Ljuset håller mig sällskap (2000)

Director:

Carl-Gustav Nykvist

Writers:

Michal Leszczylowski (writer)
Carl-Gustav Nykvist (writer)

Release Date:

26 August 2000 (Sweden)

Genre:

Documentary

Plot:

Carl-Gustaf Nykvist's documentary about his father, Sven Nykvist. The film is based on Sven's memoirs with Sven himself as narrator...

Cast

Sven Nykvist	...	Himself
Erland Josephson	...	Himself - Interviewee / Narrator
Susan Sarandon	...	Herself - Interviewee
Stellan Skarsgård	...	Himself - Interviewee
Gena Rowlands	...	Herself - Interviewee
Ingmar Bergman	...	Himself - Interviewee
Liv Ullmann	...	Herself - Interviewee
Woody Allen	...	Himself - Interviewee
Richard Attenborough	...	Himself - Interviewee (as Sir Richard Attenborough)
Vilmos Zsigmond	...	Himself - Interviewee
Vittorio Storaro	...	Himself - Interviewee
Sigfrid Sodergren	...	Himself - Interviewee
Bibi Andersson	...	Herself - Interviewee
Per Lönndahl	...	Himself - Interviewee (as Pelle Lönndahl)
Gunnel Lindblom	...	Herself - Interviewee

Also Known As:

Light Keeps Me Company (Europe: English title)
Sven Nykvist: Light Keeps Me Company (USA) (DVD title)

Runtime:

78 min | Argentina:85 min (Mar del Plata Film Festival)

Country:

Sweden | Denmark

Language:

English | Swedish

Color:

Black and White | Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Certification:

Argentina:Atp | Sweden:Btl

Company:

Beluga Film AB

Movie Connections:

References Barabbas (1953)

Soundtrack:

Song for Jens

an icon gets his due

It makes me happy to see someone, be it the subject's own son or just anyone, film a documentary about a person who should, once he or she has left this Earth at some point, be rightfully remembered. Pioneering cinematographer Sven Nykvist is one of those people, revealed in this documentary to be revered heavily by those who have worked with him, while also having a private, but interesting, life. After a strict upbringing, and only slowly gravitating towards becoming a director of photography, he established himself doing work for various European artists until settling with his main collaborator, Ingmar Bergman, for over twenty-years. Seeing the interviews with the two of them is worth the price of the DVD in and of itself, but it's also of note that Nykvist himself is on his own quite captivating, in a quiet, assured way. His life story is put together lovingly by his son, and the interviews with those that have worked along with him, like Liv Ullmann (actually, all of Bergman's stock company rolls out), Woody Allen, Richard Attenborough, and other fellow cinematographers like Storaro and Zsigmond. Aside from the documentary details of Nykvist's life and how he would work with Bergman or Tarkovsky or Woody, what caps it all is what he contributed to the cinema history and language is given precedence. You know more often than not when you're watching a film lensed by Nykvist, even during his later years in the 90's, as he tried out other things with directors. It would be one thing to just think of him as the man behind the lens with these great directors, and particularly the two dozen or so with Bergman. But to get such a fine glimpse of the man and his art, after being sadly forced into retirement by an ailment, is remarkable.