Dagmar Brink, a young female pianist, commits suicide in her Stockholm apartment. She leaves all her belongings to her next-door neighbours, an author and his wife. Perplexed and curious, they investigate the reasons for Dagmar’s decision. As they visit her friends, acquaintances and former boyfriends, her story unfolds. She emerges as a loner, a woman no one could truly understand, always yearning for something that eluded everyone she met. Hasse Ekman’s masterfully staged story, whose theme of forbidden desire and lesbian love still moves audience today, is considered by many to be his best film. A melodrama with deep shadows portrays a life lost too soon and serves as a puzzle detective story reminiscent of Citizen Kane. The narrative structure features a writer piecing together and interpreting a life story by seeking out individuals whose flashbacks offer varied perspectives on the enigmatic protagonist’s motivations. Stylistically, while Ekman doesn’t strive for technical innovation like Welles, he effectively employs established techniques from 1940s American film noir. Notable similarities include the camera’s mobility and angles, the use of deep focus and long takes, and dramatic lighting. Ekman was one of Sweden’s finest filmmakers. However, unlike contemporaries such as Ingmar Bergman, he never gained significant recognition outside Sweden. Born in 1915 to the renowned actor Gösta Ekman, Hasse began his career as an actor in the 1920s. In 1940, he wrote and directed his first film, and over the next 25 years, he made over 40 films before retiring from filmmaking in 1965. In the 1940s, he was regarded as Sweden’s best director. While some films were made out of contractual obligations, most were personal and deeply felt, ranging from comedies to dramas that explored unhappy marriages, the world of the theatre, and the lives of poets, painters, writers and dreamers.

Kajsa Hedström