The Emigrants

The first part of Jan Troell's monumental work follows the hardships of a Swedish family emigrating from their famine-stricken homeland to the new continent in the 19th century. Karl Oskar, his wife Kristina, his brother, and other parishioners live an austere and harsh life in Sweden. The hunger, poverty, unrewarding land work, and the rise of religious fanaticism among the community, force the family to consider a new and distant land. A personal tragedy will tip the scales in favor of a fateful decision that will lead them through a long and arduous journey to the continent across the sea. Work, hardship, land, faith, birth, self-respect, friendship, and mortality accompany them. The meticulous manner in which the story is presented is nothing less than a wonder. Although the viewing can sometimes be challenging, the camerawork and the music accompanying the film make the viewer feel like part of the scene; every bump in the road, every jolt of the ocean waves, and every caress of the wind is felt. This epic work has not been screened in Israel for many years and this is a unique opportunity to watch these masterpieces.