A new Swedish movie could cause friction with Norway as it describes the neighbouring country as a “retarded cousin who’s won he lottery”.
The Ronnie Sandahl-directed movie, Svenskjavel, won the runner-up prize at the Gothenburg Film Festival’s best Nordic film of 2015 award.
It tells the tale of 19-year-old Swede Dino, who moves to Oslo as a housekeeper because of the larger salaries offered across the border; however, she winds up becoming romantically involved with the father of the household.
During Dino’s time in the house she is continually looked down on, with a friend of her employer saying it was karma she was working for them because during the war the Swedes stood there and bowed to the Germans like prostitutes. He added that his life was better now a Swede served him his coffee in the morning and cleaned his shit up for him.
However, when another friend in the room asks Dino what she thinks of the situation, she says that the country likes Norway, but just sees them as “mentally disabled cousins who have won the lottery”, adding that they didn’t begrudge that.
The movie, which was filmed in Oslo in 2013, is due to premiere in Stockholm on 27 March. It features Swede Bianca Kronlof as Dino and Norwegian Henrik Rafaelsen as her employer.