NOTE: Original post in Swedish here
Jana Kippo, a woman in her mid-30s, has returned home after many years away to Kippogården in the fictional village of Smalånger in Västerbotten. She wants to help her twin brother, who is drinking himself to death.
In SVT:s adaptation of Karin Smirnoff’s book ”Jag for ner till bror” (“I Went Down to My Brother”), Jana Kippo is brilliantly portrayed by Amanda Jansson in what I think is some of the most authentic acting I’ve seen in a long time.
Rasmus Johansson plays Bror with such raw vulnerability that it fills the entire room.
The screenplay is written by Karin Arrhenius, and the series is directed by Sanna Lenken. I have to admit it feels incredibly refreshing to watch a TV series set in genuine rural Sweden, with grounded, realistic characters completely free of glitter, glamour and contrived superficiality. At Kippogården there is old ingrained dirt, barn muck, potato peelings, greasy hair and unmade beds in a house that no one has cared for in many years.
The set design by Betsy Ångerman Engström is done with great credibility. The embroidered cross-stitch sampler with moose or deer (see image further down) is just one detail among many that shows a highly developed sense of touch.
Julia Caesar 