The New Land
Encyclopedia
Nybyggarna is a 1972 Swedish film written by Bengt Forslund and directed by Jan Troell. It stars Max von Sydow
, Liv Ullmann
and Eddie Axberg.
The film is based on the last two novels of The Emigrants Suite
by Vilhelm Moberg
: The Settlers
and The Last Letter Home
. It was adapted to the screen by Bengt Forslund
and Jan Troell. It is a sequel to the 1971 film The Emigrants (Swedish: Utvandrarna).
from almost nothing is not easy. The winters and summers are more extreme than in the Old
. The immigrants are rewarded for their hard work and now live a better life than they did in Sweden
. Bad times also come, however. The Civil War
starts and the Sioux Indians
make a bloody uprising against the White settlers. Karl-Oskar's family survives all these. His brother, Robert, decides to seek his fortune in the gold fields of California. He never reaches California
, but acquires some fortune from his boss who dies of yellow fever
on the way to the gold fields. An immigrant Swede dupes him of this fortune. Robert returns to his brother where he dies from a disease contracted on the trip. Kristina, whose thoughts never leave Sweden, gives birth several more times, finally getting pregnant again, against the advice of her doctor. This last pregnancy kills her. The children grow up and take over the farm. Karl-Oskar becomes old and lonely. He spends his last days dreaming of his youth in Sweden.
Max von Sydow
Max von Sydow is a Swedish actor. He has also held French citizenship since 2002. He has starred in many films and had supporting roles in dozens more...
, Liv Ullmann
Liv Ullmann
Liv Johanne Ullmann is a Norwegian actress and film director, as well as one of the "muses" of the Swedish director Ingmar Bergman...
and Eddie Axberg.
The film is based on the last two novels of The Emigrants Suite
The Emigrants (novels)
The Emigrants is the collective name of a four novel suite by the Swedish author Vilhelm Moberg:*The Emigrants *Unto a Good Land *The Settlers *The Last Letter Home...
by Vilhelm Moberg
Vilhelm Moberg
Karl Artur Vilhelm Moberg was a Swedish author and historian, most commonly associated with his four novels known as The Emigrants Series.-Early life:...
: The Settlers
The Settlers (novel)
The Settlers is a novel by Vilhelm Moberg from 1956. It is the third and the longest part of the The Emigrants suite.- Plot :The book tells about the group's new life in America where most of them now have started to feel at home...
and The Last Letter Home
The Last Letter Home
The Last Letter Home is a novel by Vilhelm Moberg from 1959. It is the fourth and final part of the The Emigrants suite, the shortest book of the four, with a faster pace.-Plot:...
. It was adapted to the screen by Bengt Forslund
Bengt Forslund
Bengt Forslund is a Swedish film producer, screenwriter and production manager. He produced and co-wrote The Emigrants , for which he was nominated for Academy Awards for both Best Picture and Writing Adapted Screenplay.-Selected filmography:* Made in Sweden * The Emigrants * A Handful of Love *...
and Jan Troell. It is a sequel to the 1971 film The Emigrants (Swedish: Utvandrarna).
Plot summary
Starting a new life in the New WorldNew World
The New World is one of the names used for the Western Hemisphere, specifically America and sometimes Oceania . The term originated in the late 15th century, when America had been recently discovered by European explorers, expanding the geographical horizon of the people of the European middle...
from almost nothing is not easy. The winters and summers are more extreme than in the Old
Old World
The Old World consists of those parts of the world known to classical antiquity and the European Middle Ages. It is used in the context of, and contrast with, the "New World" ....
. The immigrants are rewarded for their hard work and now live a better life than they did in Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. Bad times also come, however. The Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
starts and the Sioux Indians
Sioux
The Sioux are Native American and First Nations people in North America. The term can refer to any ethnic group within the Great Sioux Nation or any of the nation's many language dialects...
make a bloody uprising against the White settlers. Karl-Oskar's family survives all these. His brother, Robert, decides to seek his fortune in the gold fields of California. He never reaches California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, but acquires some fortune from his boss who dies of yellow fever
Yellow fever
Yellow fever is an acute viral hemorrhagic disease. The virus is a 40 to 50 nm enveloped RNA virus with positive sense of the Flaviviridae family....
on the way to the gold fields. An immigrant Swede dupes him of this fortune. Robert returns to his brother where he dies from a disease contracted on the trip. Kristina, whose thoughts never leave Sweden, gives birth several more times, finally getting pregnant again, against the advice of her doctor. This last pregnancy kills her. The children grow up and take over the farm. Karl-Oskar becomes old and lonely. He spends his last days dreaming of his youth in Sweden.