Possibly the best film about a 70's Scandinavian hippy commune ever made (probably the only one ever to be made), 'Together' is one of the finest pieces of Swedish cinema you'll ever see (and only one ABBA song to boot).
A subtle film where you'll see no guns, bombs or explosion, it centres ... Read review
Full of snow, sex, Volvos and ABBA,Togethermay at first appear to be a trawl through every ... more
Swedish cliché in the book, but is in fact a delightful, absorbing movie. Set in Stockholm in the winter of 1975 it tells of mother of two Elisabeth and her move...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Full of snow, sex, Volvos and ABBA,Togethermay at first appear to be a trawl through every ... more
Swedish cliché in the book, but is in fact a delightful, absorbing movie. Set in Stockholm in the winter of 1975 it tells of mother of two Elisabeth and her move...
Postage & Packaging: free Super Saver Delivery Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours...
1975. Sweden. Tired of her abusive husband, Elisabeth packs her bags and moves with her ... more
children to her brother's commune, Together. As a fairly ordinary housewife from the suburbs, the commune's freewheeling attitudes towards sex and politics will ope...
Drama - Original Language: English - Classification: 12 years and over - Starring: Shelagh Fraser, Barbara Flynn, Keith Drinkel, Felicity Kendal, Pam Ferris, Colin Douglas
Production Year: 2004 - Drama - Director: Nick Cassavetes - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over, 12 years and over - Starring: Rachel McAdams, Ryan Gosling, Gena Rowlands
Advantages: very well acted Disadvantages: may be too slow paced for some
Possibly the best film about a 70's Scandinavian hippy commune ever made (probably the only one ever to be made), 'Together' is one of the finest pieces of Swedish cinema you'll ever see (and only one ABBA song to boot).
A subtle film where you'll see no guns, bombs or explosion, it centres on 'Tillsammans' (literally 'Together' in Swedish), a community of free-thinking individuals. A fragmented bunch involving two couples, one separated ... ...as a child called 'Tet' named after the Vietnam War offensive), the community drink, smoke, eat vegetable stew and talk Marxism. Meat is banned, whilst nudity is acceptable (providing there is a fungal infection present...).
The main character, nice-guy Goran (Gustaf Hammarsten), receives a phone call one day from his sister Elizabeth (Lisa Lindgren) asking for an escape route from her abusive relationship with her husband Rolf (Michael ... more
Possibly the best film about a 70's Scandinavian hippy commune ever made (probably the only one ever to be made), 'Together' is one of the finest pieces of Swedish cinema you'll ever see (and only one ABBA song to boot).
A subtle film where you'll see no guns, bombs or explosion, it centres on 'Tillsammans' (literally 'Together' in Swedish), a community of free-thinking individuals. A fragmented bunch involving two couples, one separated couple, a political fanatic and a gay man (as well as a child called 'Tet' named after the Vietnam War offensive), the community drink, smoke, eat vegetable stew and talk Marxism. Meat is banned, whilst nudity is acceptable (providing there is a fungal infection present...).
The main character, nice-guy Goran (Gustaf Hammarsten), receives a phone call one day from his sister Elizabeth (Lisa Lindgren) asking for an escape route from her abusive relationship with her husband Rolf (Michael Nyqvist). Despite objections from some of the others (free love will only go so far), she moves in along with her two loner children, dejected and depressed.
The film develops each of the commune's characters, and there is a number of funny scenes, not least between Elizabeth's eldest daughter and the ordinary boy-next-door as they gradually explore their adult liking for each other. Both loners, despite an attempt by Goran's swinging wife Lena (Anja Lundqvist) to seduce the bespectacled youngster (strangely reminiscent of Roly off 'Grange Hill'), they eventually build up a strong friendship with each other.
Lena also gives the ever-accepting Goran anguish by also bedding Erik (Olle Sarri), the political fanatic, who eventually leaves the commune due to the lack of appreciation by the group for the intensity of his radical beliefs.
As the story develops, the relationships between the group develops. One of then women, Anna (Jessica Liedberg) develops a crush on Elizabeth, who explores freedom outside marriage for the very first time. Also quite touching is the development of the relationship between the repressed and unaccepted Stefan, Elizabeth's son, and the drinking, smoking 8 year old Tet. Especially good is the 'torture' game that they play. modelled on the actions of General Pinochet in Chile, and the tales of LEGO being banned in the commune on the basis that they are a capitalist company.
We also see the agony and slump into acoholism of Rolf, as he tries to pick up the pieces of his life. His good intentions end up making things worse for him, as he gone down even further in the eyes of his two children. However, an encounter with a fellow lonely man results in him beginning to turn his life around, and allows him to see a light at the end of the tunnel.
By the end of the film, the relationship between several of the characters has changed, although I won't spoil the surprise by going into any detail...
The references to 70's culture are quite apparent; the clothes, the political attitudes and the freedom lifestyles. The film is very high on the feelgood factor (eventually), although it manages to do so without the saccharine 'I love you Mommy' ending of most American films.
Extremely well acted, especially by Lindgren and Nyqvist, 'Together' is advisable to all who enjoy a good slowburning scenario, which is character-driven rather than an explosion-a-minute big-budget film.
Advantages: Warm, funny and uplifting Disadvantages: None
...(more)
Also Known As:
Together (International: English title) (Italy)
Tillsammans (Denmark)
MPAA: Rated R for nudity/sexuality and language.
Runtime: 106 min
Country: Sweden / Denmark / Italy
Language: Swedish
Color: Color
Sound Mix: Dolby SR This DVD is available from PLAY for £6.99 at the moment, definitely well worth it! The extras include an interview with Moodysson which should be informative. ...
sparklya 07.01.2006
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Together (Subtitled) (DVD)
Advantages: Excellent acting, Humour, Good story Disadvantages: Slightly poor subtitles
Let me start by saying Together, by Lukas Moodyson, is quite simply a wonderful collection of stories, rolled cleverly into one. Set in and around a Swedish '70s commune called TILLSAMMANS (Together), the central characters cone from without. Franco's death has just been reported, to the delight of the members of this small community. Elisabeth, following the proverbial straw in her domestic life, leaves her husband with her two children to live ... ...obvious problems arise; displaced children struggle to settle into this new and very strange environment, whilst less obviously the community begins to develop problems of it's own. Cleverly the director leaves the viewer to work out if the new arrivals have gone someway to cause this, or if they were mere coincidences. Not surprisingly the underlying theme here is togetherness, and every character goes through different forms of separation and loneliness, ...
sarah1 06.08.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Together (Subtitled) (DVD)
Advantages: Brilliant, feel-good film Disadvantages: Not fast-moving
Friends of mine have been put off by the plot of this film, set in a hippy commune, but this is not as political film, more about relationships and families. The Swedish is not noticed either, and actually adds to the humour because there is such as great sing song accent.
The film follows a group of people who try to set up a commune - it has all the stereotypes at first glance - liberal do-gooder, far left revolutionary in denial about a rich ... ...political lesbian, and a gay man in love with a straight one. Into the commune come a wife suffering domestic violence and her two children who hate the rest of the commune. The characters are all very well rounded though, and it's a tribute to the writers that they overcome stereotypes to make you care about all the characters.
There is not much plot, the film looks mainly at how the different inhabitants interact and are changed by each other.
...
moon79 05.04.2004
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: somewhat helpful Review of Together (Subtitled) (DVD)
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Set in Sweden in 1975, this is the story of Elisabeth who runs away from her abusive husband to live in her brother's commune. Swedish dialogue with subtitles.
Release details
DVD Region
DVD
Studio(s)
METRODOME DISTRIBUTION; DELUXE VIDEO SERVICE - METRODOME
Animated And Scored Interactive Menus, Scene Access, Trailer, Director Filmography, Text Interview
Aspect Ratio
16:9 Anamorphic Wide Screen
Sound
Dolby Digital 2.0
Dubbing Sound
Dolby Digital 2.0 Swedish
Professional reviews
Review
"...Enchanting....This is the rare movie that gets you to fall in love with characters you don't even like..." -- Rating: A (Entertainment Weekly, p.64-5, 04/09/2001)
"...[A] relaxed, intimate, wonderfully clear-eyed and altogether charming Swedish comedy of manners..." (Los Angeles Times, p.14, 07/09/2001)
DVD Description
Set in 1975 Stockholm at a communal living house called "Tillsammans" or "Together," this bittersweet comedy revolves around the members of a radical hippie commune as they fight, fall in love, and struggle to stay together. Director Lukas Moodysson perfectly captures the youthful idealism and visual style of the period, commenting on the social and political climate with a steady dose of irony and heartfelt emotion. The members of the commune, desperate to live in Socialist-like peace, fight about everything including television, meals, and dish-washing duties. One day, Goran (Gustav Hammarsten), a soft spoken and painfully mild-mannered member of the group, brings his straightlaced suburban sister Elisabeth (Lisa Lundgren) and her two children to live at the commune, rescuing her from an abusive husband. Initially, Elisabeth is shocked at the radical political and sexual attitudes of her new housemates but soon she is joining in spirited partying and coming to terms with her own sexual and social awakening. Similar to Moodysson's critically acclaimed 1998 film, SHOW ME LOVE, he portrays sexuality and alienation with a breathtakingly simple honesty. Moodysson also sheds light on the experiences of Elisabeth's two painfully shy children who are trapped in a seemingly crazy adult world. The film offers a refreshing view of the 1970s, fraught with the joys and dangers of social idealism.
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![Together [DVD] [2001]](http://picnicb.ciao.com/uk/78537371.jpg)
