As It Is in Heaven
Encyclopedia
As It Is in Heaven is a 2004
film directed by Kay Pollak
and starring Michael Nyqvist
and Frida Hallgren
. It was a box office hit in Sweden and several other countries. It was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film
at the Hollywood 77th Academy Awards
.
) is a successful and renowned international conductor whose life aspiration is to create music that will open people's hearts. His own heart, however, is in bad shape. After suffering a heart attack
on stage at the end of a performance, he retires indefinitely to Norrland
in the far north of Sweden
, to the village where he endured a terrible childhood of bullying.
Daniel buys the old elementary school
in the village, and it isn't long before he is asked to come along one Thursday night and listen to the choir. He is only asked to listen, and maybe offer some helpful advice, but their intentions of persuading him to help are obvious. He eventually reluctantly agrees to assist. After the parish
minister offers him the position of cantor
, he accepts and sees the choir grow and develop, and rediscovers his own lost joy for music.
Almost immediately, Lena (Frida Hallgren
), a young attractive girl in the choir, catches his attention. As they grow closer and fall in love, he realises that he just seems to be surrounded in other people's problems: Inger (Ingela Olsson
), who is married to the respected minister, Stig (Niklas Falk
), but fails to develop a love life with her husband; Siv (Ylva Lööf
), who finds that she is so obsessive over morality that she cannot enjoy herself; Arne (Lennart Jähkel
), who is so serious about the choir's success that he obsesses over tiny mistakes when what he doesn't realise is that he is making bigger mistakes himself; Tore (André Sjöberg
), who is mentally retarded but is still insistent on joining the choir; Erik (Lasse Petterson), who has put up with being called "Fatso" by Arne since their childhood and finally stands up for himself; and finally, Gabriella (Helen Sjöholm
), who is beaten and abused by her husband, Conny (Per Morberg
), who turns out to be a bully who was at school with Daniel.
The choir is accepted into the annual "Let the Peoples Sing
" competition, and they journey to Innsbruck
, Austria
to perform. On the day, the choir is ready to sing on the stage but Daniel is nowhere to be seen. Meanwhile, Daniel's heart is affected by his anxiety and he has another heart attack. He staggers into the restroom, unsure of how to handle the situation, when he stumbles and hits his head on the piping below one of the basins, causing him to bleed severely.
He lies helplessly on the tiles, blood gushing from his head, listening to the choir harmonising over the loud speakers. Everyone in the auditorium is enchanted and sings along. Daniel smiles to himself and then dies, in utter happiness over reaching his goal.
The final scene is of Daniel rushing towards his younger self as he embraces his life's goal, to "create music that will open a person's heart".
, Australia
. The Hayden Orpheum in Cremorne has been showing the film for 103 weeks (as of November 2008), making it the longest running film in Australian history. A celebration of the popularity and spirit of the film was held at the Orpheum in August 2007 with a concert of Scandinavian music including a finale of 'Gabriella's Song' from the film. A recording of proceedings was made for the director Kay Pollak and via a pre-recorded message to the audience, he thanked Sydneysiders for embracing the film so warmly.
It ran for 52 weeks in New Zealand and had good word-of-mouth audiences in Sweden, Germany and the Netherlands.
at the 77th Academy Awards
. At the Swedish Guldbagge Award
s it made history by being nominated in every possible category, while at the same time failing to win a single award.
2004 in film
The year 2004 in film involved some significant events. Major releases of sequels took place. It included blockbuster films like Shrek 2, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, The Passion of the Christ, Meet the Fockers, Blade: Trinity, Spider-Man 2, Alien vs. Predator, Kill Bill Vol...
film directed by Kay Pollak
Kay Pollak
Kay Pollak is an Academy Award-nominated Swedish film director. After a long break from film-making, he returned in 2004 with As It Is in Heaven , a major box office success in Sweden. The film was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film...
and starring Michael Nyqvist
Michael Nyqvist
Rolf Åke Michael Nyqvist is a Swedish actor. Educated at the School of Drama in Malmö, he became well known from his role as police officer Banck in the first series of Beck movies made in 1997. He is recently most recognized for his role in the internationally acclaimed Millennium series as...
and Frida Hallgren
Frida Hallgren
Frida Sophia Hallgren is a Swedish actress, internationally known from As It Is in Heaven.After finishing her degree, Frida attended the theater university in Malmö. This training was connected to a practical course at the city theater of Gothenburg. Thereafter Frida received several theater roles...
. It was a box office hit in Sweden and several other countries. It was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film
Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
The Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film is one of the Academy Awards of Merit, popularly known as the Oscars, handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
at the Hollywood 77th Academy Awards
77th Academy Awards
The 77th Academy Awards honored the best films of 2004 and were held on February 27, 2005, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, California. They were hosted by comedian Chris Rock.The nominees were announced on January 25, 2005...
.
Plot
Daniel Daréus (Michael NyqvistMichael Nyqvist
Rolf Åke Michael Nyqvist is a Swedish actor. Educated at the School of Drama in Malmö, he became well known from his role as police officer Banck in the first series of Beck movies made in 1997. He is recently most recognized for his role in the internationally acclaimed Millennium series as...
) is a successful and renowned international conductor whose life aspiration is to create music that will open people's hearts. His own heart, however, is in bad shape. After suffering a heart attack
Myocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
on stage at the end of a performance, he retires indefinitely to Norrland
Norrland
Norrland is one of the three lands of Sweden , the northern part, consisting of nine provinces. The term Norrland is not used for any administrative purpose, but it is common in everyday language, e.g...
in the far north of Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, to the village where he endured a terrible childhood of bullying.
Daniel buys the old elementary school
Elementary school
An elementary school or primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as elementary or primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in some countries, particularly those in North America, where the terms grade school and grammar...
in the village, and it isn't long before he is asked to come along one Thursday night and listen to the choir. He is only asked to listen, and maybe offer some helpful advice, but their intentions of persuading him to help are obvious. He eventually reluctantly agrees to assist. After the parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
minister offers him the position of cantor
Cantor (church)
A cantor is the chief singer employed in a church with responsibilities for the ecclesiastical choir; also called the precentor....
, he accepts and sees the choir grow and develop, and rediscovers his own lost joy for music.
Almost immediately, Lena (Frida Hallgren
Frida Hallgren
Frida Sophia Hallgren is a Swedish actress, internationally known from As It Is in Heaven.After finishing her degree, Frida attended the theater university in Malmö. This training was connected to a practical course at the city theater of Gothenburg. Thereafter Frida received several theater roles...
), a young attractive girl in the choir, catches his attention. As they grow closer and fall in love, he realises that he just seems to be surrounded in other people's problems: Inger (Ingela Olsson
Ingela Olsson
Ingela Maria Olsson is a Swedish actress.Olsson was active in many different theatregroups during the 1980s. She started working at the Galeasen theatre in 1989, and appeared at Stockholms stadsteater, Parkteatern, Orionteatern, Dramaten, and radioteatern. Her film debut, in 1989 was Annika...
), who is married to the respected minister, Stig (Niklas Falk
Niklas Falk
Niklas Daniel Falk is a Swedish actor. He is brother to the actor Jonas Falk.Falk is educated at NAMA in Gothenburg. He worked at Gothenburg City Theatre until 1988. 1990 he moved to Stockholm and Stockholm City Theatre...
), but fails to develop a love life with her husband; Siv (Ylva Lööf
Ylva Lööf
Ylva Lööf is a Swedish actress who has appeared in a number of films and television shows.-Filmography:*1989–1991 – Tre kärlekar *1992 – En komikers uppväxt...
), who finds that she is so obsessive over morality that she cannot enjoy herself; Arne (Lennart Jähkel
Lennart Jähkel
Lennart Jähkel is a Swedish actor. He is currently active at the Stockholm City Theatre, where he participated in several plays.-Films:*1991 - Infödingen*1992 - Nordexpressen*1992 - Ha ett underbart liv...
), who is so serious about the choir's success that he obsesses over tiny mistakes when what he doesn't realise is that he is making bigger mistakes himself; Tore (André Sjöberg
André Sjöberg
André Sjöberg is a Swedish actor who is best recognised for his part as Nils Geting in 2006 television miniseries Snapphanar. He also appeared as a mentally affected Tore in 2004 film Så som i himmelen and 2005 film Nära huden as Jojje.-External links:...
), who is mentally retarded but is still insistent on joining the choir; Erik (Lasse Petterson), who has put up with being called "Fatso" by Arne since their childhood and finally stands up for himself; and finally, Gabriella (Helen Sjöholm
Helen Sjöholm
Marie Helen Sjöholm is a Swedish singer, actress and musical theatre performer who lives in Gamla Enskede in Stockholm. She grew up in Sundsvall and started to sing in choirs at an early age, working, among others, with Swedish conductor Kjell Lönnå...
), who is beaten and abused by her husband, Conny (Per Morberg
Per Morberg
Per Henrik Morberg is a Swedish actor, chef and news presenter.-Biography:...
), who turns out to be a bully who was at school with Daniel.
The choir is accepted into the annual "Let the Peoples Sing
Let the Peoples Sing
Let the Peoples Sing in an international Choir competition organized by the European Broadcasting Union . It was founded in 1961 by the BBC, originally as a national competition...
" competition, and they journey to Innsbruck
Innsbruck
- Main sights :- Buildings :*Golden Roof*Kaiserliche Hofburg *Hofkirche with the cenotaph of Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor*Altes Landhaus...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
to perform. On the day, the choir is ready to sing on the stage but Daniel is nowhere to be seen. Meanwhile, Daniel's heart is affected by his anxiety and he has another heart attack. He staggers into the restroom, unsure of how to handle the situation, when he stumbles and hits his head on the piping below one of the basins, causing him to bleed severely.
He lies helplessly on the tiles, blood gushing from his head, listening to the choir harmonising over the loud speakers. Everyone in the auditorium is enchanted and sings along. Daniel smiles to himself and then dies, in utter happiness over reaching his goal.
The final scene is of Daniel rushing towards his younger self as he embraces his life's goal, to "create music that will open a person's heart".
Cast
- Michael NyqvistMichael NyqvistRolf Åke Michael Nyqvist is a Swedish actor. Educated at the School of Drama in Malmö, he became well known from his role as police officer Banck in the first series of Beck movies made in 1997. He is recently most recognized for his role in the internationally acclaimed Millennium series as...
as Daniel Daréus - Frida HallgrenFrida HallgrenFrida Sophia Hallgren is a Swedish actress, internationally known from As It Is in Heaven.After finishing her degree, Frida attended the theater university in Malmö. This training was connected to a practical course at the city theater of Gothenburg. Thereafter Frida received several theater roles...
as Lena - Helen SjöholmHelen SjöholmMarie Helen Sjöholm is a Swedish singer, actress and musical theatre performer who lives in Gamla Enskede in Stockholm. She grew up in Sundsvall and started to sing in choirs at an early age, working, among others, with Swedish conductor Kjell Lönnå...
as Gabriella - Lennart JähkelLennart JähkelLennart Jähkel is a Swedish actor. He is currently active at the Stockholm City Theatre, where he participated in several plays.-Films:*1991 - Infödingen*1992 - Nordexpressen*1992 - Ha ett underbart liv...
as Arne - Ingela OlssonIngela OlssonIngela Maria Olsson is a Swedish actress.Olsson was active in many different theatregroups during the 1980s. She started working at the Galeasen theatre in 1989, and appeared at Stockholms stadsteater, Parkteatern, Orionteatern, Dramaten, and radioteatern. Her film debut, in 1989 was Annika...
as Inger - Niklas FalkNiklas FalkNiklas Daniel Falk is a Swedish actor. He is brother to the actor Jonas Falk.Falk is educated at NAMA in Gothenburg. He worked at Gothenburg City Theatre until 1988. 1990 he moved to Stockholm and Stockholm City Theatre...
as Stig - Per MorbergPer MorbergPer Henrik Morberg is a Swedish actor, chef and news presenter.-Biography:...
as Conny - Ylva LööfYlva LööfYlva Lööf is a Swedish actress who has appeared in a number of films and television shows.-Filmography:*1989–1991 – Tre kärlekar *1992 – En komikers uppväxt...
as Siv - André SjöbergAndré SjöbergAndré Sjöberg is a Swedish actor who is best recognised for his part as Nils Geting in 2006 television miniseries Snapphanar. He also appeared as a mentally affected Tore in 2004 film Så som i himmelen and 2005 film Nära huden as Jojje.-External links:...
as Tore - Mikael RahmMikael RahmMikael Rahm, born 15 May 1957 in Östersund, is a Swedish actor. Internationally, he is best known for his parts in the movies As It Is in Heaven and Let the Right One In.-References:...
as Holmfrid - Barbro KollbergBarbro KollbergBarbro Kollberg is a Swedish film actress. Born in Eskilstuna, Södermanlands län, Sweden, she starred in Ingmar Bergman's 1946 film It Rains on Our Love.-Selected filmography:* Hem från Babylon...
as Olga - Axelle Axell as Florence
- Lasse Petterson as Erik
- Ulla-Britt Norrman-Olsson as Amanda
Release
As It is In Heaven was particularly successful in SydneySydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. The Hayden Orpheum in Cremorne has been showing the film for 103 weeks (as of November 2008), making it the longest running film in Australian history. A celebration of the popularity and spirit of the film was held at the Orpheum in August 2007 with a concert of Scandinavian music including a finale of 'Gabriella's Song' from the film. A recording of proceedings was made for the director Kay Pollak and via a pre-recorded message to the audience, he thanked Sydneysiders for embracing the film so warmly.
It ran for 52 weeks in New Zealand and had good word-of-mouth audiences in Sweden, Germany and the Netherlands.
Awards and nominations
The film was nominated for Best Foreign Language FilmAcademy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
The Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film is one of the Academy Awards of Merit, popularly known as the Oscars, handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
at the 77th Academy Awards
77th Academy Awards
The 77th Academy Awards honored the best films of 2004 and were held on February 27, 2005, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, California. They were hosted by comedian Chris Rock.The nominees were announced on January 25, 2005...
. At the Swedish Guldbagge Award
Guldbagge Award
The Guldbagge Award is an official Swedish film award awarded annually since 1964 by the Swedish Film Institute.-Etymology:Guldbagge is the Swedish name for Cetonia aurata, a beetle also known as rose chafer. The name of the award could also be interpreted as a play on the Swedish word skalbagge,...
s it made history by being nominated in every possible category, while at the same time failing to win a single award.