My Life as a Dog

An early film by the Swedish master of fairy tales for adults, shot in his homeland and ensuring his subsequent worldwide success

The mother of eleven-year-old Ingmar is terminally ill with tuberculosis. In order to relieve her of the burden of caring for her son and protect the boy from heavy impressions, Ingmar is sent to spend the summer with his uncle in a small village. There, he feels alienated and lonely until he meets Saga, a local girl his age. Eventually, childhood, summer, and friendship take their course. For a while, Ingmar becomes a normal happy boy on vacation, thinking, «It could have been worse. In reality, I'm lucky. If you compare...»

Lasse Hallström is a Swedish director known for tear-jerking yet magical films such as «Chocolat,» «Hachi: A Dog's Tale,» and «What's Eating Gilbert Grape?» However, it was his film «My Life as a Dog,» which earned Hallström a ticket to Hollywood, that remains his most tender, intimate, and genuinely childlike picture.

🏆 Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film.