Tillsammans

Directed by Lukas Moodysson.
Written by: Lukas Moodysson
Produced by: Lars Jönsson
Memfis Film Sweden 2000 Colour
Genre: Drama
Local distributor: Sonet Film

Elisabeth is finally fed up with her husband so she packs her bags and takes the children with to her brother, Göran. The year is 1975. Elisabeth is a fairly ordinary housewife from the suburbs, but Göran lives in a commune and that’s where Elisabeth arrives with her children – to a chaotic house inhabited with long-haired people who discuss politics, have free sex, grow vegetables and drink lots of red wine. The collision of these two worlds sets off a drama that will change their lives. Tilsammans aka Together is a film about people trying to live together. Sometimes it works well, sometimes it doesn't. It's about love and divorce and family happiness and family unhappiness and about children and adults and friendship and sex and football.

While I watched Fucking Åmål – Show Me Love without any prior expectations I did approach the cinema with quite a lot of expectations when I went to see Lukas Moodysson's new film Tillsammans aka Together Saturday November 4, 2000. And my expections were in many ways answered.

There is definitely no need to worry that you'll be disappointed of this film. Allthough it's a different film than Fucking Åmål – Show Me Love, you'll recognise Moodyssons's style (filming, zooming, cutting, panning). Just the feeling when ABBA's SOS and Nazareth's Love Hurts fades up are so amazing that it in itself can be enough. I understood this would be a great film when we watch Elisabeth, Eva and Stefan leave and Rolf is left alone and then ABBA's SOS fades up. A reviewer in a Norwegian newspaper said that these rather simple pop lyrics here sounds like great lyrical poetry. Like many reviewers also states Lukas Moodysson has a special passion for the children in this film and their troublesome situation in this collective, who is hurt by the adults political point of view (allthough I personally would disagree with them in some cases...). This film has more funny scenes than Fucking Åmål – Show Me Love, but most of them can be seen for different views and some scenes are very emotional. There are a bigger number of people in this film, and it can take a while to distance them from each other and even longer to remember all the names. You don't get to know them as good as in Fucking Åmål – Show Me Love, but I don't feel they are drawn too simple, like some reviewers said. The acting is never painful, but always natural. Some questions are never answered; you feel like this is a short glimpse of the incidents in the collective during some days. I think people could love Tillsammans – Together just as much as Fucking Åmål – Show Me Love, but then a bit older people. Teenagers won't have the same background to recognise themselves in this film, allthough the theme really is the same... love, people, childhood, finding yourself...

Anja Lundqvist
Axel Zuber
Cecilia Frode
Claes Hartelius
Emma Samuelsson
Gustaf Hammarsten
Henrik Lundström
Jessica Liedberg
Lars Frode
Lisa Lindgren
Michael Nyqvist
Ola Norell
Olle Sarri
Sam Kessel
Shanti Roney
Sten Ljunggren
Therese Brunnander

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