Whether your flavour of choice is Nordic Noir, Scandi-drama or Danish documentary, you’ll find something to love in a new European collection at SBS On Demand. A partnership between SBS and Viaplay, leading Nordic producer of original drama series, movies and documentaries, the collection is sure to fuel – and satiate – the growing appetite for quality films and series from Nordic and Baltic countries including Norway, Denmark, Sweden and Estonia.
With a tapestry of titles that traverse themes of family, grief, romance, politics and cultural identity, it can be difficult to know where to begin your binge-watching. Fear not, we have a show suggestion for whatever mood you’re in.
You want…
A romantic drama series set in the rock‘n’roll world.
Swedish drama Harmonica introduces us to Harry and Monica. Sixteen years after trading their glittering, raucous rock‘n’roll life for one of domestic normality, their marriage is fraught with bickering and exhaustion. Monica (Josephine Bornebusch) and Harry (Jonas Karlsson) are faced with only two options, both loaded with potential devastation: go on tour or divorce. Bornebusch is an accomplished actress, director and writer () and actor/writer Karlsson may be remembered for his role as Mathias opposite Michael Fassbender’s Detective Harry Hole in The Snowman (2017), an adaptation of Jo Nesbo’s bestselling novel.
A rocket-paced thriller combining a hostage heist with a police procedural.
Olle Hulten (Kristoffer Joner) is unwittingly thrown into a hostage drama in The Machinery, a police drama set between Norway and Sweden. Olle seems like an ordinary husband and father, simply heading off to a business conference. When later he groggily awakes, he appears to be just as mystified as we are that he’s aboard a car ferry bearing a gun and a bag full of cold, hard cash. Despite the police being determined to nail him for the crime, Olle is equally committed to tracking down the true robbers and serving them some vigilante justice. On Olle’s tail, police detective Nina (Julie Schacht) seems curiously single-minded in her pursuit. What’s her agenda? And that’s just season 1. In season 2, Olle has more problems to deal with, falsely accused of murder while others chase missing robbery money.
A coming-of-age drama full of love, rebellion and revelation.
Who can hurt and heal a woman more poignantly than her sister? Surely no-one, especially in the case of Alicia (Dilan Gwyn) and Vanessa (Julia Ragnarsson) in Swedish series Two Sisters. As flatmates and the best of friends, they are accustomed to sharing every aspect of their lives. When Alicia moves out with her boyfriend, Vanessa is left alone in every sense. Fans of and , and the brilliant finance-media drama , will be familiar with Ragnarsson’s magnetic onscreen quality. Gwyn is a revelation as the younger sibling, set adrift without the north star of her beloved older sister. Whether you have a sister of not, you’ll feel as if you gained two once you embark on this exemplary family drama.
A Shakespeare-meets-Agatha Christie whodunnit mystery.
Otto Mueller (Jaan Rekkor) is at his manor, celebrating his 65th birthday with eight of his family when he is shot. The former wrestling champion-turned-businessman is a patriarchal tyrant to rival King Lear. In Estonian drama Who Shot Otto Mueller? the question is less why any of his family might attack him, but rather, who finally lost their patience entirely? “Was he an honest businessman or a scumbag?” asks Inspector Gabriel Vanem once the investigation truly kicks off. His wife, his mistress, his ex-wife, sons and their hard-drinking wives leave no doubt of their opinion. Inspector Vanem and Detective Agnes Maramaa have their work cut out to unveil the truth from the eight contradictory witness tales, each of which has a dedicated episode.
A war film based on real-life events.
Norwegian film Max Manus: Man of War is based on the factual life of World War 2 resistance fighter Max Manus. Manus (Aksel Hennie) escapes captivity by the Germans to undertake secretive British Commando training in Scotland before returning to Norway to fight Nazi occupation. This is not merely a battlefield drama between good and evil though. Manus is a complicated character, both heroic and flawed in equal measure. The plotline relies on Manus’s books Det vil helst ga godt and Det blir alvor in addition to historical research to present a living, breathing tale that brings the Europe of the late 1930s through mid-1940s to vivid life. The movie was a multi-million dollar epic, involving nearly 2,000 extras and it is a decadent visual feast. Manus’ “Oslo Gang”, made up of friends Gregers Gram (’ Nicolai Cleve Broch) and Gunnar Sonsteby (Knut Joner), and his nemesis, Gestapo chief Siegfried Fehmer (Ken Duken) round out this adept, multinational cast.
A comedy that bravely takes on race, culture and identity.
In Swedish drama Suedi Mahmod Azziz (Kardo Razzazi) is determined to fit the Swedish archetype, whatever sacrifices this requires. It is a light-hearted take on the modern Sweden, in which (urban slang for tall, blonde Swedish people) and multi-generational immigrants live alongside each other, while also prompting questions of acceptance, openness and genuine inclusivity. When Mahmod stumbles upon 30 million kroner that seemingly hasn’t been reported missing, he decides to become the wheeling, dealing, nouveau-riche Swede he’s always coveted. He alters his name to Sebastian, rents a chic house that rivals an IKEA catalogue for neatness, purchases a Volvo and pairs his tailored suit with a pair of quirkily fashionable patterned socks. He even weds the perfect Swedish wife, Isabell (Agnes Lindstrom Bolmgren). His utopic new life is precariously built on banknotes that expire within a fortnight though, so we accompany him on a wild adventure to either launder the money or accept that Sebastian’s time is up. Director, writer and cinematographer Manuel Concha’s film was one of Sweden’s most watched, attracting millions when it debuted in 2021.
A clever comedy with a dark, dramatic heart.
Norwegian series Below centres on Fanny, a young woman whose life is thrown into chaos when she is involved in a post-party accident that leaves her paralysed and kills her best friend, Kurt. As Fanny, Maria Austgulen (Made in Oslo) is complex and intriguing. However despicable some of her choices, we cringe with recognition at how very relatable she is. This is a compassionate, humorous and humane vision of modern grief and resilience.
A comedy-drama that finds humour in everyday chaos.
As a single mother to two daughters and carer for her deceased sister’s son, Pernille Middelthon (Henriette Steenstrup) – aka Pørni – barely has a moment to herself. Between her rebellious daughters and her elderly father, who is determined to behave like a teenager, her patience is stretched gossamer thin. In six-part Norwegian comedy-drama Pørni we follow her as she fumbles through the trials and turmoil of ordinary life with all the messy, relatable mistakes that humans make.
And if you still can’t decide where to begin, dive in at random – there are more gripping films and series to explore in the collection. You may not know what you want until you’re watching it.
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