Tiden är en dröm (Time is a dream) and its successor Tiden är en dröm, del 2 (Time is a dream, part 2), are together a piece - I can even stretch myself to say "a Masterpiece" - that takes the viewer from a mid-19th century Sweden where the majority of the Swedes live in the countryside, living of the land, to a Sweden in the very early 20th century where the urbanization had been going on for some decades. The trip is done solely with black & white photographs, a calm and slow narrator voice and with the soft and melodramatic music as a perfect backdrop.
When I read about the documentary and I saw there were two, and that both were adding up to almost 4 hours, I got a bit doubtful and wondered if I would really see it/them through. Lo and behold, I was stuck. The narrator, Jan Lindqvist, who is also the director and more, is perfectly balanced and tells just enough of story to give the photos life and meaning. The photos remain as central parts and are alone carrying the story further where Sweden gradually, photo by photo, is changing to a more modern society: urbanized, industrialized and electrified.
As the photos displayed in the film have withstood time, also this documentary will withstand time and will be more interesting as times goes by.
A true masterpiece amongst historical documentaries.
When I read about the documentary and I saw there were two, and that both were adding up to almost 4 hours, I got a bit doubtful and wondered if I would really see it/them through. Lo and behold, I was stuck. The narrator, Jan Lindqvist, who is also the director and more, is perfectly balanced and tells just enough of story to give the photos life and meaning. The photos remain as central parts and are alone carrying the story further where Sweden gradually, photo by photo, is changing to a more modern society: urbanized, industrialized and electrified.
As the photos displayed in the film have withstood time, also this documentary will withstand time and will be more interesting as times goes by.
A true masterpiece amongst historical documentaries.
