rud
Kristina Törnqvist	...	Anna
Karen Wegener	...	Madam Olsen / Mrs. Olsen
Sofie Gråbøl	...	Jomfru Sine / Miss Sine
Lars Simonsen	...	Niels Køller
Buster Larsen	...	Ole Køller
John Wittig	...	Skolelærer / School teacher
Troels Munk	...	Læge / Doctor
Nis Bank-Mikkelsen	...	Præst / Clergyman

Storyline

The end of the 19th century. A boat filled with Swedish emigrants comes to the Danish island of Bornholm. Among them are Lasse and his son Pelle who move to Denmark to find work. They find employment at a large farm, but are treated as the lowest form of life. Pelle starts to speak Danish but is still harassed as a foreigner. But none of them wants to give up their dream of finding a better life than the life they left in Sweden.

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Plot Keywords:

boy | farm worker | father son relationship | based on novel | immigrant | 

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Taglines:

De trodde att världen skulle bli deras

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

PG-13

Details

Country:

Denmark Sweden

Language:

Scanian Danish Swedish Finnish

Release Date:

21 December 1988 (USA)

Also Known As:

Pelle the Conqueror

Filming Locations:

Bregnegården, Tappernøje, Sjælland, Denmark

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$45,985, 25 December 1988, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$2,053,931

Company Credits

Production Co:

Per Holst Filmproduktion,Svensk Filmindustri (SF)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

157 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The sailors on the sinking ship are speaking Finnish. First there are multiple cries of help and then, when Niels gets to the ship, they are saying, "help him up" and "tighten the rope".

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Goofs

Although set on the island of Bornholm, the characters speak standard Danish instead of the Bornholmsk dialect, and do not have Bornholm accents either.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Pelle: Father?
Lassefar: Everything's gonna be fine.
Pelle: Tell it again.
Lassefar: This new country we're going to is very different.
Pelle: Talk more about it.
Lassefar: They put raisins in the pork roast and butter on the bread. They put a lot of butter on the bread. Brandy is cheap as water and it is so strong that it knocks you off. But your father can take it, Pelle, because he's strong.
Pelle: And children are free all day.
Lassefar: Yes, Pelle, yes.
Pelle: Tell it again.
[...]

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Connections

Referenced in A Conversation with Lars von Trier About the Europe Trilogy (2005)

User Reviews

I am speechless

Sometimes I stumble on a movie which all of the sudden turns out to be a real masterpiece. Pelle the Conqueror really surprised me – touching story told in a unique way. Pelle is a boy from Sweden who immigrates to Denmark with his dad after the death of his mother. They are both full of hope – hope for a new beginning – and there is a scene in the boat on which Pelle wants to hear over and over about the new country they will be living at: "Tell me about it again, papa. It's very different this new country.

• You'll hardly… - You'll hardly believe your eyes. They put raisins in the pork roastand butter on your bread…Some places they put butter on your bread.- And kids are free all day.

• Yes, Pelle, yes. Wages are so incredibly high, that kids…That kids don't have to work." It sounds too good to be true – may be not for you – but imagine what those words meant for a boy who is used to live in a missy , probably due to the hard life he had to live after the death of his mother. As soon as the boat reaches the shore the reality of this new world came out of the dream mist. Finding employment is not as easy especially considering the age of the Pele's father and the fact that he has a small boy with him. At the end they are offered an employment at a large farm, but find the life would present many challenges to them.

The acting is very good – the young Pelle Hvenegaard who plays the role of Pelle is so good that one can thing that he has a dozen of movies in his carrier and probably that is the reason for which 2 years after the movie is released he wins two award for the Best Young Actor in 1988 at the European Film Awards and for Best Young Actor in a Foreign Film in a Foreign Filmat the young artists awards for his role in Pelle the Conqueror.

I watched this movie with constant hope to see happiness in the eyes of Pelle and the moments in which he felt happy was shining like a real diamonds surrounded by the dust of the harsh live he had to deal with. Although Pelle is often refused friendships from the local Danish boys he shows his good heart befriending a boy who has some physical disability – and their friendship through a little odd at times shows that people can find someone to care for , even in the toughest places.

Pelle the Conqueror is classic movie and although some may thing that the story gets a bit depressing at times I recommend it to anyone who treasure excellent coming of age movies.