The Seventh Seal

#112 at time of writing.

This film is pretty cool with its overblown metaphors, visually striking set-pieces, pseudo-medieval setting and funky-sounding Swedish. But I felt like it went over my head. I let the story wash over me, but never really got into it.

It's about a knight who is trying to escape the spread of the Black Death, while playing a game of chess with the Grim Reaper.

Director Ingmar Bergman was inspired by a 15th century church painting of a man playing chess with a skeletal Death, in Täby kyrka, north of Stockholm.

Let the Right One In

#192 at time of writing.

I'm not big on vampire movies. But this is a little vampire movie. Not a little movie, you understand, but a little vampire.

On the face of it, the story is simple: Bullied pre-teen boy falls for outcast pre-teen girl - but she ain't no ordinary girl.

The atmosphere and the actors, particularly the child actors, elevate this film into something both tender and horrifying. It's a love story, a coming-of-age story, and a frighteningly bare horror story.

It's satisfying to see a film once in a while that Hollywood couldn't possibly have made. Grubby, sexualised children? Not since The Exorcist. Ooh, me Hays Code is itchin'...

Makes me want to see more Swedish films. What else is on the list? Seventh Seal no doubt... hold on a sec while I have a look... aha, Wild Strawberries as well. Both of those are from the 50s. Well, Swedish cinema, welcome back.