The New Man (2007)

Sweden 1951. A new society is developing, a society where there is no room for the socially and mentally weak. Gertrud is a 17 year old girl from a very poor family. Against her will, she ... See full synopsis »

Director:

Klaus Härö

Writers:

Jimmy Karlsson (screenplay collaboration), Kjell Sundstedt

Stars:

Lo Kauppi, Ellen Jelinek, Ann-Sofie Nurmi

1 win & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Lo Kauppi	...	Jenny
Ellen Jelinek	...	Astrid (as Ellen Mattsson)
Ann-Sofie Nurmi	...	Alba
Nadja Mirmiran	...	Erika
Tobias Aspelin	...	Dr. Berg
Linda Kulle	...	Ingrid
Monica Edwardson	...	Birgitta (as Monica Edvardsson)
Anna Littorin	...	Lisa
Happy Jankell	...	Anna
Bengt C.W. Carlsson	...	Barnavårdsmannen
Anders Beckman	...	Tjänstemannen
Ola Wahlström	...	Biografvaktmästaren
Claes Hartelius	...	Anna's foster father
Karin Knutsson	...	Anna's foster mother
Sven-Åke Gustavsson	...	Artur (as Sven Åke Gustavsson)

Storyline

Sweden 1951. A new society is developing, a society where there is no room for the socially and mentally weak. Gertrud is a 17 year old girl from a very poor family. Against her will, she is committed to a work home for young women. Gertrud learns that the only way out is by agreeing to a voluntary sterilization. Gertrud falls in love with the janitor, Axel and soon finds herself pregnant. She dreams about a normal family life with Axel and the child, and doesnt realize that when performing the operation the doctor will most certainly take the child away. She changes her mind about the operation but she no longer has a choice. Now there is only one way out: She pretends to be mentally deranged and is transferred to a mental hospital. A child grows in her womb. Gertrud has fooled the system, but the price she pays is her own future.

---

Plot Keywords:

sweden | suicide | sterilization | society | social politics | 

---

Taglines:

What if the unimaginable happened to you? What if your life turned into a nightmare? Would you fight for your freedom?

---

Genres:

Drama

---

Did You Know?

Quotes

Maid: Welcome to Odenslund.

User Reviews

Took Swedish movies to a new height.

Often when I watch Swedish movies I think the acting is too much. When I saw this movie I didn't think of it as a Swedish movie anymore. The acting was wonderful!

The writers have done a really good job gathering all the information and all the letters that the film writers grandmother (of something similar) sent to her family during her time at the institution (this is on the DVD as extras).

The storyline is a awful story that is based on true events, events that we in the Swedish school system puts a blind fold on so that we only shall see how neutral we are all the time.

I think this is a perfect history lesson that every teenager really should see.

Details

Country:

Finland Sweden

Language:

Finnish Swedish

Release Date:

23 February 2007 (Sweden)

Also Known As:

The New Man

Box Office

Budget:

EUR2,287,772 (estimated)

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$192,672

Company Credits

Production Co:

Filmlance International AB, Kinoproduction

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1