Swedish News:

Sweden represents at the Oscars. Killing cancer with heat. 

  • Robert Gustafsson in "The 100-year-old man." The Swedish film is nominated for an Oscar this year.
  • Sweden at the Oscars
    Two Swedes are favored nominees for this year's Oscars on Feb. 28. Alicia Vikander was nominated for her part in "The Danish Girl,” and the Swedish hit comedy The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared (”Hundraåringen som klev ut genom fönstret och försvann”) could win for best makeup and hair. Robert Gustafsson, who plays the 100-year-old has said he had to sit many hours in make-up every day to be able to play everything from age 20 to 100. Eva von Bahr and Love Larson, the film's makeup artists, were previously nominated in the same category at Guldbaggegalan 2014.
    Vikander, who some call the next Ingrid Bergman, has two Golden Globe nominations and British Bafta awards, and is now in the running for Best Supporting Actress. The last time a Swedish actress was nominated was 1990 when Lena Olin was in "Enemies: A Love Story." And the last time a Swedish actress won an Oscar for best supporting actress was in 1974, when Ingrid Bergman starred in Murder on the Orient Express. "100-year-old," starring Robert Gustafsson in the main role, is one of three films nominated for Best Hair and Makeup, praising Swedes Love Larson and Eva von Bahr for their work. Official trailer: www.youtube.com/watch?v=pjiJ1cL3Uss

  • Robert Gustafsson took on the role as Raymond Babbitt in the 2103 Swedish theater production of “Rain Man.” For his role in ”Hundraåringen som klev ut genom fönstret och försvann,” he had to sit many hours in make-up every day to be everything from age 20 to 100. Eva von Bahr and Love Larson, the film's makeup artists, were nominated for an Oscar in 2016.
  • Best Foreign Language Film
    Sweden's selection, Roy Andersson's artsy "A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence" ("En duva satt på en gren och funderade på tillvaron") was not nominated. The film, about Sam and Jonathan, a pair of hapless novelty salesmen that embarks on a tour of the human condition, concludes writer-director Roy Andersson's Living trilogy in style. Well received by critics and considered "indelibly original and expertly assembled" the salesmen's tour is depicted both in reality and in a fantasy that unfolds into a series of absurd episodes. Official U.S. trailer: www.youtube.com/watch?v=JGwGyo5Ywpo Among Scandinavian countries, the Danish movie "A War" became nominated in the category, together with films from Colombia, France, Hungary and Jordan. Official trailer for the Danis nominated film with the original title Krigen: www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRkE5ZrPzs0

  • Killing cancer with heat
    Researchers at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm have discovered a promising new method in treating cancerous tumors. First testing only on breast cancer patients, the Swedish team developed the means to insert an electrode into the infected area with greater precision, potentially killing the whole tumor with heat. In every one of the 50 trial cases, MRIs show the tumors have disappeared with this treatment. The researchers estimate that up to half of all breast cancer patients may benefit from it; now patients with some other forms of cancer can seek the treatment. One advantage of KI’s new method is it is very mild for the patient and does not require more than an hour in the hospital. So often, the three main methods of treatment for cancer — surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy — result in severe side effects and require longer hospital stays. Patients who can no longer tolerate other treatments may benefit by heating away the so-called residual tumors that remain after other treatment, extending their lives by several years.