Mitt liv som hund (1985)

User Rating:

7.7/10   

Director:

Lasse Hallström

Writers:

Reidar Jönsson (novel)
Lasse Hallström (writer) ...
(more)

Release Date:

24 March 1987 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Comedy

Tagline:

Det kunde ha varit värre. Jag har faktiskt haft tur. Om man jämför...

Plot:

A boy and his brother don't get along well. In order to let her ill mother rest, they're separated and sent each one with their relatives.

Plot Keywords:

Dog | Soccer | 1950s | Small Town | Uncle

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 13 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Anton Glanzelius	...	Ingemar
Tomas von Brömssen	...	morbror Gunnar
Anki Lidén	...	Ingemars mamma (as Anki Liden)
Melinda Kinnaman	...	Saga
Kicki Rundgren	...	moster Ulla
Lennart Hjulström	...	konstnären
Ing-Marie Carlsson	...	Berit
Leif Ericson	...	farbror Sandberg
Christina Carlwind	...	Fru sandberg
Ralph Carlsson	...	Harry
Viveca Dahlén	...	tvättande kvinna
Arnold Alfredsson	...	Mannes farfar
Fritz Elofsson	...	Mäster
Didrik Gustavsson	...	Arvidsson, dying old man befriended by Ingmar
Jan-Philip Hollström	...	Manne, the boy with green hair
Vivi Johansson	...	tant Arvidsson
Per Ottosson	...	Tommy
Magnus Rask	...	Fransson, crazy old man always fixing his roof
Tony Rix	...	En pojke
Manfred Serner	...	Erik, Ingmar's brother
Johanna Udéhn	...	Lilla Grodan
Susanna Wetterholm	...	Karin
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Nils-Olof Baehrentz	...	Host for gameshow 'Kvitt eller dubbelt' on TV (uncredited)
Olle Björklund	...	Himself (voice) (uncredited)
Lennart Hyland	...	Soccer referee on radio (archive footage) (uncredited)
Reidar Jönsson	...	Lilla grodan's father (uncredited)
Folke Olhagen	...	Himself (voice) (uncredited)

Directed by
Lasse Hallström

Writing credits
Reidar Jönsson		(novel)
Lasse Hallström		(writer) &
Reidar Jönsson		(writer) &
Brasse Brännström		(writer) &
Per Berglund		(writer)

Produced by
Waldemar Bergendahl	....	producer

Original Music by
Björn Isfält

Cinematography by
Jörgen Persson

Film Editing by
Christer Furubrand
Susanne Linnman

Production Design by
Lasse Westfelt

Set Decoration by
Tove Hellbom
Pontus Lindblad

Costume Design by
Susanne Falck
Inger Pehrsson

Makeup Department
Agneta Jalmo	....	assistant makeup artist
Helena Olofsson-Carmback	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Ann Collenberg	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Anita Tesler	....	assistant director

Art Department
Erik Höglund	....	art
Jimmy McGann	....	props
Rolf Persson	....	construction manager

Sound Department
Eddie Axberg	....	sound
Göran Carmback	....	sound
Berndt Frithiof	....	sound mixer
Christjan Persson	....	sound re-recordist
Willie Peterson-Berger	....	sound re-recordist (as Wille Peterson-Berger)

Camera and Electrical Department
Ulf Björck	....	electrician
Denise Grünstein	....	still photographer
Olof Johnson	....	assistant camera
Rolf Lindström	....	assistant camera
Ragnar Waaranperä	....	grip

Editorial Department
Sten Lindberg	....	color timer

Other crew
Eva Bagge	....	children caretaker
Anette Mandoki	....	continuity clerk
Erik Spangenberg	....	production assistant

Production Companies

• FilmTeknik
• Svensk Filmindustri (SF)

Distributors

• Criterion Collection, The (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Flashstar Home Vídeo (Brazil) (VHS)
• Paramount Home Video (USA) (VHS)
• Skouras Pictures (1987) (USA) (subtitled)
• Starlight
• Umbrella Entertainment (2005) (Australia) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Filmmixarna AB  mixing

Also Known As:

My Life as a Dog (Canada: English title) (USA)
El año del arco iris (Chile) (video title) [es]
Elämäni koirana (Finland) [fi]
La mia vita a quattro zampe (Italy) [it]
Ma vie de chien (France) [fr]
Mein Leben als Hund (West Germany) [de]
Mi vida como un perro (Spain) [es]
Mijn leven als hond (Netherlands) [nl]
Minha Vida de Cachorro (Brazil) [pt]
Moje pieskie zycie (Poland) [pl]
San adespoto skyli (Greece) [el]

Runtime:

101 min

Country:

Sweden

Language:

Swedish

Color:

Color (Fujicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:L | South Korea:15 | Argentina:13 | Australia:PG | Chile:14 | Finland:K-8 | Singapore:NC-16 | Sweden:7 | UK:PG | USA:Open (rating surrendered: 1987) | USA:PG-13 (original rating: 1986) | West Germany:6 | Canada:PG

Filming Locations:

Boda glassworks, Kalmar län, Sweden

Company:

FilmTeknik

Goofs:

Continuity: At the very end, the uncle is trying to fix the door. When he turns to go in the house, he leaves the door open, but in the next cut the door is closed.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Glasgow Kiss: Co-Operation (#1.2)" (2000)

Soundtrack:

Far, jag kan inte få upp min kokosnöt

An absolute delight

My Life As A Dog, now this is a total delight. The film follows the life of Ingemar in his 12th year as he has to cope with the slow death of his mother. The film takes place in 1959 in Sweden, and is just right in its atmosphere. Hallestrom works wonders with Anton Glanzelius as Ingemar, and he gives a marvelous performance that is truly touching and real. When his mother can no longer care for him and his older brother, Ingemar is sent off to his Uncle who lives in a small town in which it seems that all the residents work at the glass factory, and he soon becomes part of the town's fabric. His adventures are many,and includes his learning to box from the town tomboy who worries about her budding breasts, the chaperoning of the lovely town beauty as she poses nude for a sculptor, and his reading of a lingerie catalog to a dying old man. The film has been accused at least by someone on this list as being pornographic and prurient which is idiotic and stupid. This is a film about childhood and like most childhoods the film includes several scenes about children's growing awareness and curiosity about sex and their bodies and presents it in a real and sensitive way. A word of warning about the DVD transfer of the film. It stinks. Not only is it not letterboxed, but is full of flaws and looks no better than a video, but it is subtitled, and is still a joy to watch. One of the ten best films I saw in 1985.