I have been struck not once, but twice by the high level of documentary film making that is alive in this country. These are haunting stories that pack a tremendous punch.
Exhibit 1
Hasse Wester's extremely poignant and empathetic portrayal of the decay of Goan village life in Den Gyllene Stranden. When Hasse first came to this village twenty years ago it was a coastal pastoral idyll. He learnt the language (local, not Hindi) and and learnt the ways of the people. The documentation of his return visits seen from within Hasse's quintessential Swedish life provides is the material of this wonderful story. The Goan sands, and the village become 'touristed.'
Exhibit 2
Ett Stycke Sverige is the story of Eric, a north Swedish farm boy. He worked for a general and through dilegence advanced through the agricultural ranks. Then came the message that the farm he had worked his life on would be made into a golf course.
Eric could not bear to watch. He went out the back and shot himself. I'm partial to swinging a club now and then but will never tee off for a round at Vidbynäs Golf club.
The two tales are of people and the erosion of their self worth. The people are separated by continents and the documentaries only share the fact that they were aired last month on Swedish
TV, yet they strike a unison chord, and ask few questions but tell no lies.
