Drama directed by Mark Cousins and starring singer Neneh Cherry in her feature acting debut. On the anniversary of a personal tragedy, architect Alva Achebe skips work and walks the streets of Stockholm in search of solace. It's a journey that not only reveals the development of the Swedish capital, but also uncovers Alva's own family history.
Following homages to Tirana (Here Be Dragons, 2013) and Belfast (I Am Belfast, 2015), Mark Cousins descends on Stockholm for this experimental melding of drama and documentary. Singer Neneh Cherry takes centre stage as the architect bunking off from a lecture in order to commune with the spirit of her African immigrant father while wandering around favourite haunts in the Swedish capital (Cherry's actual birthplace), but all the time weighed down by personal guilt. Between visits to a shopping precinct and a skateboard park, Cherry extols the virtues of the Skandia cinema, the Vasterbron Bridge, St Mark's Church and the Resurrection Chapel before rediscovering her mojo on a Tivoli rollercoaster. But, while Christopher Doyle's camerawork brings the archipelago city to beguiling life, Cousins makes intriguing use of music by 19th-century composer Franz Berwald, Abba's Benny Andersson and Cherry herself to capture its shifting moods. Meanwhile, musings in English, Swedish and caption form reflect on the alienating effects of urban living in the age of instant communication. As ever, Cousins draws on an impressive range of influences, but this feels more accessible than some of his earlier odysseys.
| role | name |
|---|---|
| Alva Achebe | Neneh Cherry |
| role | name |
|---|---|
| Director | Mark Cousins |
