A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence (2014)

About

The final film in Andersson’s “human trilogy,” A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence takes its title from a reference to the 1565 painting The Hunters in the Snow by Pieter Bruegel the Elder. The painting depicts a rural wintertime scene in which some birds perched on a branch look out over the activities in a small village. Andersson was inspired to consider what these pigeons must think of humankind.

A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence intertwines two darkly absurdist tales. The first follows a pair of bumbling traveling novelty toy salesmen. In the second, Charles XII, one of Sweden's most militant kings, reappears in modern times to carry on his series of disastrous defeats in cafés and other modern settings.

Winner of the Golden Lion at the 2014 Venice Film Festival, A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence examines the painful and poetic nature of life in today’s world through the detached gaze of an outsider—in this case, through the eyes of a pigeon.

Written and Directed by Roy Andersson

Produced by Philippe Bober, Linn Kirkenær, Håkon Øverås, and Pernilla Sandström

Cinematography by István Borbás and Gergely Pálos

Editing by Alexandra Strauss

Set Design by Ulf Jonsson, Nicklas Nilsson, Sandra Parment, Isabel Sjöstrand, and Julia Tegström

Trompe L'oeil: Ulf Jonsson

Wardrobe by Julia Tegström

Starring Holger Andersson, Nils Westblom, Charlotta Larsson, Viktor Gyllenberg, Lotti Törnros, Jonas Gerholm, Ola Stensson, Oscar Salomonsson, and Roger Olsen Likvern

Archive

Internet Archive, in The VHS Vault

Licence or status

The Internet Archive states none for this item.

Credit

Roy Andersson

Language

Swedish

Subtitles

Swedish

Who can watch

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