Ondskan is a Swedish foreign language film which focuses on the horrors many troubled boys faced in private boarding schools throughout the 50's to the 80's. Fitting that the word Ondskan translates into Evil, which describes the mentality many associate with the running of these boarding schools.
The film was based on the book written by renown author Jan Guillou based on his personal experiences at the now closed boarding school.
Ondskan was one of the first Swedish foreign films I had ever watched on my own.
It was my first introduction into Scandinavian cinema and it remains to be one of my favourite foreign films from Sweden together with vampire cult classic Let The Right One In.
Synopsis
Ondskan follows the story of Erik, a boy who has a history of fighting and gets expelled from his school. His parents end up sending him to a very secluded boarding school in the North in the hopes that he will shape up.
Unknown to his parents, Erik is sent to a school that is run by dis-concerned directors and violent upperclassmen, surrounded by a culture of extreme punishment including brutal whippings, assaults and tortures (both emotional and physical).
The hierarchy of the school is comparable to the worst fraternity you can ever think of but with supervised guards.
Throughout the film the subject matter is inclusive of tons of rage, revenge and abuse stemming from the evil birthed inside these troubled boys.
Important Themes
Ondskan puts the issues of Swedish boarding schools front in centre with its cinematic adaptation of Jan Guillou's book.
Many schools like the one in the film have existed for decades in the country, some still operating today.
Guillou, who has since become a journalist has stated that they should be closed and that the schools are "an extreme, outdated form of high society". Going on to state that these schools are funded by taxpayer's money and are a hotbed for abuse, punishment and extreme bullying.
Ondskan does a strikingly brilliant job depicting this evil existence within the school. As well as depicting the wicked culture that was present in the boundaries of the school and within the minds of the teenage youth.
Altogether Ondskan is a brilliantly written and shot film. As violent as the nature of the film is, Ondskan effectively allows for the viewer to experience the emotions and struggle the young teenagers deal with on the inside. More than often boys are taught to have tough skin and to push through the hard times and not to dwell over them.
The film allows the audience to feel these emotions while depicting the circumstances many lived through and still maybe go through from attending these private boarding schools.
Just in 2013 the debate for the closure of private boarding schools was reignited around Sweden’s oldest boarding school, Lundsberg Skola.
Shouts for the school to be closed were heard after an incident where four students were assaulted with a flat iron as an initiation rite of passage.
Conclusion
Years after watching Ondskan I still remember it as one of my favourite produced foreign language films.
There is something incredibly unique and personal about the film. Something which is quite common in Swedish and Danish cinema.
Ondskan is insatiably intriguing. I can't say enough about how much of a spectacular production it is.
It definitely is a film you won't be able peel your eyes away from.
