Call Girl.

Director:	Mikael Marcimain
Country:	Sweden
Year:	2012
Running Time:	140 mins
Principle Cast:	Sofia Karemyr	Iris Dahl
	Simon J Berger	John Sandberg
	Josefin Asplund	Sonja Hansson
	Pernilla August	Dagmar Glans
	Sven Nordin	Glenn

The second of my Focus on Sweden strand at this years EIFF was similar to the traditional Scandinavian fare we have come to admire so much on BBC 4 on a Saturday evening with its mix of political corruption and crime, but this time it includes the world of sex for sale and underage prostitution. The movie is inspired by actual events that took place in Stockholm in the late 1970’s

Hypocrisy is the name of the game in this very exciting and captivating thriller. Set at a time of women’s liberation and the furtherance of their rights, the film shows how these liberal notions only apply when the rich and powerful allow them to apply. Dagmar Glans, in the parlance of the sex industry, is a madam who procures sexual favours for a high-class clientele including the prime minister, government officials and high-ranking members of the police force. As you would expect from this kind of genre the story is recounted from different angles, but at its core are two young girls, Iris and Sonja, who have a placement in juvenile homes. It’s these two that that Dagmar recruits to satisfy her a client’s underage sexual needs and it’s Iris that could bring down the highest echelons of Sweden’s political structure.

 

Dagmar Glans grooms the underage Iris.

This realistic presentation of a privileged minority caused a massive controversy in Sweden due to the film alluding that Olof Palme (that man again) bought sex from underage prostitutes. Palme's son sued the filmmakers on the grounds of defamation. Just to warn you that this is a very explicit piece of filmmaking and Mikael Marcimain does not hold back on detail. This is in fact was the longest film I saw at this years festival but its 140 minute running time went exceptional quickly which it testament of my enjoyment of this very exciting film.