Being Bo Widerberg - Hurtigruten Nordic Film Festival 2026

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https://nordicfilmfestival.com.au/

Date Reviewed: 19/07/2026

Many of us recognise the name of Swedish director, Ingmar Bergman. Fewer people would recognise his rival, Bo Widerberg. A new documentary spotlights the work of the latter, looking to educate a new generation about the cinematic works of this Swedish new wave director.

The film is directed by Jon Asp and Mattias Nohrborg who both have impressive film credentials of their own. Asp edits the film magazine, “Point of View” and is the editor of the Ingmar Bergman Foundation in Stockholm. Nohrborg is the head of film distributor, TriArt Film and a champion of arthouse films.

Watching this documentary, Widerberg strikes me as the Lou Reed of Swedish cinema. A man who once started out as a writer and critic on his own, he would create his first films in the 1960s with a camera he purchased using the money for his wedding. Widerberg was a fierce critic of Bergman as it annoyed him that people did not work in the latter’s films. Widerberg drew on inspiration from his own autobiography in his work, which means that a lot of his films focused on the working-class in Sweden. This documentary includes interviews with his children and it describes his tumultuous personal life, as he was renowned for his many affairs.

This documentary includes archival interviews with Widerberg where he proves himself as a spiky interview subject. He was renowned as a difficult person to work with. Actor, Anita Ekberg once famously clashed with him so much on set that she returned home after a few days shooting. Widerberg also ventured to the states to shoot “Joe Hill” for Paramount, only to return home to finish the film in his native Sweden.

The film includes many clips from Widerberg’s films including: “The Baby Carriage “and “Raven’s End.” Widerberg was always keen to capture social realism and the working class in particular, even though he was quite tyrannical in his own approach to life. He was a man of many contradictions, it seems. There are also interviews with screen luminaries like Tarik Saleh, Stellan Skarsgård, and Mia Hansen-Løve, as well as Widerberg’s own collaborators. He would famously like using people who were unknown in his films, as he found them to give more authentic performances than the ‘professionals.’ 

“Being Bo Widerberg” straddles the lines between a tribute and a hagiography. His work is highly revered here and his deeply flawed personality is also explored in detail. This film feels a tad long at times but ultimately it is a portrait of a highly eccentric artist and accomplished editor of Swedish cinema. This is a real behind-the-scenes look at the man and the myth. 

Being Bo Widerberg plays as part of the Hurtigruten Nordic Film Festival. For more information head here: https://nordicfilmfestival.com.au/

Reviewed by Natalie Salvo