Och Faegring Stor Better - All Things Fair 1995 Lust

All Things Fair

The 1995 Swedish period drama (original Swedish title: Lust och fägring stor ) serves as the poignant and controversial final film from acclaimed director Bo Widerberg . Set against the backdrop of Malmö in 1943 during World War II, the film explores a risky affair between a 15-year-old student, Stig, and his 37-year-old teacher, Viola.

• WWII Sweden – Rationing, blackout curtains, military patrols, but no active combat.
• School system 1940s – Corporal punishment still allowed; teachers held high authority.
• Music – Period jazz, classical, and popular songs (e.g., “All Things Fair” title track).
• Newsreel inserts – Real WWII footage reminds that larger horrors exist outside the love story.

The Controversy: Can a "Better" Film Be So Uncomfortable?

Cast:

Johan Widerberg (the director's son) as Stig; Marika Lagercrantz as Viola. all things fair 1995 lust och faegring stor better

• Forbidden Desire & Power Dynamics – Explores the line between mutual attraction and exploitation.
• Loss of Innocence – Stig’s sexual awakening clashes with the moral gravity of adult choices.
• War as Backdrop – Though Sweden is neutral, refugees, newsreels, and fear of invasion shape the atmosphere.
• Class & Gender – Viola is trapped in a stale marriage; Stig represents youth and possibility.
• Memory & Guilt – Framed as an older Stig’s flashback, the film questions how we remember first love vs. abuse.

And for the first time in ten years, Erik cries—not for what he lost, but for what he learned: that beauty and destruction are the same thing, seen from different angles. And that growing up means knowing the difference between the ache you chase and the one that chases you. All Things Fair The 1995 Swedish period drama

All Things Fair

In the pantheon of provocative coming-of-age cinema, few films have balanced raw sensuality with devastating emotional maturity quite like the 1995 Danish-Swedish co-production, . Known in its native land as Lust och Fägring Stor (a phrase lifted from a Swedish hymn meaning "Lust and Great Beauty"), the film arrives with a baggage of controversy, nostalgia, and critical reevaluation. But the central question that persists among cinephiles is this: Is All Things Fair better than its reputation suggests? The answer is a resounding yes. The Controversy: Can a "Better" Film Be So Uncomfortable