The Emigrants (1971/72)

The story of a family in the middle of 19th century rural Sweden, as they decide to emigrate to the U.S.

Nominated for 5 Oscars:

As a 1971 film:

Best Foreign Language Film (Sweden)

As a 1972 film:

Best Picture

Best Director: Jan Troell

Best Actress: Liv Ullmann

Best Adapted Screenplay

This film contributes to one of those weird cases where the Academy acknowledged a Foreign Language film in two different years (first, as sent over by its country; secondly, by its American release date). This doesn't happen nowadays.

It's a damn good film, if you have the patience for it. It's well written, nicely put together, with a really strong ensemble performance. Liv got her first Oscar nomination for this - ironically, NOT for an Ingmar Bergman film. She's good, but just a part of the ensemble. It sure made me curious about its sequel, which I'll definitely see at some point.

My rating for the film: 8.5/10. Its Oscar nominations are both worthy and impressive, judging this is only a foreign language film. But voters really stood by quality back in the '70s, regardless where it came from.