Pelle the Conqueror

I am surprised that I had never heard of Pelle the Conqueror before, even if not for Max von Sydow’s performance alone. Von Sydow plays an elderly widower along with his son Pelle (Pelle Hvenegaard), who flee rural Sweden in the mid-nineteenth century to find work and a better life for him and his son in Denmark. They quickly face prejudice from the local population, and after a day of being rejected, they get work from the last person looking for workers on a large farm.

The film follows their trials as they spend a year on the farm, and as the film progresses, we are introduced to the cast of characters who work on and surround the area. The storylines cut in and out of the main narrative in a very satisfactory way, which builds a real, cohesive world in the life of pastoral Denmark in the 1800s. This film reminds me a lot of the pastoral life in films like Tree of Wooden Clogs and Fellini’s Amarcord. The father and son are the focus of the film, but the diversions into the lives of the other farm workers really make this film feel lived-in.

Pelle the Conqueror is ultimately about how small misfortunes can be devastating down the road. There are several instances of pregnancies, infidelity, and accidents that upheave the lives of those involved. The absolute heartbreak these characters experience is gut-wrenching every time; however, they all hold on to a sliver of hope for a better life in the end. The performances of every character are phenomenal, and I would absolutely recommend picking up this copy from Film Movement Classics.

Vital Disc Stats: Blu-ray 
This edition is housed in a standard Blu-ray case along with the region A Blu-ray disc of the film, along with a booklet featuring an essay by Terrence Rafferty.

This release by Film Movement Classics is gorgeous; the new 4K scan and 1080p transfer looks great while maintaining the film grain, which makes the cinematography of the Danish pastoral landscape pop while still being dour and sparse. The cinematography honestly reminded me of another Danish film maestro, Carl Th. Dreyer, especially the interior shots of the barn where the two leads live, reminded me of his film, Ordet, another period piece depicting a poor family's lives in rural Denmark. The film looked great on my TV, and it is well worth the money for this edition of Pelle the Conqueror.

The sound in this edition is average; there’s nothing to complain about when it comes to audio, which is in DTS-HD MA 2.0 channel. The sound mixing is solid, as is the score. I have no complaints about this release; however, nothing jumps out as spectacular either. This is just a solid release that will leave the audience satisfied.

The two supplements are not the driving point for this release. There is a very informative audio commentary by film scholar Peter Cowie, who has written extensively on Ingmar Bergman’s works. He does a great job explaining the context of this film and the wider history of Scandinavian films. The booklet essay by Terrence Rafferty provides a similar context in the creation of the film and its place in Scandinavian cinema. Both the essay and commentary provide interesting insights while being the only supplements in this release.

• Audio Commentary featuring Peter Cowie
• Booklet

This film is an underseen epic, despite winning the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film at the 61^st Academy Awards. Steered by Max Von Sydow and the rest of the cast, provide great performances that will leave the audience with a mix of heartbreak and incredible resilience for the human spirit. This release by Film Movement Classics provides a great scan of this film that looks great; however, it is a little lacking on supplements, while still being worth the money for this edition. I would recommend picking up Pelle the Conqueror if you are into small but mighty period epics, especially if you are looking to broaden your cinematic horizons to lesser-known film industries. Recommended