Mitt liv som hund

Plot synopsis:
The action takes place in the years 1958-1959 in Sweden. Troubled 12 year-old Ingemar (Anton Glanzelius) gets into all sorts of trouble, which bothers his mother (Anki Lidén); Ingemar does not know that his mother is in fact terminally ill. When he and his older brother become too much for her, they are split up and sent to live with relatives. Ingemar ends up with his maternal uncle Gunnar (Tomas von Brömssen) and his wife Ulla (Kicki Rundgren) in a small rural town in Småland. Gunnar and Ingemar bond over Povel Ramel's recording of "Far, jag kan inte få upp min kokosnöt".
In the town he encounters a variety of characters. Saga (Melinda Kinnaman), an assertive tomboy his own age, likes him, and shows it by beating him in a boxing match. Among the more eccentric residents is Fransson (Magnus Rask), a man who continually fixes the roof of his house, and Mr. Arvidsson (Didrik Gustavsson), an old man living downstairs who gets Ingemar to read to him from a lingerie catalog.
Later, Ingemar is reunited with his family, but his mother soon takes a turn for the worse and is hospitalized. He and his brother go to stay with their uncle Sandberg (Leif Ericson) in the city, but his wife thinks the boy is mentally disturbed. After his mother passes away, he is sent back to Småland.
Mr. Arvidsson has died in the interim; Gunnar and Ulla now share the house with a large Greek family. Gunnar welcomes him and consoles him as best he can, but the house is so crowded, he has Ingemar live with Mrs. Arvidsson in another house. Meanwhile, Ingemar becomes the object of contention between Saga and another girl. When they start fighting over him, he grabs onto Saga's leg and starts barking like a dog. She becomes upset by his strange behavior and gets him into the boxing ring. During the bout, out of spite, she tells him that his beloved dog (which he had thought was in a kennel) was actually euthanized. This, along with his mother's death, is too much for him and he locks himself inside Gunnar's one-room "summer house" in the backyard. While secluded here, Ingemar reflects on the death of his mother, the loss of his dog and a changing world. Ingemar uses the experiences of others and of his own personal loss to reconcile a life which is sometimes tough.
Throughout the film, Ingemar tells himself over and over that it could have been worse, reciting several examples, such as a man who took a shortcut onto the field during a track meet and was killed by a javelin and the story of the dog Laika several times, the first creature sent into orbit by the Russians (without any way to get her back down).
The film ends with the radio broadcast of a famous heavyweight championship boxing match, between Swede Ingemar Johansson and American Floyd Patterson. When Johansson wins, the whole town erupts with joy, but the now-reconciled Ingemar and Saga are fast asleep together on a couch.

Tags: cult, prank

Review:
This is an emotionally powerful (and sad) film about a boy coming to terms with the fact that his mother, who he loves dearly, is dying.
Everyone tries to hide what is really going on, as if "what you don't know won't hurt you", but the boy is hurting badly.There are no car chases, shoot-outs, or space aliens in this film.
This film is about real life, about growing up, and about children's sexuality.
In 1950s Sweden a 12 year old boy Ingemar (Anton Glanzelius) is sent to live with relatives.
With his relatives he grows up and learns how to deal with life, love, feelings of abandonment, sex etc etc.Sounds pretty obvious but it isn't.
This film is beautifully directed by Lasse Hallstrom and perfectly captures what it's like to be a young boy growing up.
That it takes place in 1950s Sweden makes no difference--all young boys go through the feelings and emotions shown in this movie.
Children on the cusp of puberty who engage in a completely unrepressed journey of sexual discovery without tilting the film into x-rating.This is a true story based on the life of a real child whose mother was a famous Swedish writer, who had a terrible temper and also died of a disease of the lungs.
Unlike most American films which say too much, are too loud and spoon feed all thinking into the audience with the assumption that we are dumb, insensitive and unable to connect the dots, this drama delights with it's simplicity, allowing the drama to come to us in an unhurried telling.
The film follows the life of Ingemar in his 12th year as he has to cope with the slow death of his mother.
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.
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.
This odd little film relates the story of Ingemar, a boy who learns about life, death, loss, and practically everything else.
The boy is a charming little fellow, and all the odd people he meets are also charming in their own ways.Because his mother is dying and his father is off in some other part of the world, he and his brother are split up.
He distances himself from the pain in his life by comparing his predicaments to things he has heard about in the great, strange world beyond the little town where he lives.This is an amusing, quaint film that shows us that life goes on no matter how difficult and hurtful it seems.
"MY LIFE AS A DOG" is certainly  my best film.
About each occurrences in this movie, however, I cannot describe which scene is the most impressive, the sad, or comical, because I think there is no exactly deliberate scene but  just a boy's thought and life with his mother, brother, pet dog, other relative, friends, and other villagers.The very basic natural humanity is vividly presented through those people.
"Mit liv sum hund" directed by talented director Lasse Hallström is one of the reasons why I like Scandinavian movies so much.
They always have this "real" feeling without ever overdoing things like in Hollywood movies often is the case.The story is very simple and mainly because of that it all feels very real and heartwarming.
I think that is the main reason why this movie is great to watch for adults as well as children.
I wonder what she looks like now as an adult?For kids that young, I thought there was a little too much emphasis on sex, but mostly it's just natural curiosity of what the other sex looks like, and the intentions are innocent.Overall, it is a charming film with almost all (one exception: his older brother) likable people..
Beautifully filmed with characters who are so real that at times, you feel like you're intruding.
I own the film and have seen it a dozen times.First - only watch the version with subtitles.
I just came across this coming of age movie about a boy's childhood in 1950s Sweden.
I expected to change the channel but soon got caught up in the wonderful simplicity of the tale, made especially memorable by the lead performance of the boy Anton whose expressive face mirrors all of his impish thoughts.As charming as a film of this sort can be, despite the episodic nature of the telling.
Makes you examine your own childhood feelings of loneliness or rejection--and the explorations that all of us are subject to.By all means, a film worth watching.
A mischievous young boy with a Puckish smile, unusual table manners, and a sympathetic kinship to Laika the Soviet astro-dog is sent by his ailing mother to live with relatives in the country, where he discovers a town full of people even more eccentric than himself.
Director Lasse Hallstrom's popular Swedish import offers a refreshing look at the mysteries and heartbreak of adolescence, with all the charm but none of the cloying sentiment of other, similar coming-of-age films.
The rich humor is drawn around an affectionate portrait of small town life, closely observed; the pain comes from the realization that young Ingmar's bedridden mother has already passed away.
It's a memorable look at love and mortality, as seen from the innocent eyes of a boy passing through that awkward age when he begins thinking like an adult while still unable to stop acting like a child..
Lasse Hallstrom has gone on to direct some touching, funny American films (Once Around, What's Eating Gilbert Grape), but My Life As A Dog is the best of the lot.
"Mitt Liv Som Hund" or simply "My Life as a Dog" is a warming and poetic chronicle of the life of a young boy who learns about what growing up is like when faced to live with another parents after his mother's illness prevents her from taking care of him and his older brother.
The boy, Ingemar (the gifted Anton Glanzelius), narrates his distant happy memories while living with his mother and then later his future discoveries and events that changed his life.
While telling his stories he keeps comparing his life to the Laika's life, the little dog who was sent to space by the Soviet in 1957, year the movie's story starts.
Laika in the space, Ingemar on the ground with his eccentric uncles, new friends and far away from the very few people he knew: his sick mother and his brother, sent to another home.
I'd say I went into My Life as a Dog with mixed expectations.What I found was probably the most intelligent coming-of-age films I've seen.
There is an element of fantasy but nothing off-putting or tedious like so many French films (Amelie and A Very Long Engagement being two films I especially dislike).The film is set in the late 50's and apart from the coming of age theme, it deals with boxing - Ingemar something or other beat Floyd Pattersen!
-; dogs - apparently the Russians sent a dog in space without enough food and young Ingemar's dog is cruelly taken away from one at a particularly vulnerable time; and a budding sexual awakening guaranteed to rile up prudish Americans even if its innocent and unerotic.
I think some of the emotional resonance of the film comes from how truthful and warm My Life as a Dog is, there's even something very Truffautesque about it.My Life as a Dog has an evocative script, a compelling story and characters that feel real, you immediately connect with Ingemar and do so right up to the last second.Lasse Hallstrom directs beautifully, the film looks gorgeous in photography and production values, the score is haunting and Anton Glanzelius's lead performance is astonishing combining charm and wit with innocence and spirit.Overall, a truly wonderful movie.
This movie, intensely comical, but also sweet, sad and touching.It shows the life of a young boy (apparently 12 years old) who is discovering life for the first time.
It centres on the innocence of childhood and the way in which life works.It has been said that this film errs on the side of child pornography because a young girl exposes herself (just the torso) to the boy.
They are not full of moral wowsers who can't see the art for the breasts...It helps if you watch the movie for a second time, as everything is better and you notice the great subtitles placed in this wonderful movie..
I don't think that I have ever laughed as hard during a movie as when I watched "My Life as a Dog." In addition, such pathos is rarely captured on film.
I am hard pressed to think of another movie that risks the range of emotions embraced by this film.
The beauty of this film is an innocence that allows us to revisit our childhood many times.
I enjoy a great deal of Swedish director Lasse Hallstrom's films for their moving, bittersweet tone.
Still, that does not give peace to his terrified soul.With a smashing (and barking) performance by gifted Swede toddler, Anton Glandzelius, "My Life as a Dog" is a beautiful film.
While not a very deep film, 'My Life As A Dog' is a wonderful evocation of time and place, as well as a movingly constructed vision of innocence and childhood.
'My life as a dog' is such a delightful movie to watch and it will suit everybody.I first knew Lasse Hallstrom through 'What's Eating Gilbert Grape'.
Now after I saw 'My life as a dog', I find that Hallstrom is really great in making films about life.
Both films are about daily dramas on ordinary people's lives but 'My life as a dog is more fun to watch than the great but depressing 'What's eating Gilbert Grape''My life as a dog' focuses very well on the joy and sadness of a growing boy, Ingemar.
Although the words come out from a boy's mouth, they actually teach all of us something.Hallstrom intelligently bring small details to make this movie 'alive', rich and inspiringly funny.
After I had seen "The Cider House Rules" and "Chocolat", I took some interest in Swedish-born director Lasse Hallstrom, and so I decided to check out one of his movies from his native country.
This story of abandoned boy Ingemar hits the perfect balance between sentimental and gritty, with one scene that was probably there for a little comic relief (you'll know what I mean if you see the movie).
I love this movie and the Swedish films are good!!!
I really like the actors and Lasse Hallström is a really good director, ok the movie is a little bit slow sometimes but you get a really good feeling when you see it.
This movie follows the boy during the first year or two of his life with them and you get to see his first love, him playing on a soccer team, etc.
Maybe I'm just a sucker for these kinds of films, but I love this movie!
If you liked "Stand By Me" or the TV series, "The Wonder Years" I think you'll like "My Life as a Dog" too.
They really brought the movie (and their characters) alive.....showing pre-teens as they grow and experience life altering changes..
You like the film as you watch it, but you never get the feeling that it is anything more than the story of one particular boy, whose life isn't that exceptional after all.
this is the story of a boy who hits puberty when his mum is dying, and having to move in with relatives in a small country town while all the time thinking about Lakia.
P.S. I Love You. When a little boy falls through a cottage skylight window while his parents are making love during vacation his father has a heart attack and must go back into The Navy for his Health & Rehabilitation...While The Mother, The Two Sons & Family Dog are living in a Sanatorium from The Two Sons being officially declared Bastards from The Parents Naval ReMarriage, The Mother falls into Poor Health and must go into Convalescence...By this point The Main Character has replaced The Family's Love with The Family Dog's Love...Sent away for Summer Vacation during his Mother's Convalescence, The Main Character once again falls through the same cottage skylight window while watching his relatives have sex...Finally recognizing his stupidity The Main Character falls in LOVE with a Young Lesbian Girl who knows his secret...Masturbation!.
This was the first thing come to my mind after watching this movie.
A very awesome Swedish film was made about thirty-two years ago and clearly illustrates the psychological world of a seven-year-old child who, at the same time as a child, has a large inside with a lot of exterior experiences, such as displacement, separation from his beloved dog and The next two boys in the family and, of course, maternal love and hatred.
Young boy Ingemar (Anton Glanzelius) is living with his older brother and his seriously ill mother.
Town tomboy Saga (Melinda Kinnaman) is a better athlete than every other boys and she grows to like Ingemar.The puppy love is adorable.
This is a delightful and sad movie about a young boy who is left to fend for himself in many ways after his mother dies.
Ingemar gets back to the small town after his mother's death and is met at the train station by his loving uncle.
Even if the story is told through the experiences of a 12 yr old boy, anybody can relate no matter what age, because we all feel that hunger to be loved..
When the opening scene showed Ingemar on the beach amusing his mother with some childish antics, I was primed for a happy coming-of-age story.
He has some odd behaviors, like approaching his milk glass with trepidation as if were one of life's great challenges to drink from it.When Ingemar becomes too much for his mother to handle he is sent to a small village down south to live with his uncle's family.
Initially, it appears that young Ingemar (Anton Glanzelius) is merely a mischievous troublemaker, but inwardly, he harbors all the self doubt and insecurity of any young boy his age, compounded by a terminally ill mother and a brother with whom he has very little connection.
Their coming of age story is portrayed sweetly with innocence, and though the film explores sexual themes with it's eccentric characters, it does so maturely with a young person's sense of wonder and amazement..
At the end of the movie one finds out who was the dog whose life is being told.
It isn't Laika sent in space at the onset of the movie, but the little boy who identifies with his dog who was put to sleep while he was away at his uncle's place.
"My Life as a Dog" is a simple story about a 12 year old, mischievous boy, who is trying to find his way.
He has a brother that he does not really get along with, a mother who is getting progressively sicker, and a dog who gives him the love that he is not able to get from either his mother or brother.To help his mother recover, he is sent packing, off to live for the summer with an uncle, where he finds a place to fit in, and friends and neighbors who are just as "strange" and mischievous.The film is a memory, neither romanticized or critical of either the boy or his family and friends.
It simply tells the tale of a boy on the verge of puberty and the confusing feelings that he experiences.I didn't like the repetitive nature of the narration that occurs throughout the film, but I found myself drawn into the story and the characters.Lasse Hallstrom does a marvelous job of getting genuine, honest performances from all of his actors, who are all excellent.8 out of 10.
A young 11-year-old boy discovers life, death and girls.
Ingemar (Anton Glanzelius) leads a simple but complex life where his mother dies young and he is consequently sent to live with his uncle.
Anton Glanzelius gives a wonderful performance as 11-year-old Ingemar, as do the rest of the cast.
She is well played by Melinda Kinnaman.This film makes reference to Laika's story a cup of times.
Just because of one scene of child nudity in a film they already think it's pedophilia.
There could have been a deeper, lost metaphor between the loss of his dog and his thoughts of his dying mother, but if so, it was either lost in translation or wound up on the cutting room floor.If you want an excellent film that tackles looming death or losing a loved one rent "Autumn Spring" or Hallstrom's better venture, "The Shipping News".
Ingemar and his brother and mother live in a shanty house slum, and his uncle's country place is only a little nicer, even if the scenery is much more wholesome.
Then there is the actor's very appearance, which has an odd, almost maniacal twinkle in his mien, akin to a young Jack Nicholson's.All in all, My Life As A Dog is a good non-Hollywood Hollywood film, albeit a deeper one, without forced emotions.
A great coming of age movie.
Throughout the movie, Ingemar, the little boy in the movie, compares the tragic circumstances in his own life to that of other peoples (and a dog), who have much more tragic circumstances, so not to be so sad about his own.
For me, it was like seeing parts of my own life reflected on frames of film.