June Night; Swedenhielms

Ingrid Bergman stars in these Swedish films from her pre-Hollywood days. June Night begins, literally, with a bang, as Karin Nordback (Bergman) breaks off with a lover, who, in turn, shoots her. When the case comes to trial, Nordback, who has conflicting feelings, exonerates her former lover and flees to Stockholm to take up a new existence under a different name. After moving in with a trio of female roommates, however, she manages to attract the attentions of their current beaus. What begins as an excellent psychological drama, replete with dark symbols galore, gradually deteriorates into a soap opera romance. Swedenhielms, which has Bergman in a supporting role, is a much better film. The Swedenhielms are an aristocratic family whose pretensions are a little larger than their budget. Pinning their hopes on their father, a scientist who has been regularly overlooked for a Nobel prize, the family takes out loans with regularity. When a promissory note holder shows the father a forged signature, he is shocked and considers not accepting the prize (the culprit seems to be his eldest son, Bo, whose pride has resulted in his refusing the hand of rich girl friend Bergman). After a bit of Scandinavian depression, things turn out sunny for all concerned. Karin Swanstrom as Marta Boman, the "real boss" housekeeper, is hilarious. Libraries with large foreign feature collections may want to add Swedenhielms; June Night is not a necessary purchase. (R. Pitman)