Thriller: A Cruel Picture

Local title
Thriller - julm film
Original title
Thriller - En grym film
Director
Bo Arne Vibenius
Country
Sweden
Year
1974
Festival
HÕFF 2024
Programme
HÕFF Retro
Genre
crime film
Subject
violence, abuse, running away from home, revenge

Rendered mute after being sexually assaulted as a youth, Madeleine (sexploitation superstar, Christina Lindberg) lives an isolated existence in her parents' farmhouse. Missing the bus on her way to town one day, Madeleine accepts a lift from a wealthy and charming stranger named Tony. What starts off as an innocent meeting soon takes a nightmarish turn when Madeleine learns that Tony is really a sadistic pimp on the make, who soon enslaves her into his prostitution racket by forcing her to become dependent on heroin. After refusing to service a client, Tony punishes Madeleine by violently blinding her in one eye, forcing her to wear an eyepatch. Despite her limited means, Madeleine secretly saves money to undergo karate and weapons training behind Tony's back. Once she reaches lethal proficiency, Madeleine embarks on a bloody road to revenge against her captors...

This gut-punch of a "rape-revenge" scenario, directed by Bo Arne Vibenius, fusing pop-art pulp and ultra-violence, was not only banned in its native Sweden, but also exposed the limits of Scandinavian permissiveness and the relaxation of film censorship: nudity was allowed, explicit violence was not.

Director
Bo Arne Vibenius
Screenwriter
Bo Arne Vibenius
Cast
Christina Lindberg, Heinz Hopf, Despina Tomazani
Producer
Bo Arne Vibenius
DoP
Andreas Bellis
Editor
Brian Wikström
Composer
Ralph Lundsten
Production
BAV Film
Distributor
Swedish Film Institute
Runtime
Language
Swedish
Subtitles
English

Screenings

Rõdusaal Haapsalu kultuurikeskus
Screening029205 / Thriller - julm film
SubtitlesEnglish
Screening duration
Trailer
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