Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		5.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		1.0
Overall		4.5

Ådalen 31 Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman February 27, 2024

Note: This film is available on Blu-ray as part of the Bo Widerberg's New Swedish Cinema collection from Criterion.

Any conversation about Swedish film in the sixties is bound to be dominated by the titanic figure of Ingmar Bergman, but there were other Swedish filmmakers working during that decade, of course, and as is alluded to on the back cover of Criterion's four disc collection of films by Bo Widerberg as well as some on disc supplements included in the set, there was an undeniable bit of a "Bergman backlash" at work in some of Widerberg's offerings in particular. Widerberg will probably be best remembered by Western audiences for 1967's Elvira Madigan, a film which escaped the confines of neighborhood "art houses" to become a worldwide cinema phenomenon, one which, among other achievements, managed to get a theme by some guy named Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart or something like that significant radio airplay (including making the Top 40 on Billboard's so-called "Easy Listening" charts), courtesy of its haunting use of part of a "Wolfie" piano concerto as a leitmotif. While some cineastes may want to quibble with the back cover's further assertion that the fact that Widerberg's films merge "social realist themes" that focus on "the struggles of ordinary people" somehow sets him apart from Bergman, those same cineastes may find that very description of Widerberg's oeuvre a questionable thesis in and of itself to begin with (for example, was Elvira Madigan, a 19th century circus tightrope performer, an "ordinary person"?). All of this said, Widerberg's films are nonetheless markedly different in both tone and presentational aspects from Bergman's monolithic work, and the four films aggregated in this collection are all fascinating viewing experiences in their own ways.

Ådalen 31 offers something at least somewhat like the dialectic offered in Elvira Madigan where a fraught emotional ambience is contrasted with some absolutely luscious cinematography, and also like Elvira Madigan, this story is tethered to some actual history, which (again like Elvira Madigan) is documented in some prefatory text before the actual film begins. If Raven's End offered a view of Sweden in 1936 as the specter of Nazism started to grow around Europe, Ådalen 31 moves back five years to 1931 to document an actual real life labor uprising in the towns of Marma and Kramfors, one which ended in tragedy and which may make this an interesting companion piece with another historically based film focusing on labor unrest, Matewan.

This is another Widerberg effort somewhat like Raven's End where "big" historical events are taking place, but where the focus is rather interestingly placed squarely on one family. In this case, there are a number of repeated tropes that may recall other Widerberg efforts, including a somewhat inept father named Harald Andersson (Roland Hedlund) who struggles to support his family, and a son named Kjell (Peter Schildt) who yearns for a better life, but who in the course of events finds out his girlfriend Anna Björklund (Marie De Geer) has gotten pregnant.

Of the four films Criterion has included in its Widerberg collection, Ådalen 31 is the most overtly political, but it's really rather less screed like than might be initially presumed. The emphasis on a family fighting to remain intact despite several economic headwinds gives the film a visceral emotional tether that may help a probably occasionally hyperbolic screenplay to elide some of its more trenchant observations, and the film has any number of actually kind of sweet sidebars, including Kjell's attempts to become a better musician. The film builds to a rather tragic finale, as is indicated in that prefatory text information, but once again Widerberg want to offer a glimmer of hope for the Andersson clan, despite surroundings that seem almost willfully designed to quell any such aspirations.

Ådalen 31 Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Ådalen 31 is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of the Criterion Collection with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.39:1. Criterion's insert booklet contains the following information on the master:

Ådalen 31 is presented in the aspect ratio of 2.39:1. This new digital master was created in 4K resolution from the 35 mm original camera negative and a duplicate negative. The original monaural soundtrack was remastered from the 35 mm optical soundtrack negative. Color was approved by cinematographer Jörgen Persson.

This is a really gorgeous looking transfer that offers a secure, natural looking palette and really appealing detail levels, even in some wide framings where Widerberg and Jörgen Persson take full advantage of the 2.39:1 aspect ratio. Outdoor material is impressive, offering a perhaps less lyrical view of Sweden than that in Elvira Madigan, but still featuring any number of really beautiful (if in this case, at times slightly downtrodden) environments. Fine detail on practical items like props and costumes is often excellent. There's no damage of any major import, and grain resolves naturally throughout.

Ådalen 31 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Ådalen 31 features LPCM Mono audio in the original Swedish. The film has an emphasis on local music making, and all of the musical sequences sound nicely full bodied (even some where kids have put together a "band" out of homemade materials). Outdoor scenes feature some good ambient environmental effects, though again as with The Baby Carriage, there are some perhaps slightly comical uses of bird calls. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English subtitles are available.

Ådalen 31 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Bo Widerberg and Hjalmar Näsström (HD; 4:20) is a really interesting press conference with Widerberg and labor leader Hjalmar Näsström, who was part of original uprising depicted in the film. This aired on Swedish television in 1968. Subtitled in English.

Ådalen 31 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

As with at least a couple of the other films in Criterion's Widerberg set, family turns out to be the central focus of a story even with relatively epochal events unfolding around the characters. This is another really moving offering from Widerberg, one bolstered by evocative production design and some luscious cinematography, along with some very naturalistic performances. Technical merits are first rate, and the sole supplement very enjoyable. Highly recommended.