Maria Larssons eviga ögonblick

When I recorded this film I had no idea what I was going to see, I just read "photography" and thought I will give it a try. Wikipedia says: "It is based on the true story of Maria Larsson, a Swedish working class woman in the early 1900s, who wins a camera in a lottery and goes on to become a photographer."
So far so good, but this explanation makes it sound way too easy. Maria is most of all a mother of many children (lost track, might have been 7 or 8 in the end) and the forgiving wife of her alcoholic and violent husband. The film portrays her as a very strong character who survives their daily struggle and still finds the energy and passion to take photos whenever she gets the chance (and only because of a beautifully shy and romantic friendship between her and the local photographer who supports her with chemicals, new films and encouragement).

www.iconmovies.co.uk

The film shows Swedish history, shows how hard life especially for women of that time often was and, how even under the worst of circumstances, some people still can manage to feel inspired and don't give up seeing beauty in details and staying strong.
An inspiring story and a strong actress (Maria Heiskanen) make this film definitely worth seeing, especially as it comes in Swedish with subtitles and that, for me, always is part of the charm.