A movie from Sweden which was very popular there around Christmas of 1998.
I was in Stockholm for a day with nothing to do because my train connection didn't leave until 22:00, and I went to see this film. It was a cold day and I was feeling desolate and alone, and after it got dark I went to a cinema. A girl I had met some weeks ago had recommended the film to me, so I chose it. Of course, it's a Swedish film, and I don't speak Swedish, but I decided it would still be fun.
And, well, I think maybe my reaction to it was more a product of my own mental state at the time, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. It's about a small, nasty town called Amal (well, actually with those little circles over the Ås (thus: Åmål), so technically spelt Aamaal I think) and high-school life there, with a central plot of two young lesbians and their social struggles.
I had imagined that I would never hear about the film outside Sweden, but here I sit in Cambridge, UK and I just read in the paper that it opened two days ago in a local indie cinema. Presumably with subtitles this time :). But strangely I feel unwilling to re-watch it. Too many associations with the infinite; if you will, the oblivion of northern Scandinavia, which I found to be quite powerful.
This film was, not surprisingly, re-titled to "Show Me Love" for the relatively prudish English-speaking market.
It starred Alexandra Dahlstrom and Rebecca Liljeberg.
"Jag elska Elin!" (did I get that right?)
No, but close - it's "Jag älskar Elin!" - thanks Tiefling and liveforever.