There's always been an issue with Sweden's ambiguous role in world war II and the alleged neutrality. What's sure is that the country played a crucial role that setting standards for humanitarian behavior, both individual and collective, and a role model to take into account.
Passage To Sweden brings light to the not so known but fundamental people and places that were key to saving hundreds of Jews. The unsung heroes and the territories the escapists had to navigate are shown here as part of the transit. From one place to another, from a state of being to another.
Told by testimonies and archival film footage through intimate stories, this film tells the story of a nation that unites several different experiences that are somehow intertwined. Norway, Denmark, and Hungary had different experiences with war but they all had a thing in common: Sweden as the promised land, the shelter that awaited their people. Mountains, forests, dark skies, and turbulent waters as the landscapes that enclosed the escape routes. The dramatic escapes with choices that risked lives. Children are put asleep, people helping from one side and waiting on the other, men putting their career and life aside for the sake of saving.
When talking about world war II, Scandinavia is not the most current topic, but here: the Norwegian resistance, the citizens of Denmark, the Swedish Red Cross, Raoul Wallenberg, and Count Folke Bernadotte are some names that ought to be remembered. Even though you lose your sense of direction when you are in the forest, in the midst of running, the escape is different when there is a solid rock on the other side. Sweden provided that sense of security and protection.
The director Suzannah Warlick does a great job in bringing us a story that must be told. She focuses on retelling the things that did go well in the midst of hell. History is made and remade every day and this film gives another chance to retell it.
Carla Chasco is an art critique specializing in film, from Buenos Aires Argentina, currently studying curatorial studies degree at UNA. She has previously worked as a costume designer but nowadays is advocated the other side of the film.