The Phantom Carriage

For the remakes, see The Phantom Carriage (1939 film) and The Phantom Carriage (1958 film).

The Phantom Carriage
Theatrical release poster
Directed byVictor Sjöström
Screenplay byVictor Sjöström
Based onKörkarlen
by Selma Lagerlöf
Produced byCharles Magnusson
Starring
CinematographyJulius Jaenzon
Edited byEugen Hellman
Distributed byAB Svensk Filmindustri
Release dates
  • 1 January 1921 (1921-01-01) (Sweden)
  • 1 February 1922 (1922-02-01) (United States)
Running time
107 minutes
CountrySweden
Languages

The Phantom Carriage (Swedish: Körkarlen, literally "The Wagoner") is a 1921 Swedish silent film directed by and starring Victor Sjöström, based on the 1912 novel Thy Soul Shall Bear Witness! (Körkarlen) by Swedish author Selma Lagerlöf. In the film, Sjöström plays a drunkard named David Holm who, on the night of New Year's Eve, is compelled by the ghostly driver of Death's carriage to reflect on his past mistakes. Alongside Sjöström, the film's cast includes Hilda Borgström, Tore Svennberg, and Astrid Holm.[1]

The Phantom Carriage was released in Scandinavia on New Year's Day 1921. The following year, Metro Pictures Corporation re-edited and released the film in the United States under the title The Stroke of Midnight;[1][2][3] it was known as Thy Soul Shall Bear Witness! in the United Kingdom.

The Phantom Carriage is notable for its special effects, its innovative narrative structure with flashbacks within flashbacks, and for having been a major influence on the works of Ingmar Bergman.[4] It has been characterized as belonging to several genres—it has been called a morality tale,[5][6] a melodrama,[5][6] a fantasy film, and a horror film.[5][6] It is sometimes considered one of the first horror films due to its atmosphere and its impact on later entries in the genre.[5] The film is generally considered to be one of the central works in the history of Swedish cinema.

  1. ^ a b "Progressive Silent Film List: The Phantom Carriage". Silent Era. Archived from the original on 3 March 2010. Retrieved 25 April 2009.
  2. ^ "Körkarlen (link to PDF)". Svenska Filminstitutet. Archived from the original on 21 December 2019. Retrieved 20 February 2019.
  3. ^ Mayersberg, Paul (27 September 2011). "Phantom Forms: The Phantom Carriage". The Criterion Collection. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
  4. ^ Bo Florin (2010), "Victor Sjöström and the Golden Age", Mariah Larsson and Anders Marklund (eds), "Swedish Film: An Introduction and Reader", Lund: Nordic Academic Press, pp. 76-85, p.83.
  5. ^ a b c d Lanzagorta, Marco (10 June 2008). "The Phantasmagoric Phantom Carriage". PopMatters. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
  6. ^ a b c Vorel, Jim (24 July 2019). "A Century of Terror: The 100 Best Horror Movies of the Last 100 Years". Paste. Archived from the original on 16 November 2022. Retrieved 22 June 2021.