A Con Man In Malta: Locally-Set Swedish Drama Wins Seven Prizes At Foreign Awards
A Malta-set Swedish drama, which was co-produced by a local studio, won a record seven prizes at the Guldbagge Awards, Sweden’s national film ceremony.
Written and directed by Swedish director Axel Petersén, the film was co-produced by Maltese studio Pellikola, run by producer Oliver Mallia.
Shame on Dry Land, which centres around a con man who becomes entangled in a Swedish online gambling community while in Malta, snagged Best Director for Petersén, Best Actor for Joel Spira, and Best Supporting Actor for Christopher Wagelin.
It also received prizes for best editing, cinematography, sound design, and original score. Its seven awards is a record for the Guldbagges, topping the six obtained by three films: last year’s Triangle Of Sadness and 2014’s Force Majeure, both directed by Ruben Ostlund, and 2018’s Border by Ali Abbasi.
“After years away at sea seeking redemption, Dimman (Spira) is the wrong man for the job when he’s enlisted for some seriously shady business. But this anxiety-ridden character’s struggle to stay on top of a fast-evolving situation makes him the perfect protagonist for Petersén’s fourth feature, a knotty thriller and a skillfully crafted and richly satisfying merger of ’70s crime flick and classic film noir,” the Toronto International Film Festival wrote.
“The film also makes the most of its sun-baked setting: Malta, where a wealthy community of Swedish expats is preparing for the nuptials of two of their own. Having ensnared the groom Fredrik (Christopher Wagelin) in a fraud before dropping off the grid, Dimman is an uninvited and unwanted guest, but he’s sincere in his efforts to make amends. Alas, that ambition is derailed when Kiki (Jacqueline Ramel) — the charismatic woman who helped Dimman put his life back together — tasks him with tailing a mystery man who turns out to have his own nefarious agenda.”
The film had also been selected to premiere at the prestigious 48th annual Toronto International Film Festival which is renowned for presenting the best of international and Canadian cinema for film lovers and creators.
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