Slideshow
JOE HILL
Sweden/USA, 1971
Written and Directed by Bo Widerberg
Starring Thommy Berggren, Anja Schmidt, Kelvin Malave, Evert Anderson
WINNER Cannes Film Festival – Special Jury Prize, 1971
Approx. 117. min.
Partly filmed in Greenwich Village, Widerberg’s historical drama depicts the life of Swedish immigrant Joe Hill, an important labor organizer and songwriter who was tried and executed for murder in Utah in 1915. Opening with the union slogan “we want bread and roses too,” JOE HILL contrasts the violent struggles of the labor movement with a picturesque view of the American landscape.
Reviews
“People who liked ELVIRA MADIGAN would probably like JOE HILL too. It has the same love for sun-drenched pastoral scenes, the same gift for little vignettes that make scenes human and the same affection for doomed love.”
– Roger Ebert