Mai Zetterling
Encyclopedia
Mai Elisabeth Zetterling (mâjː sɛ̂tːəɭɪ̂ŋ; 24 May 1925 – 17 March 1994) was a Swedish actress and film director
.
, Västmanland
, Sweden
to a working class
family. She started her career as an actress by the age of seventeen at Dramaten, the Swedish national theater, and appeared in war-era film starting in her teens.
and television
productions spanning six decades from the 1940s to the 1990s. Her breakthrough came in the 1944 film Torment written by Ingmar Bergman
, in which she played a controversial role as a tormented shopgirl. Shortly afterwards she moved to England and gained instant success there with her title role in Basil Dearden
's Frieda
(1947) playing opposite David Farrar. After a brief return to Sweden in which she worked with Bergman again in his film Music in Darkness
(1948), she returned to England and starred in a number of English films, playing against such leading men as Tyrone Power
, Dirk Bogarde
, Richard Widmark
, Laurence Harvey
, Peter Sellers
, Herbert Lom
, Richard Attenborough
, Keenan Wynn
, Stanley Baker
, and Dennis Price
.
Some of her notable films as an actress include Quartet (1948), a film based on some of W. Somerset Maugham
's short stories, The Romantic Age
(1949) directed by Edmond T. Gréville
, Only Two Can Play
(1962) co-starring Peter Sellers
and directed by Sidney Gilliat
, and The Witches (1990), an adaptation of Roald Dahl
's book directed by Nicholas Roeg. Having gained a reputation as a sex symbol in dramas and thrillers, she was equally effective in comedies, and also was very active in British television in the '50s and '60s.
She began directing in the early 1960s, starting with political documentaries and a short film called The War Game (1962), which was nominated for a BAFTA award. Her first feature film Älskande par (1964, "Loving Couples"), was banned at the Cannes Film Festival
for its sexual explicitness and nudity. Kenneth Tynan
of The Observer later called it "one of the most ambitious debuts since Citizen Kane
." It was not the only film she made which would stir up controversy for its frank sexuality.
When critics reviewing her debut feature said that "Mai Zetterling directs like a man," she began to explore feminist themes more explicitly in her work. The Girls, which had an all-star Swedish cast including Bibi Andersson
and Harriet Andersson
, discussed women's liberation (or lack thereof) in a society controlled by men, as the protagonists compare their lives to characters in the play Lysistrata
, and find that things have not progressed very much for women since ancient times.
on St. Patrick's Day in 1994, at the age of 68. Recently released documents at the National Archives in London show that she, a member of the Hollywood Left
, was watched by British security agents as a suspected Communist. However, the UK never had a system along the lines of the American Hollywood Blacklist
.
Actress
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
.
Early life
Zetterling was born in VästeråsVästerås
Västerås is a city in central Sweden, located on the shore of Lake Mälaren in the province Västmanland, some 100 km west of Stockholm...
, Västmanland
Västmanland
' is a historical Swedish province, or landskap, in middle Sweden. It borders Södermanland, Närke, Värmland, Dalarna and Uppland.The name comes from "West men", referring to the people west of Uppland, the core province of early Sweden.- Administration :...
, 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 a working class
Working class
Working class is a term used in the social sciences and in ordinary conversation to describe those employed in lower tier jobs , often extending to those in unemployment or otherwise possessing below-average incomes...
family. She started her career as an actress by the age of seventeen at Dramaten, the Swedish national theater, and appeared in war-era film starting in her teens.
Career
Zetterling appeared in filmFilm
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
and television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
productions spanning six decades from the 1940s to the 1990s. Her breakthrough came in the 1944 film Torment written by Ingmar Bergman
Ingmar Bergman
Ernst Ingmar Bergman was a Swedish director, writer and producer for film, stage and television. Described by Woody Allen as "probably the greatest film artist, all things considered, since the invention of the motion picture camera", he is recognized as one of the most accomplished and...
, in which she played a controversial role as a tormented shopgirl. Shortly afterwards she moved to England and gained instant success there with her title role in Basil Dearden
Basil Dearden
Basil Dearden was an English film director.-Life and career:Dearden was born at Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex. He graduated from theatre direction to film, working as an assistant to Basil Dean...
's Frieda
Frieda (film)
Frieda is a 1947 British film, directed by Basil Dearden, screenplay by Angus MacPhail and Ronald Millar and was produced by Michael Balcon. Frieda is a German woman who helps an English airman, Robert , to escape from a German prisoner-of-war camp in April 1945...
(1947) playing opposite David Farrar. After a brief return to Sweden in which she worked with Bergman again in his film Music in Darkness
Music in Darkness
Music in Darkness is a 1948 Swedish film directed by Ingmar Bergman.-Synopsis:The screenplay was written by Bergman and Dagmar Edqvist....
(1948), she returned to England and starred in a number of English films, playing against such leading men as Tyrone Power
Tyrone Power
Tyrone Edmund Power, Jr. , usually credited as Tyrone Power and known sometimes as Ty Power, was an American film and stage actor who appeared in dozens of films from the 1930s to the 1950s, often in swashbuckler roles or romantic leads such as in The Mark of Zorro, Blood and Sand, The Black Swan,...
, Dirk Bogarde
Dirk Bogarde
Sir Dirk Bogarde was an English actor and novelist. Initially a matinee idol in such films as Doctor in the House and other Rank Organisation pictures, Bogarde later acted in art-house films such as Death in Venice...
, Richard Widmark
Richard Widmark
Richard Weedt Widmark was an American film, stage and television actor.He was nominated for an Academy Award for his role as the villainous Tommy Udo in his debut film, Kiss of Death...
, Laurence Harvey
Laurence Harvey
Laurence Harvey was a Lithuanian-born actor who achieved fame in British and American films.- Early life :Harvey maintained throughout his life that his birth name was Laruschka Mischa Skikne. However, his legal name was Zvi Mosheh Skikne. He was the youngest of three boys born to Ber "Boris" and...
, Peter Sellers
Peter Sellers
Richard Henry Sellers, CBE , known as Peter Sellers, was a British comedian and actor. Perhaps best known as Chief Inspector Clouseau in The Pink Panther film series, he is also notable for playing three different characters in Dr...
, Herbert Lom
Herbert Lom
Herbert Lom is a Czech film actor, best known for his role as former Chief Inspector Charles Dreyfus in the Pink Panther movie series.-Life and career:...
, Richard Attenborough
Richard Attenborough
Richard Samuel Attenborough, Baron Attenborough , CBE is a British actor, director, producer and entrepreneur. As director and producer he won two Academy Awards for the 1982 film Gandhi...
, Keenan Wynn
Keenan Wynn
Keenan Wynn was an American character actor. His bristling mustache and expressive face were his stock in trade, and though he rarely had a lead role, he got prominent billing in most of his film and TV parts....
, Stanley Baker
Stanley Baker
Sir Stanley Baker was a Welsh actor and film producer.-Early career:William Stanley Baker was born in Ferndale, Rhondda Valley, Wales. In the mid-1930s his parents moved to London, where Baker spent most of his formative years...
, and Dennis Price
Dennis Price
Dennis Price was an English actor, remembered for his suave screen roles, particularly Louis Mazzini in Kind Hearts and Coronets, and for his portrayal of the omniscient valet Jeeves in 1960s television adaptations of P. G...
.
Some of her notable films as an actress include Quartet (1948), a film based on some of W. Somerset Maugham
W. Somerset Maugham
William Somerset Maugham , CH was an English playwright, novelist and short story writer. He was among the most popular writers of his era and, reputedly, the highest paid author during the 1930s.-Childhood and education:...
's short stories, The Romantic Age
The Romantic Age
The Romantic Age is a 1949 British comedy film directed by Edmond T. Gréville. The screenplay by Peggy Barwell and Edward Dryhurst is based on the French novel Lycee des jeunes filles by Serge Véber....
(1949) directed by Edmond T. Gréville
Edmond T. Gréville
Edmond T. Gréville was a French film director and screenwriter....
, Only Two Can Play
Only Two Can Play
Only Two Can Play is a 1962 comedy film based on the novel That Uncertain Feeling by Kingsley Amis. Sidney Gilliat directed the film from a screenplay by Bryan Forbes....
(1962) co-starring Peter Sellers
Peter Sellers
Richard Henry Sellers, CBE , known as Peter Sellers, was a British comedian and actor. Perhaps best known as Chief Inspector Clouseau in The Pink Panther film series, he is also notable for playing three different characters in Dr...
and directed by Sidney Gilliat
Sidney Gilliat
Sidney Gilliat was an English film director, producer and writer.He was born in the district of Edgeley in Stockport, Cheshire. In the 1930s he worked as a scriptwriter, most notably with Frank Launder on The Lady Vanishes for Alfred Hitchcock, and its sequel Night Train to Munich , directed by...
, and The Witches (1990), an adaptation of Roald Dahl
Roald Dahl
Roald Dahl was a British novelist, short story writer, fighter pilot and screenwriter.Born in Wales to Norwegian parents, he served in the Royal Air Force during the Second World War, in which he became a flying ace and intelligence agent, rising to the rank of Wing Commander...
's book directed by Nicholas Roeg. Having gained a reputation as a sex symbol in dramas and thrillers, she was equally effective in comedies, and also was very active in British television in the '50s and '60s.
She began directing in the early 1960s, starting with political documentaries and a short film called The War Game (1962), which was nominated for a BAFTA award. Her first feature film Älskande par (1964, "Loving Couples"), was banned at the Cannes Film Festival
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes International Film Festival , is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films of all genres including documentaries from around the world. Founded in 1946, it is among the world's most prestigious and publicized film festivals...
for its sexual explicitness and nudity. Kenneth Tynan
Kenneth Tynan
Kenneth Peacock Tynan was an influential and often controversial English theatre critic and writer.-Early life:...
of The Observer later called it "one of the most ambitious debuts since Citizen Kane
Citizen Kane
Citizen Kane is a 1941 American drama film, directed by and starring Orson Welles. Many critics consider it the greatest American film of all time, especially for its innovative cinematography, music and narrative structure. Citizen Kane was Welles' first feature film...
." It was not the only film she made which would stir up controversy for its frank sexuality.
When critics reviewing her debut feature said that "Mai Zetterling directs like a man," she began to explore feminist themes more explicitly in her work. The Girls, which had an all-star Swedish cast including Bibi Andersson
Bibi Andersson
Bibi Andersson is a Swedish actress.-Early life:Bibi Andersson was born as Berit Elisabeth Andersson in Kungsholmen, Stockholm, the daughter of Karin , a social worker, and Josef Andersson, a businessman...
and Harriet Andersson
Harriet Andersson
Harriet Andersson is a Swedish actress, known outside Sweden for being part of one of director Ingmar Bergman's stock company....
, discussed women's liberation (or lack thereof) in a society controlled by men, as the protagonists compare their lives to characters in the play Lysistrata
Lysistrata
Lysistrata is one of eleven surviving plays written by Aristophanes. Originally performed in classical Athens in 411 BC, it is a comic account of one woman's extraordinary mission to end The Peloponnesian War...
, and find that things have not progressed very much for women since ancient times.
Personal life
In 1985 she published an autobiography, All Those Tomorrows. She died in London, England, from cancerCancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
on St. Patrick's Day in 1994, at the age of 68. Recently released documents at the National Archives in London show that she, a member of the Hollywood Left
Hollywood Left
The Hollywood Left is a term used by commentator Bill O'Reilly to describe the politically active liberal or left-wing segment of the Hollywood-based entertainment industry.- See also :*Hollywood blacklist*Liberal elite*Culture war*Limousine liberal...
, was watched by British security agents as a suspected Communist. However, the UK never had a system along the lines of the American Hollywood Blacklist
Hollywood blacklist
The Hollywood blacklist—as the broader entertainment industry blacklist is generally known—was the mid-twentieth-century list of screenwriters, actors, directors, musicians, and other U.S. entertainment professionals who were denied employment in the field because of their political beliefs or...
.
Filmography
A partial filmography as director:- The War Game (1962)
- Älskande par (1964, "Loving Couples") – banned at the Cannes Film FestivalCannes Film FestivalThe Cannes International Film Festival , is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films of all genres including documentaries from around the world. Founded in 1946, it is among the world's most prestigious and publicized film festivals...
. - Nattlek (1966, "Night Games") – banned at the Venice Film FestivalVenice Film FestivalThe Venice International Film Festival is the oldest international film festival in the world. Founded by Count Giuseppe Volpi in 1932 as the "Esposizione Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica", the festival has since taken place every year in late August or early September on the island of the...
. - Doctor GlasDoctor Glas (film)Doctor Glas is a 1968 Danish drama film directed by Mai Zetterling, based on the novel of the same name. It was listed to compete at the 1968 Cannes Film Festival, but the festival was cancelled due to the events of May 1968 in France.-Cast:...
(1968) - Flickorna (1968, "The Girls") – a feminist rumination on AristophanesAristophanesAristophanes , son of Philippus, of the deme Cydathenaus, was a comic playwright of ancient Athens. Eleven of his forty plays survive virtually complete...
' classical antiwar play LysistrataLysistrataLysistrata is one of eleven surviving plays written by Aristophanes. Originally performed in classical Athens in 411 BC, it is a comic account of one woman's extraordinary mission to end The Peloponnesian War...
, with Bibi AnderssonBibi AnderssonBibi Andersson is a Swedish actress.-Early life:Bibi Andersson was born as Berit Elisabeth Andersson in Kungsholmen, Stockholm, the daughter of Karin , a social worker, and Josef Andersson, a businessman...
, Harriet AnderssonHarriet AnderssonHarriet Andersson is a Swedish actress, known outside Sweden for being part of one of director Ingmar Bergman's stock company....
and Gunnel LindblomGunnel LindblomGunnel Lindblom , is a Swedish film actress and director. As an actor she has been particularly associated with the work of Ingmar Bergman, though in 1965 she performed the lead role in Miss Julie for BBC Television... - Visions of EightVisions of EightVisions of Eight is a 1973 documentary film offering a stylized look at the 1972 Summer Olympics, directed by eight different directors. It was screened at the 1973 Cannes Film Festival, but wasn't entered into the main competition....
(1973) – segment "The Strongest". - Månen är en grön ost (1977)
- Love (1982) – segments "Love From the Market Place", "The Black Cat in the Black Mouse Socks", and "Julia".
- ScrubbersScrubbersScrubbers is a 1983 British drama film directed by Mai Zetterling and starring Amanda York and Chrissie Cotterill. It was shot primarily in Virginia Water, Surrey, England. It was inspired by the success of the 1979 film Scum.-Plot:...
(1983) - AmorosaAmorosaAmorosa is a 1986 Swedish film starring Stina Ekblad and Erland Josephson and directed by Mai Zetterling. The story, an adaptation of the life of writer Agnes Von Krusenstjarna , details her sexually charged and often turbulent relationship with the bisexual Joseph Sprengel ....
(1986) - Sunday Pursuit (1990)
Actress
- Prince Gustaf (1944)
- Torment (1946)
- Sunshine Follows Rain (1946)
- Iris and the LieutenantIris and the LieutenantIris and the Lieutenant is a 1946 Swedish drama film directed by Alf Sjöberg. It won the Grand Prix at the 1946 Cannes Film Festival.The film is adapted from a 1934 novel by the same title, written by Olle Hedberg.-Cast:...
(1946) - FriedaFrieda (film)Frieda is a 1947 British film, directed by Basil Dearden, screenplay by Angus MacPhail and Ronald Millar and was produced by Michael Balcon. Frieda is a German woman who helps an English airman, Robert , to escape from a German prisoner-of-war camp in April 1945...
(1947) - Life Starts Now (1948)
- Music in DarknessMusic in DarknessMusic in Darkness is a 1948 Swedish film directed by Ingmar Bergman.-Synopsis:The screenplay was written by Bergman and Dagmar Edqvist....
(1948) - Portrait from LifePortrait from LifePortrait from Life is a 1948 British drama film directed by Terence Fisher. It stars Mai Zetterling and Robert Beatty.-Cast:* Mai Zetterling as Lidia* Robert Beatty as Campbell Reid* Guy Rolfe as Major Lawrence* Herbert Lom as Fritz Kottler Hendlemann...
(1948) - Quartet (1948)
- The Romantic AgeThe Romantic AgeThe Romantic Age is a 1949 British comedy film directed by Edmond T. Gréville. The screenplay by Peggy Barwell and Edward Dryhurst is based on the French novel Lycee des jeunes filles by Serge Véber....
(1949) - The Bad Lord ByronThe Bad Lord ByronThe Bad Lord Byron is a 1949 British historical drama film centered around the life of Lord Byron. It was directed by David MacDonald and starred Dennis Price as Byron with Mai Zetterling, Linden Travers and Joan Greenwood....
(1949) - The Lost PeopleThe Lost PeopleThe Lost People is a 1949 British drama film directed by Muriel Box and Bernard Knowles and starring Dennis Price, Mai Zetterling and Richard Attenborough. After the Second World War, some British soldiers are guarding a theatre in Germany containing various refugees and prisoners trying to work...
(1949) - BlackmailedBlackmailed (1951 film)Blackmailed is a 1951 British drama film directed by Marc Allégret and starring Mai Zetterling, Dirk Bogarde, Fay Compton and Robert Flemyng. It was adapted from a novel by Elizabeth Myers and was also released as Mrs...
(1951) - Hell is Sold OutHell is Sold OutHell is Sold Out is a 1951 British drama film directed by Michael Anderson and starring Mai Zetterling, Herbert Lom and Richard Attenborough. A woman publishes a book under the name of a man believed to be long dead.-Main cast:...
(1951) - The RingerThe Ringer (1952 film)The Ringer is a 1952 British mystery film directed by Guy Hamilton and starring Herbert Lom, Denholm Elliot, William Hartnell and Mai Zetterling.-Synopsis:An underhand solicitor receives threatening notes, and the police are called in to protect him....
(1952) - Desperate MomentDesperate MomentDesperate Moment is a 1953 British thriller film directed by Compton Bennett and starring Dirk Bogarde, Mai Zetterling and Philip Friend.-Plot:...
(1953) - Knock on Wood (1954)
- Dance, Little LadyDance, Little LadyDance, Little Lady is a 1954 British film directed by Val Guest, and starring Terence Morgan, Mai Zetterling, Guy Rolfe and Mandy Miller.-Cast:* Terence Morgan as Mark Gordon* Mai Zetterling as Nina Gordon* Guy Rolfe as Dr. John Ransome...
(1954) - A Prize of GoldA Prize of GoldA Prize of Gold is a British 1955 Warwick Films heist film directed by Mark Robson partly filmed in West Berlin. The film stars Richard Widmark as a United States Air Force Air Police Master Sergeant motivated by love and compassion to begin a life of crime...
(1955) - Ett Dockhem (1956)
- Abandon ShipSeven Waves AwaySeven Waves Away is a 1957 British drama film starring Tyrone Power, Mai Zetterling, Lloyd Nolan, and Stephen Boyd. When his ship goes down, an officer has to make an agonizing decision on his overcrowded lifeboat...
(1957) - The Truth About WomenThe Truth About WomenThe Truth About Women is a 1957 British comedy film directed by Muriel Box and starring Laurence Harvey, Julie Harris, Mai Zetterling and Diane Cilento...
(1957) - Jet StormJet StormJet Storm is a 1959 British thriller film, where Richard Attenborough plays Ernest Tilley, a man who lost his daughter in a hit-and-run accident. He tracks down the man responsible for the accident and boards the same plane, threatening to blow up himself and everyone on board as an act of...
(1959) - Faces in the DarkFaces in the DarkFaces in the Dark is a 1960 British thriller film directed by David Eady and starring John Gregson, Mai Zetterling and John Ireland. A blind inventor is convinced he is going mad, but it soon becomes apparent it is a deliberate attempt by someone else....
(1960) - Piccadilly Third StopPiccadilly Third StopPiccadilly Third Stop is a 1960 British thriller film directed by Wolf Rilla and starring Terence Morgan, Yoko Tani, William Hartnell and Dennis Price...
(1960) - OffbeatOffbeat (film)Offbeat is a 1961 British crime film directed by Cliff Owen and starring William Sylvester, Mai Zetterling, and John Meillon. In the film, an MI5 officer goes undercover to catch a criminal gang.-Cast:* William Sylvester - Layton / Steve Ross...
(1961) - The Devil InsideThe Devil Inside (film)The Devil Inside is an American supernatural horror film directed and co-written by William Brent Bell, as a documentary-style film about a woman who becomes involved in a series of exorcisms during her quest to determine what happened to her mother, a woman who murdered three people as a result of...
(1961) - Only Two Can PlayOnly Two Can PlayOnly Two Can Play is a 1962 comedy film based on the novel That Uncertain Feeling by Kingsley Amis. Sidney Gilliat directed the film from a screenplay by Bryan Forbes....
(1962) - The Main Attraction (1962)
- Operation Mermaid (1963)
- The Man Who Finally DiedThe Man Who Finally DiedThe Man Who Finally Died is a 1963 British thriller film directed by Quentin Lawrence and starring Stanley Baker, Peter Cushing, Mai Zetterling and Eric Portman. A German immigrant to Britain receives a mysterious phone call telling him his father is not really dead...
(1963) - The Vine Bridge (1965)
- Hidden Agenda)Hidden Agenda (1990 film)Hidden Agenda , directed by Ken Loach, is a political thriller about British terrorism in Northern Ireland that includes the assassination of an American civil rights lawyer.-Plot and historical context:...
(1990) - The Witches (1990)
- Mofars Resa (1993)
External links
- Mai Zetterling at Turner Classic MoviesTurner Classic MoviesTurner Classic Movies is a movie-oriented cable television channel, owned by the Turner Broadcasting System subsidiary of Time Warner, featuring commercial-free classic movies, mostly from the Turner Entertainment and MGM, United Artists, RKO and Warner Bros. film libraries...
- Mai Zetterling at Nationalencyklopedins Internettjänst