Happy 74th Birthday, Lasse Hallström! Born today in 1946 as Lars Sven "Lasse" Hallström, this Swedish screenwriter and film director first became known for directing almost all the music videos by the Swedish pop group ABBA, and subsequently became a feature film director.
Hallström was born in Stockholm, Stockholms, Iän, Sweden. His father was a dentist and his mother was the Swedish writer Karin Lyberg (1907–2000).
Hallström's maternal grandfather, Swedish lawyer Ernst Lyberg, was the Minister of Finance in the first cabinet of Swedish politician Carl Gustaf Ekman (1926–1928) and leader of the Liberal Party of Sweden (1930–1933).
Hallström attended Adolf Fredrik's Music School in Stockholm.
He later made his directorial debut in 1973, directing the comedy series Pappas pojkar (Daddy's Boy) for Swedish television. The program only lasted for one season.
Hallström later frequently collaborated with comic actors, being Swedish television host, actor and comedian Magnus Härenstam and Swedish actor and comedian Brasse Brännström during his Swedish period.
Between 1974 and 1982, Hallström worked with the Swedish pop group ABBA on many of their promotional videos.
He also co-wrote and directed their film, being the 1977 Swedish/Australian comedy drama-documentary film 'ABBA: The Movie'.
It tells of Ashley Wallace (Robert Hughes), an incompetent radio DJ, who tries to get an interview with the Swedish pop group during their famous week-long 1977 tour of Australia.
Hallström segued from Swedish television and directing virtually all of ABBA's music videos to forging a successful Hollywood career without abandoning his European sensibilities.
Almost all of ABBA's promotional films were directed and shot by Hallström, with the only (seven total) exceptions being "When I Kissed the Teacher" (1977), and "Chiquitita" (1979), which was made by the BBC.
Other songs, including "I Have a Dream" (1979); "On and On and On" (1980) and "Lay All Your Love on Me" (1981) were made by recycling material from older videos.
"The Day Before You Came" (1982) and "Under Attack" (1982), were both directed by Swedish director/producer Kjell Sundvall and Kjell-Åke Andersson.
The films for "Knowing Me, Knowing You" (1977), "Happy New Year" (1980) and "One of Us" (1981) all contained substantial scenes shot in Hallström's own Stockholm apartment.
'ABBA: The Movie' has become a cult film among ABBA fans. Its release coincided with the release of ABBA: The Album, the group's fifth studio album, and features many songs from that album as well as many of their earlier hits, and one, "Get on the Carousel", unavailable anywhere else.
Hallström was previously married to Swedish actress and editor Malou Hallström. They were married in 1974 but were divorced in 1981. They had two children together. Malou passed in 2005 at age 63.
Eight years later, Hallström co-wrote and directed the film of which he is best known. This was the 1985 Swedish drama comedy film 'Mitt liv som hund' ('My Life as a Dog'). The film was also co-written by Brännström.
'My Life as a Dog' was based on the second novel of a semi-autobiographical trilogy by Swedish author Reidar Jönsson, published in 1983.
Set in Sweden from 1958–59, the film tells of a twelve-year-old boy from a working-class family named Ingemar (Anton Glanzelius). He is obsessed with comparing himself with those less fortunate.
Sent there after his mother (Anki Lidén) becomes terminally ill, Ingemar later experiences a different life at the home of his aunt Ulla (Kicki Rundgren) and uncle Gunnar (Tomas von Brömssen) in the small rural town in Småland.
There, with the help of the warmhearted eccentrics who populate the town, the boy finds both refuge from his misfortunes and unexpected adventure.
Featuring an incredibly mature and unaffected performance by the young Glanzelius, 'My Life as a Dog' is a beloved and bittersweet evocation of the struggles and joys of childhood.
Upon release, the film won a number of awards. These included two Guldbagge awards. (These are the official and annual Swedish film awards ceremony honoring achievements in the Swedish film industry). This occurred at the 21st Guldbagge Awards in late January 1986.
In an interview, Irish actor and singer Richard Harris listed 'My Life as a Dog' as his favorite film.
Swedish author of fiction and screenplays Astrid Lindgren (best known for writing Pippy Longstocking) told Hallström when he was about to direct 'Barnen I Bullerbyn' ('The Six Bullerby Children'), she told him that: "I will try not to like you, because all the directors I like end up dead".
The film had been based on Lindgren's 1947 Swedish children's fiction book of the same name.
The two films directed by Hallström based on the book were released In the United States as 'The Children of Noisy Village' (1986) and 'More About the Children of Noisy Village' (1987).
Later that same year, 'My Life as a Dog' won Best Director. This occurred at the 40th Bodil Awards in 1987. (These are the major Danish film awards given by the Danish Film Critics Association).
One year later, the film won a Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film. This occurred at the 45th Golden Globe Awards in late January 1988.
Two months later, it was nominated a BAFTA for Best Foreign Film. However, it didn't win. This occurred at the 41st British Academy Film Awards in mid-March 1988.
The following month, it was nominated an Oscar for Best Director. However, it didn't win. This occurred at the 60th Academy Awards in mid-April 1988.
The two films by Hallström were reworked into a seven-episode television series, titled Alla vi barn I Bullerbyn (The Children of Bullerbyn Village), that was broadcast in 1989. One year later, Hallström met Swedish actress Lena Olin.
Hallström's first English-language feature was the 1991 American romantic comedy film 'Once Around'. It starred Richard Dreyfuss, Holly Hunter, Danny Aiello, and Gene Rowlands.
However, Hallström's first notable English-language success was the 1993 American coming-of-age drama film 'What's Eating Gilbert Grape.' The film starred Johnny Depp and Leonardo DiCaprio.
It was based on American novelist, playwright, screenwriter, film director and film producer Peter Hedges' 1991 novel of the same name.
On a budget of $11 million, 'What's Eating Gilbert Grape' only grossed $10 million at the box office.
Later that year, for his performance as the mentally impaired youth Arnie, DiCaprio won the NBR Award. This occurred at the 65th National Board of Review Awards in mid-December 1993. The following year, Hallström was married Olin on March 18, 1994.
Three days later, DiCaprio's performance in 'What's Eating Gilbert Grape' earned him an Academy Award and Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actor. However, he didn't win. This occurred at the 51st Golden Globes and the 66th Academy Awards, respectively.
Four years after Hallström's marriage to Olin, Hallström's Best Director Oscar nomination for 'My Life as a Dog' coincided with Adrian Lyne ('Jacob's Ladder') for 'Fatal Attraction' (1987), John Boorman ('Point Blank', 'Deliverance') for 'Hope and Glory' (1987).
This also coincided with Norman Jewison ('In the Heat of the Night') for 'Moonstruck' (1987) and Bernardo Bertolucci's ('Before the Revolution', 'The Conformist', 'The Spider's Stratagem', 'Last Tango in Paris', '1900'), nine-Oscar winning three-hour film 'The Last Emperor' (1987).
This was the only instance in Oscar history where all five Best Director nominees were non-Americans. This occurred at the 70th Academy Awards in late March 1998.
Hallström's ability to elicit award-winning performances from the cast in a variety of stories adapted from novels was further solidified in his films over the next two decades.
This was revealed in being nominated an Oscar for Best Director, and was for the 1999 American drama/romance film 'The Cider House Rules'. It starred Tobey Maguire, Michael Caine and Charlize Theron.
'The Cider House Rules' was based on American-Canadian novelist and screenwriter John Irving's 1985 bilddungsromane novel of the same name. He also wrote the screenplay for the film.
As for the 'rules' of the cider house', they act as a metaphor for those rules that are imposed on us by people who know very little about the true circumstances of our lives. And so another major theme is the importance of opposing those rules."
On a budget of $24 million, 'The Cider House Rules' grossed $88.5 million at the box office.
The following year, the film earned six additional Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Film Editing, Best Music/Original Score and Best Art Direction-Set Direction.
However, the film won two Oscars, with Michael Caine winning the Best Supporting Actor award and John Irving winning Best Adapted Screenplay. This occurred at the 72nd Academy Awards in late March, 2000.
Later that same year, Hallstrôm followed that success by directing the 2000 British/American comedy-drama romance film 'Chocolat', starring Johnny Depp, Juliette Binoche and Judi Dench. It was based on English-French author Joanne Harris' 1999 novel of the same name.
Upon release, the film was a critical and box-office success. On a budget of $25 million, 'Chocolat' grossed $152.7 million at the box office.
One year later, the film earned Golden Globe, BAFTA and Academy Award nominations, including an Oscar for Best Picture. However, the film didn't win. This occurred at the 58th Golden Globe Awards, 54th British Academy Film Awards and the 73rd Academy Awards.
Binoche and Dench won Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress respectively at both the European Film Awards and the Screen Actors' Guild awards. This occurred at the 14th European Film Awards and the 7th Screen Actor's Guild awards, respectively.
Later that same year, Hallstrom directed the 2001 Canadian/Swedish/American drama film 'The Shipping News'. It had been adapted from American novelist, short story writer, and journalist E. Annie Proulx's 1993 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name.
Starring Kevin Spacey, Judi Dench, Julianne Moore and Cate Blanchett, 'The Shipping News' won Hallström a directorial Golden Bear award at the 52nd Berlin International Film Festival in February 2002.
This also included him to be nominated for Golden Globe and BAFTA nominations for its lead and supporting actors. However, Hallström won none of these. This occurred at the 59th Golden Globe Awards and the 55th British Academy Film Awards.
Seven years later, Hallström directed the 2009 American drama film 'Hachi: A Dog's Tale'. Starring Richard Gere, the film is an adaptation of the 1987 Japanese film 'Hachikō Monogatari'.
The film was directed by Japanese film director Seijirô Kôyama, while the story was conceived by Japanese film director, screenwriter, film producer, and author Kaneto Shindo ('Onibaba'). He also wrote the screenplay.
Two years later, Hallström directed the 2011 British romantic comedy-drama film 'Salmon Fishing in Yemen'. It was based on British writer and the author of the 2007 comic of the same name.
Starring Ewan McGregor and Emily Blunt, 'Salmon Fishing in Yemen' was nominated for three Golden Globe Awards in the Comedy or Musical category, including Best Motion Picture, Best Actor for McGregor, and Best Actress for Blunt.
The film also was nominated for the European Film Awards People's Choice Award. However, it won none of these awards.
The following year, Hallström directed the 2012 Swedish/Finnish crime drama thriller film 'Hypnotisören' ('The Hypnotist)'.
It was later selected as the Swedish entry for the Best Foreign Language Oscar at the Oscars, but it did not make the final shortlist. This occurred at the 85th Academy Awards in late February 2013.
Five year later, Hallström directed the 2017 American comedy-drama adventure film 'A Dog's Purpose'.
It was based on American author, columnist, and humorist W. Bruce Cameron's 2010 humor fiction novel of the same name.
The film is billed as "a celebration of the special connection between humans and their dogs".
The following year, co-directed (alongside American film director, writer, and visual effects artist Joe Johnston)the 2018 American/Canadian fantasy adventure film 'The Nutcracker and the Four Realms'.
It is a retelling of E. T. A. Hoffmann's 1816 short story The Nutcracker and the Mouse King and Pyotr Illyich Tchaikovsky's French ballet dancer, pedagogue and choreographer Marius Petipa's ballet The Nutcracker, about a young girl who is gifted a locked egg from her deceased mother and sets out in a magical land to retrieve the key.
'The Nutcracker and the Four Realms' stars Mackenzie Foy (as Clara), Keira Knightley, Eugenio Derbez, Matthew Macfadyen, Richard E. Grant, Misty Copeland, Helen Mirren, and Morgan Freeman.
The film premiered in Los Angeles on October 29, 2018, and was released by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures in the United States on November 2, 2018, in RealD 3D and Dolby Cinema.
'The Nutcracker and the Four Realms' grossed $174 million worldwide against a production budget between $120–133 million. However, it received generally negative reviews, with criticisms of its story and dance routines.
According to Hallström's personal life, Hallström and Olin have one daughter together. This is Swedish actress Tora Hallström (b. 1995).
They also have a child from Olin's first marriage, F. Auguste Rahmberg (b. 1984). Hallström and Olin also have a home located in the Stockholm archipelago. Hallström is a vegan.
Tora has appeared in two of her father's films, being 'Hachi: A Dog's Tale' (as Heather) and 'Safe Haven' (as Ivan's Waitress). Swedish singer, actor, and musician Tommy Körberg is Tora's godfather.
A popular director of drama-tinged comedies, and having demonstrated an impressive flair for adapting material and drawing award-worthy performances from his actors, Hallström is noted for crafting emotionally wrought films that are deftly devoid of sentimentality.
Hallström has been active from 1973–present.
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