From GORDON & PADDY to WHO’S WRONG to THE APE STAR… Swedish director Linda Hambäck’s films never fit into the mould of classic animation, but her original narratives turn the world upside down and make light of the dull predictability of everyday life. And that’s the least you can say about DANTE.
A gorilla adopts a child, and no one finds anything unusual about it. That delightful premise from THE APE STAR is now being replicated in a story about a latently boring bank clerk who forges a pact with a ragged rat on a garbage dump to unmask the real perpetrators of the money theft of which he is accused. DANTE is not expected to hit Swedish cinemas until the autumn, but can already be seen at the BUFF Festival in Malmö.
In addition to an unusual relationship between humans and animals, DANTE contains other elements that fit seamlessly into Linda Hambäck’s oeuvre: the depiction of orderly life in a small town, a healthy dose of detective work, and the social awkwardness of human beings, which makes the film as much a comedy as a crime story. For the original version, the filmmakers are proud to feature actor Stellan Skarsgård, who voices the title character, a rat who has more words than teeth.
Director: Linda Hambäck
Script: Jessika Jankert & Linda Hambäck, adapted from Frida Nilsson’s book “Me and Dante at the Dump”.
Production: LEE Film in co-production with Nørlum, Mikrofilm, and Film i Väst.
World sales: Attraction Distribution
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