Hunger (1966 film)

1966 film

Sult

Front DVD cover for the film

Directed by| Henning Carlsen
Written by|

* Henning Carlsen
* Peter Seeberg
* Knut Hamsun (novel)

Produced by|

* Göran Lindgren
* Bertil Ohlsson

Starring|

* Per Oscarsson
* Gunnel Lindblom

Cinematography| Henning Kristiansen
Edited by| Henning Carlsen
Music by| Krzysztof Komeda
Distributed by| Athena Film

Release date

* 19 August 1966 (1966-08-19)

Running time

| 111 minutes
Countries|

* Denmark
* Norway
* Sweden

Languages| Swedish, Norwegian, Danish

Hunger (Danish: Sult, Swedish: Svält) is a 1966 black-and-white drama film directed by Denmark's Henning Carlsen, starring Swedish actor Per Oscarsson, and based upon the novel Hunger by Norwegian Nobel Prize-winning author Knut Hamsun.[1] Filmed on location in Oslo, it was the first film produced as a cooperative effort among the three Scandinavian countries.[2]

With its stark focus on a life of poverty and desperation, the film is considered a masterpiece of social realism.[3] Film historians suggest it was the first Danish film to gain serious international attention since the work of Carl Theodor Dreyer.[4] It is one of the ten films listed in Denmark's cultural canon by the Danish Ministry of Culture.[3]

## Plot

[edit]

In 1890 Kristiania (Oslo), an impoverished and lonely writer named Pontus (Per Oscarsson) comes to the city from the country. He stands on a bridge, overlooking running water, writing but clearly starving. He visits a pawnbroker several times. He sells his waistcoat for a few cents, then gives the money to a beggar. Other money that falls into his hands he also gives away. He has written an article that a newspaper editor (Henki Kolstad) agrees to publish if he makes some corrections, but Pontus is too proud to accept an advance when offered, so he leaves elated but still hungry. He begs a bone for his fictitious dog, which he gnaws on secretly in an alley. He often has the chance to make things better for himself, but his pride gets in the way, such as when he declines the much-needed help of a worried friend.

When he is unable to pay his rent, the landlady (Else Heiberg) evicts him. Another landlady shortly does the same. Hunger is constantly overwhelming Pontus and he drifts between hallucination and reality while struggling to survive. He suffers humiliations which lead him to the edge of insanity. He applies for an accounting job but is rejected, and fails a physical exam to be a fireman because he wears glasses. One hallucination revolves around Ylajali (Gunnel Lindblom), an apparently refined woman he has met on the street. Despite their mutual flirtations, nothing ever evolves between them. On a sudden impulse, Pontus takes a job as a crew member on an outbound freighter. His destination is unknown.

## Cast

[edit]

A heritage horsecar of the Oslo Tramway being used during the filming of Hunger

* Per Oscarsson ... Pontus
* Gunnel Lindblom ... Ylajali
* Birgitte Federspiel ... Her sister
* Knud Rex ... Landlord
* Hans W. Petersen ... Grocer
* Henki Kolstad ... Editor
* Roy Bjørnstad ... Konstantin
* Sverre Hansen ... Painter
* Pål Skjønberg ... Constable
* Else Heiberg ... Landlady
* Lise Fjeldstad ... Little girl
* Carl Ottosen ... Sailor
* Osvald Helmuth ... Pawnbroker
* Sigrid Horne-Rasmussen ... Landlady

## Awards

[edit]

The film was nominated for the Palme D'Or and won the Bodil Award for Best Danish Film in 1967. For his leading role, Oscarsson won Best Actor awards at the 1966 Cannes Film Festival,[5] the Best Actor award at the 4th Guldbagge Awards,[6] 1967 Bodil Awards and the USA's National Society of Film Critics award for Best Actor in 1968. The film was also selected as the Danish entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 39th Academy Awards, but was not accepted as a nominee.[7]

## See also

[edit]

* Film portal
* Denmark portal

* List of submissions to the 39th Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film
* List of Danish submissions for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Monty, Ib Sult (Hunger), International Dictionary of Film and Filmmakers, 2000
2. ^ Nestingen et al. 2005, p. 143.
3. ^ a b "Sult" (PDF). Kulturkanonen (in Danish). Kulturministeriet. January 2006. pp. 91–92. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 April 2017. Retrieved 7 April 2017.
4. ^ Nestingen et al. 2005, p. 119.
5. ^ "Festival de Cannes: Hunger". festival-cannes.com. Archived from the original on 2012-09-22. Retrieved 2009-03-08.
6. ^ "Svält (1966)". Swedish Film Institute. 1 March 2014.
7. ^ Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

### Sources

[edit]

* Nestingen, A.A.; Nestingen, A.K.; Elkington, T.G.; Wayne State University Press; Bondebjerg, I.; Redvall, E.N.; Schepelern, P.; Wright, R.; Pantti, M.; Møller, B. (2005). Transnational Cinema in a Global North: Nordic Cinema in Transition. Contemporary Film and Television Series. Detroit: Wayne State University Press. ISBN 978-0-8143-3243-6. OCLC 56517403. Retrieved 27 June 2021.

## External links

[edit]

* Hunger at IMDb
* Hunger at AllMovie
* Hunger at the TCM Movie Database
* Det Danske Filminstitut

* v
* t
* e

Bodil Award for Best Danish Film

* 1948 Jenny and the Soldier
* 1949 The Viking Watch of the Danish Seaman
* 1950 Susanne
* 1951 Café Paradis
* 1952 Det Sande Ansigt
* 1953 Adam and Eve
* 1954 Farlig Ungdom
* 1955 Ordet and Der kom en dag
* 1956 På tro og love
* 1957 Be Dear to Me
* 1958 Dregs
* 1959 A Stranger Knocks
* 1960 Vi er allesammen tossede
* 1961 The Last Winter
* 1962 Harry and the Butler
* 1963 Weekend
* 1964 Street Without End
* 1965 Gertrud
* 1966 Strike First Freddy
* 1967 Hunger
* 1968 People Meet and Sweet Music Fills the Heart
* 1969 Ballad of Carl-Henning
* 1970 Jazz All Around
* 1971 Ang.: Lone
* 1972 The Missing Clerk
* 1973 The Escape
* 1974 Not awarded
* 1975 Lars-Ole 5.c
* 1976 That Brief Summer
* 1977 Boys
* 1978 Me and Charly
* 1979 In My Life
* 1980 Johnny Larsen
* 1981 Jeppe på bjerget
* 1982 Rubber Tarzan
* 1983 Der er et yndigt land
* 1984 Beauty and the Beast
* 1985 The Element of Crime
* 1986 The Dark Side of the Moon
* 1987 Coeurs flambés
* 1988 Pelle the Conqueror
* 1989 Emma's Shadow
* 1990 Waltzing Regitze
* 1991 Dance of the Polar Bears
* 1992 Europa
* 1993 Pain of Love
* 1994 Fish Out of Water
* 1995 The Kingdom
* 1996 The Beast Within
* 1997 Breaking the Waves
* 1998 Let's Get Lost
* 1999 The Celebration
* 2000 The One and Only
* 2001 The Bench
* 2002 Kira's Reason: A Love Story
* 2003 Open Hearts
* 2004 Dogville
* 2005 King's Game
* 2006 Manslaughter
* 2007 A Soap
* 2008 The Art of Crying
* 2009 Terribly Happy
* 2010 Antichrist
* 2011 R
* 2012 Melancholia
* 2013 A Hijacking
* 2014 The Hunt
* 2015 Silent Heart
* 2016 Land of Mine
* 2017 In the Blood
* 2018 Winter Brothers
* 2019 Holiday
* 2020 Queen of Hearts
* 2021 Another Round
* 2022 Persona Non Grata

* v
* t
* e

Danish submissions for Academy Award for Best International Feature Film

1956–2000|

* Qivitoq - Fjeldgængeren (1956)
* Be Dear to Me (1957)
* The Girls Are Willing (1958)
* Paw (1959)
* Harry and the Butler (1961)
* Sekstet (1964)
* Gertrud (1965)
* Hunger (1966)
* Once There Was a War (1967)
* People Meet and Sweet Music Fills the Heart (1968)
* Ballad of Carl-Henning (1969)
* Ang.: Lone (1970)
* The Missing Clerk (1971)
* Oh, to Be on the Bandwagon! (1972)
* The Last Exploits of the Olsen Gang (1974)
* Per (1975)
* The Olsen Gang Sees Red (1976)
* Boys (1977)
* Me and Charly (1978)
* Johnny Larsen (1979)
* Tree of Knowledge (1982)
* Zappa (1983)
* Tukuma (1984)
* Twist and Shout (1985)
* The Dark Side of the Moon (1986)
* Babette's Feast (1987)
* Pelle the Conqueror (1988)
* Waltzing Regitze (1989)
* Dance of the Polar Bears (1990)
* The Great Day on the Beach (1991)
* Sofie (1992)
* Black Harvest (1993)
* Carl, My Childhood Symphony (1994)
* Hamsun (1996)
* Barbara (1997)
* The Celebration (1998)
* Mifune (1999)
* A Place Nearby (2000)

2001–present|

* Italian for Beginners (2001)
* Open Hearts (2002)
* Reconstruction (2003)
* The Five Obstructions (2004)
* Adam's Apples] (2005)
* After the Wedding (2006)
* The Art of Crying (2007)
* Worlds Apart (2008)
* Terribly Happy (2009)
* In a Better World (2010)
* SuperClásico (2011)
* A Royal Affair (2012)
* The Hunt (2013)
* Sorrow and Joy (2014)
* A War (2015)
* Land of Mine (2016)
* You Disappear (2017)
* The Guilty (2018)
* Queen of Hearts (2019)
* Another Round (2020)
* Flee (2021)
* Holy Spider (2022)
* The Promised Land (2023)
* The Girl with the Needle (2024)

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