Scott Lord Swedish Silent Film: Vem Dömer (Who Should Judge?, Victor Sjostrom, 1922)

In Sweden, during 1922, Victor Sjostrom directed Jenny Hasselqvist in “Love’s Crucible”, co-scripted by Hjalmer Bergman and photographed by Julius Jaenzon. Nils Asther and Gosta Emmanuel appear on screen in the filmf. Author Forsyth Hardy, in his volume Scandinavian Film notes that the film was "an elaborate and spectacular historical film". Forsyth Hardy implies that "Vem Dormer" was not only an example of the Golden Age of Swedish Silent Film but an overwhelming attempt to save it, it having been an expensive film to make in hope of regaining an overseas audience that had begun to lose interest in serious Swedish Films. "All the resources of the newly completed Rasunda Studios were mobilized to make the spectacular Vem Dormer."

Vito Adriaensens, in his paper, "A Swedish Renaissance: Art and Passion in Victor Sjostrom's 'Vem Dommer' (1922)" explains the connection between the title and theme and the use of symbolic imagery in the films of VictorSjostrom, "The statue of Christ adorns the local church and is the first and last thing we see in the film. Christ is pivotal for the narrative and for the title, as 'Vem Dommer' literally translates to 'who judges', implicating that only Christ can, not the community that tries to judge Ursula."
During the following year, 1923, Jenny Hassellquist starred in another collaboration between Victor Sjostrom and Hjalmer Bergman, the Film “Eld Ombord” (“The Hellship”)in which she appeared on screen with Victor Sjostrom, while under his direction. Actor Matheson Lang stars with actress Julia Cederblad in the first film in which she was to appear. The cinematographer to the film was Julius Jaenzon.



Victor Sjostrom

Victor Sjostrom Playlist

Early Scandinavian SIlent Film,: FIlmed Theater and the Cinema of Attractions/Cinema of Narrative Integration

Before Charles Magnusson, who became manager of Svenska Bio during 1909, had initiated the beginning of the classic period of the Golden Age of Swedish Silent Film, while Victor Sjostrom and Mauritz Stiller were involved with acting and theater production on the stages of Sweden, Sweden was not far behind other nations in producing one reel news footage and actualities. Documentary like news footage of royalty, Presidents and poltical personages was not uncommon during the transnational cinema of attractions and, notably, while under N.E. Sterner of Svenska Kinematograf, Charles Magnusson had photographed "Konung Haakongs mottanging i Kristiana" (1906), a short film on the King of Norway's visit to Kristiania, almost as though to presage that it would be there rather in the later Rasunda that the groundwork of his beginning the Swedish film industry would be laid, his also having directed the films "Gosta Berlingsland Bilder fran Frysdan" (1907), "Gota elf katastafen" (1908) and Resa Stockholm-Goteborg genom Gota och Trollhatte kanalor" (1908). Peter Cowie notes that despite the weather conditions of thick fog, Magnusson had shot the most professional footage of the event when compared to other Swedish cameramen of the time. Peter Cowie writes about the dynamic between Charles Magnusson and the cinema of attractions, "He sensed that the short farces made by the aristocratic Carl Florman would only play into the hands of the showmen who were determined to exploit the cinema as if it were some circus spectacle."

Photographer Robert Olsson is listed as having worked on the filming of King Oscar in Kristianstad, his having filmed several of the earliest films photographed in Scandinavia before working with Carl Engdahl, among them "Pictures of Laplanders" (Lappbilder, 1906), "Herring Fishing in Bohuslan" (Sillfiske i Bohuslan, 1906) and "Equal to Equal" (Lika mot lika, 1906), directed by Knut Lambert and starring Tollie Zelman.

During 1897, Ernest Florman photographed Oscar II, King of Sweden, in a one minute film, "Landing of the King of Siam at the Logardtrappen", featuring the Crown Prince Gustaf. Author Peter Cowie, in his volume Scandinavian Cinema, credits Ernest Oliver Florman with having directed Sweden's first fiction film, "The Village Barber". During 1903 Florman directed actress Anna Norrie in the short film "Anna Norrie".

Jan Christopher Horak typifies the cinema of attractions as a "fascination with movement within the frame". William Rothman writes that only one sixth of the silent film shot before 1907 had storyline. Author Charles Musser maintains that no more than four fifths of the films made by the Edison studios between 1904-1907 were narrative, or stage fiction. It is not suprising that Kenneth Magowan writing as ealy as 1965 in Behind the Screen divides early silent film into three periods: 1896-1905; 1906-1915 and 1916-1925. Form and content in film technique seem to have developed together. This can apparently refer to Sweden as well. Scholar Sandra Walker, University of Zurich writes, "At the time of Svenska Bio's first operations approximately 75% of the film produced in Sweden were nature films and journalistic reportage films. The journalistic films, such as the funeral of King Oscar II, in 1907, have been mentioned inconnection with the development of narrative techniques." It would be interesting to as if from the choice of these subjects we could infer a need or desire to view narrative on the screen or if the subjects were suggestive of real life stories that might be expanded into fictional fantasy, a deigesis that might be exotic or with which we were ordinarily familiar, causing us to wonder what would happen later, identifying with the subject for that reason.

Film historians have noted that Kristianstad, Sweden was home to another early Swedish Silent Film, "The Man Who Takes Care of the Villian" (Han som clara boven), filmed in 1907. Produced by Franz Wiberg, the film has never been released theatrically.

Forsyth Hardy, in his volume Scandinavian Film mentions cameraman Julius Jaenzon as having been in the United States durin 1907 to make a film of Teddy Roosevelt (Report from the United States on President Theodore Roosevelt). Ironically, Julius Jaenzon has been credited with having photographed the funeral of playwright August Strindberg in Stockholm (August Strindberg's Begravning, 1912). The film was produced by Pathe Freres at a time when Jaenzon had directed himself almost entirely to narrative films.

The periodical Nickelodeon in 1909 chronicled the Swedish National Moving Picture Company, headed by Ture Marcus, as having exhibited footage showing "scenes from the life of King Oscar" and his funeral to audiences in the United States.

Laura Horak, in The Global Distribution of Swedish Silent Film notes that before 1910 the film made by Charles Magnusson and Svenska Bio did not circulate widely outside Sweden, the first widely popular Swedish export, "To Save a Son" (Massosonns offer), it having had been directed by Alfred Lind for Frans Lundberg in 1910. The film features actress Agnes Nyrup Christensen in the first of a handful of appearances as a Swedish Silent film actress.

Swedish Silent Film producer Frans Lundberg in 1910 filmed "The People of Varmland" (Varmlandinggarna) directed by Ebba Lindkvist, photographed by Ernst Dittmer and starring actresses Agda Malmberg, Astrid Nilsson and Esther Selander.

In Kristianstad, Sweden, Svenska Biografteatern released the film "The People of Varmland" (Varmlannigarne)directed by Carl Engdahl during 1910, the film having starred actresses Ellen Stroback, Kattie Jacobsson, Ellen Hallberg and Frida Greiff.

With an onscreen running time of over a half hour, the film "Entrusted Funds" (Anfortrodda medel), directed in 1911 by Frans Lundberg brought actresses Phillipa Fredrikssen and Agnes Nyring Christensen to the screen. The film is presumed lost with no surviving copies existing. "The Black Doctor" (Den Svarte Doktorn), also directed that year for Stora Biografteatern by Frans Lundberg, held theatergoers in their seats for three quarters of an hour. Actress Olivia Norrie stars in the film, which is presumed lost, with no surviving copies existing.


In 1911, Gustaf Linden directed the film "The Iron Carrier" (Jarnbararen) photographed Robert Olsson and starring Ana-lisa Hellstrom and Gucken Cederborg. Scholar Mattias Lofroth, Stockholm University, includes the film among early Swedish Silent fiction films that illustrate an intermediality in an early Swedish cinema that "depended on their association on other media" in regard to "pictorialism and literary presentation", an intermediality that perhaps paved the way for audiences to find themselves no longer viewing a cinema of attractions, but a cinema of narrative integration.

While chronicling the move of Svenska Biografteatern from Kristianstad to Stockholm, then, during 1911, comprised of Julius Jaenzon and Charles Magnusson, author Forsyth Hardy in his volume Scandinavian Film, describes Swedish Silent Film prior to its Golden Age, "The camera remained static and the action was artificially concentrated in a small area in front of it." Hardy is describing the exingencies of the cinema of narrative integration after the theatricality of the novelties and actualities of the cinema of attractions, the second hand filmed theater left over from the camera technique of earlier news and travel footage.

Author Bo Florin, Stockholm University, mentions that Julius Jaenzon's brother, Henrik Jaenzon, was also present at Svenska Bio in Lindingo. Among the first films for Svenska Biografteatern to which Henrik Jaenzon was assigned cinematographer were two directed by George af Klercker during 1912, "Jupiter pa Jordan" and "Musikas makt", starring Lilly Jacobsson. Both films are presumed to be lost, with no surviving copies existing.

During 1912 Julius Jaenzon was the photographer and director of the film "Condemned by Society".

Silent Film

Swedish Silent Film
Swedish Silent Film

Scott Lord Silent Film: The White Rose (D.W. Griffith, 1923)

By then a producer for United Artists, after directing actresses Carol Dempster and Mae Marsh in “The White Rose” (twelve reels) in 1923, D. W. Griffith in 1924 directed the film “America” and “Isn’t Life Wonderful” during 1924.

D.W. Griffith

Silent Film