Waltz For Monica/ Monica Z (2013), drama biography film review

Swedish poster artwork for the biographical drama Waltz With Monica/Monica Z.

Swedish Sensation by Linh

Waltz For Monica/Monica Z is a biopic loosely based on the personal and professional life of the popular Swedish jazz singer and actress Monica Zetterlund. Monica (Edda Magnasson) is a 23 year-old telephone operator from a small town named Hagfors in Sweden who lives with her parents and five year old daughter named Eva-Lena (Nadja Christiansson). Monica often dreams of being part of the vibrant and exciting jazz scene in Stockholm, until one day in the winter of 1960, an English jazz pianist named Leonard Feather (Ralph Bernard) invites her to New York. This trip changes Monica’s life and she begins her triumphant yet turbulent journey to stardom as a jazz singer performing in jazz clubs in New York and Stockholm.

The film depicts the usual dilemmas entertainers face when juggling their career and personal life. Monica is a talented and beautiful singer who quickly learns the trade-offs and sacrifices made to stay in the music business. Her career skyrockets while her personal life nosedives as she fails to please her father and commit to her lover while raising a young daughter.

Edda Magnasson is brilliant in the role of Monica and she beautifully sings all the songs in the film. The 1960s costumes in the film are gorgeous and the music wonderfully captures the golden age of the jazz era. Waltz For Monica won four Guldbagge Awards: Best Actress, Best Direction, Best Supporting Actor and Best Costume Design.

Director: Per Fly

Writers: Peter Birro (screen adaptation), Per Fly (adaptation collaborator)

Cast: Edda Magnasson, Sverrir Gudnason, Kjell Bergqvist, Cecilia Ljung, Vera Vitali, Johannes Wanselow, Ralph Bernard, Oskar Thunberg, Randall D. Ingram, Rob Morgan, Amelia Fowler, Clinton Ingram, Harry Friedländer, Andréa Ager-Hanssen, Nadja Christiansson, David Hellenius, Jörgen Thorsson, Hanna Ullerstam, Henrik Ståhl, Anna Harling

Producers: Jessica Ask, Lena Rehnberg, Tory Lenosky, Anna Carlsten

Cinematographer: Eric Kress

Music Composer: Peter Nordahl

Film Editor: Åsa Mossberg

Production: Josefin Åsberg (production designer), Kelly McGehee (art director), Amy Williams (set decorator)

Costume Designer: Kicki Ilander

Languages: Swedish, English with English subtitles

Running Time: 1 hour and 50 minutes