A Hole in My Heart
Encyclopedia
A Hole in My Heart is a 2004 Swedish drama film written and directed by Lukas Moodysson
, starring Thorsten Flinck
, Sanna Bråding
, Björn Almroth and Goran Marjanovic. The story revolves around a man who makes a pornographic film in his apartment with a friend and an attention-seeking starlet, while his teenage son stays in his room and listens to industrial rock
.
The film is notable for its explicit imagery, including close-ups of vaginal reconstruction
surgery, an anal sex scene without the use of lubrication, a masturbation scene with a toothbrush, and an extended scene about the woman's "smelly vagina". Moodysson leaves the interpretation of the film to the viewer: "I have cooked you a delicious meal, but I'm not going to chew it for you."
movie, while the one man's teenage son is trying to stay out of their way in his room. As time progresses, their filming gets out of hand. All the while, the father is concerned that his son has no respect for him, and the son is concerned about how his father treats the woman.
. When I tried to return to that American version, some kind of story that takes place in the American porn industry, I discovered I couldn’t do it. I had to transform it into this much smaller and more claustrophobic Swedish story."
Filming took place during 4 weeks in Trollhättan
. The film was shot digitally with DVCams. After the first day of filming, Thorsten Flinck
went to a hospital and lied to a doctor about having an aching back, which prompted the doctor to give him three morphine
pills. When Flinck woke up the next morning he started the day by swallowing all three pills. He was nearly fired when he arrived at the set on drugs, but was given a second chance. The rest of the production was free from incidents.
. It was released in Sweden on 17 September 2004. The theatrical poster featured a warning sign about strong images. Lukas Moodysson has expressed disapproval over the future VHS
and DVD
releases of the film (the decision to release it was out of his hands) — he would have preferred a theatres-only release, to avoid children being exposed to it.
rated the film 5 out of 6 and praised Moodysson for his daring approach: "A Hole in My Heart consolidates Moodysson's role as the fearless innovator, border stretcher and truth teller in European cinema - who fully masters, and isn't reluctant to use, the film medium's artistic and political possibilities. To the delight of those who dare to watch." Jens Peterson at Aftonbladet
respected the film for being uncompromising, but couldn't give it a higher rating than 2 out of 5: "Several times, the narrative style stands in the way of the story. A Hole in My Heart is both more overly obvious and stranger than Moodysson's three earlier, better, films. Occasionally even tedious, a word you never could have used about Moodysson."
The film was badly received by English-language critics, with a 41% approval percentage based on 17 reviews at Rotten Tomatoes
.
Lukas Moodysson
- External links :*...
, starring Thorsten Flinck
Thorsten Flinck
Thorsten Flinck, born April 17, 1961 in Solna, is a Swedish actor, director, and musician. He is known for mostly playing psychopaths and villains, and also for his outrageous personality both on stage and in real life...
, Sanna Bråding
Sanna Bråding
Sanna Bråding is a Swedish actress. Her first appearance was in the soap opera Tre Kronor during the 90s. In 2004 she starred in the film A Hole in My Heart...
, Björn Almroth and Goran Marjanovic. The story revolves around a man who makes a pornographic film in his apartment with a friend and an attention-seeking starlet, while his teenage son stays in his room and listens to industrial rock
Industrial rock
Industrial rock is a musical genre that fuses industrial music and specific rock subgenres. Industrial rock spawned industrial metal, with which it is often confused...
.
The film is notable for its explicit imagery, including close-ups of vaginal reconstruction
Vaginoplasty
thumb|right|300px|Vaginoplasty: the pre-operative aspect , and the post-operative aspect of a [[Labiaplasty|labial reduction]].Vaginoplasty is a reconstructive plastic surgery procedure for correcting the defects and deformities of the vaginal canal and its mucous membrane, and of vulvo-vaginal...
surgery, an anal sex scene without the use of lubrication, a masturbation scene with a toothbrush, and an extended scene about the woman's "smelly vagina". Moodysson leaves the interpretation of the film to the viewer: "I have cooked you a delicious meal, but I'm not going to chew it for you."
Plot
In an apartment somewhere in Sweden, a woman, a man and his friend are recording an amateur pornAmateur pornography
Amateur pornography is a category of pornography that features models or actors performing without pay, or for whom this material is their first or only paid modeling work. Reality pornography is professionally made porn which seeks to emulate the style of amateur pornography...
movie, while the one man's teenage son is trying to stay out of their way in his room. As time progresses, their filming gets out of hand. All the while, the father is concerned that his son has no respect for him, and the son is concerned about how his father treats the woman.
Cast
- Thorsten FlinckThorsten FlinckThorsten Flinck, born April 17, 1961 in Solna, is a Swedish actor, director, and musician. He is known for mostly playing psychopaths and villains, and also for his outrageous personality both on stage and in real life...
as Richard - Sanna BrådingSanna BrådingSanna Bråding is a Swedish actress. Her first appearance was in the soap opera Tre Kronor during the 90s. In 2004 she starred in the film A Hole in My Heart...
as Tess - Björn Almroth as Erik
- Goran Marjanovic as Geko
Production
Moodysson's original intent was to have the film taking place in the United States, using an American cast. Research was made about the American porn industry, but eventually Moodysson decided to set the story in Sweden: "I was, like, hit by a truck — and that truck was Lilya 4-everLilya 4-ever
Lilja 4-ever is a 2002 Swedish drama film. It is director Lukas Moodysson's third feature film which marks a sharp change of mood from his previous two films, the uplifting love story Show Me Love and Together, set in the 1970s...
. When I tried to return to that American version, some kind of story that takes place in the American porn industry, I discovered I couldn’t do it. I had to transform it into this much smaller and more claustrophobic Swedish story."
Filming took place during 4 weeks in Trollhättan
Trollhättan
Trollhättan is a city and the seat of Trollhättan Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden with 44,498 inhabitants in 2005. It is located 75 km north of Sweden's second-largest city, Gothenburg....
. The film was shot digitally with DVCams. After the first day of filming, Thorsten Flinck
Thorsten Flinck
Thorsten Flinck, born April 17, 1961 in Solna, is a Swedish actor, director, and musician. He is known for mostly playing psychopaths and villains, and also for his outrageous personality both on stage and in real life...
went to a hospital and lied to a doctor about having an aching back, which prompted the doctor to give him three morphine
Morphine
Morphine is a potent opiate analgesic medication and is considered to be the prototypical opioid. It was first isolated in 1804 by Friedrich Sertürner, first distributed by same in 1817, and first commercially sold by Merck in 1827, which at the time was a single small chemists' shop. It was more...
pills. When Flinck woke up the next morning he started the day by swallowing all three pills. He was nearly fired when he arrived at the set on drugs, but was given a second chance. The rest of the production was free from incidents.
Release
The film premiered at the 2004 Toronto International Film Festival2004 Toronto International Film Festival
The 2004 Toronto International Film Festival ran from September 9 through September 18.- Canada First :* CQ2 * I, Claudia * Ill Fated The 2004 Toronto International Film Festival ran from September 9 through September 18.- Canada First :* CQ2 (Seek You Too) (Carole Laure)* I, Claudia (Chris...
. It was released in Sweden on 17 September 2004. The theatrical poster featured a warning sign about strong images. Lukas Moodysson has expressed disapproval over the future VHS
VHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
and DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
releases of the film (the decision to release it was out of his hands) — he would have preferred a theatres-only release, to avoid children being exposed to it.
Critical response
The Swedish reception was split. With a few reservations, Malena Janson at Svenska DagbladetSvenska Dagbladet
Svenska Dagbladet is a daily newspaper in Sweden. The first issue appeared on 18 December 1884. Svenska Dagbladet is published in Stockholm and provides coverage of national and international news as well as local coverage of the Greater Stockholm region...
rated the film 5 out of 6 and praised Moodysson for his daring approach: "A Hole in My Heart consolidates Moodysson's role as the fearless innovator, border stretcher and truth teller in European cinema - who fully masters, and isn't reluctant to use, the film medium's artistic and political possibilities. To the delight of those who dare to watch." Jens Peterson at Aftonbladet
Aftonbladet
Aftonbladet is a Swedish tabloid founded by Lars Johan Hierta in 1830 during the modernization of Sweden. It is one of the larger daily newspapers in the Nordic countries. Aftonbladet is owned by the Swedish Trade Union Confederation and Norwegian media group Schibsted, and its editorial page...
respected the film for being uncompromising, but couldn't give it a higher rating than 2 out of 5: "Several times, the narrative style stands in the way of the story. A Hole in My Heart is both more overly obvious and stranger than Moodysson's three earlier, better, films. Occasionally even tedious, a word you never could have used about Moodysson."
The film was badly received by English-language critics, with a 41% approval percentage based on 17 reviews at Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
.