No relief in this one. No let up. The conqueror escapes to nothing, nowhere; a wintry, frozen and empty sea-shore. Max can act, no question. So can Pelle the boy. The direction consummates the never-ending grimness and daily grind of the emigrant labourer, paid 100 kronor a year, about £10. It's virtual slavery, though the bodies are not sold. These slaves are especially abused and exploited because they are foreign. Life continues, a living death.Undeniably effective, but who would want to watch this twice ? Joylessness squared. Unpunished rape, unwanted child-murder, bullying, crippling poverty, death and decay. An existential inferno, where hope is eventually abandoned. What benefit is to be gained from seeing this relentless, unrelieved misery ? I give it eight stars, because it's a powerful movie, but recommend no-one to watch it. One flaw: the boy's dubbed American accent was annoying. It was out-of-place. The only man capable of bringing a little lightness to the company, with his musical squeeze-box, gets bludgeoned into mindless inanity.

A quite good movie, with a truly great performance by Max Von Sydow. The film itself is overlong, and a bit too crowded with sub-plots that don't get developed enough. On the other hand, the intricate, specific details of the sad, Dickensian world of this Danish farm in the late 19th century feel real, harsh, and often fascinating. The young boy playing Pelle is good, but not as great as the role calls for. But Von Sydow is so subtle, so heartbreaking, so complex that he almost lifts this into 'great film' territory just by himself.

PELLE THE CONQUEROR may now be twenty-three years old as a film but the power and beauty of this epic masterpiece from Denmark still retain the brilliance of its original 1987 theatrical release. Based on a four volume novel by Martin Andersen Nexø the screenplay by writer/director Bille August, Per Olov Enquist, and Bjarne Reuter granted takes only a small portion of the original story and that explains why so much of what happens in this 2 1/2 hour film is only vaguely explained, but the end result is a marvelous drama of the relationship of a father (Lassefar, brilliantly realized by the venerable Max von Sydow), who has pride but has not the courage of his convictions, and a son (Pelle, a masterpiece of young acting by Pelle Hvenegaard) who dreams of finding a life better than the bitterly poor existence he shares with the father he loves. The film takes place in Denmark near the turn of the 19th century over the course of a year and during that time the Pelle encounters peer prejudice from being a Swedish immigrant who has traveled to Denmark for the good life, class distinction between the wealthy landowners and the poverty stricken workers, the double standard of morals of the learned 'role models', death, physical abuse, young love between two lovely people who out of fear drown their infant at birth, the harsh realities of gathering sustenance from laboring the land and the sea, the bonds of true friendship with a bastard child of the land owner, and the disappointment of losing hope of conquering the world by means of accompanying a friend who must remain a vassal for two years who becomes brain damaged in an alteration with the foreman. Yet through all of these lessons Pelle learns about the survival of the fittest and despite all odds being against him, strikes out toward the frozen sea to await his ship of fortune. This is a film about dreams and realities, about surviving physical and mental stresses, about adapting to the seasons and the struggles of indentured life. The stench of the farm and the grace of the snowfields are captured with amazing perfection by cinematographer Jörgen Persson and the mood of this film's story is accompanied by the music of Stefan Nilsson. The cast is huge and uniformly excellent, much due to the sensitive direction by Bille August. This is a classic film, one that is enjoyed more with repeated viewings. This is definitely one for the home library. Breathtaking. Grady Harp

I saw this film in the theater when it was released and it has always stayed with me.From the first scene that opens like a Danish or Dutch oil painting to the last scene when the father says goodbye to his son in the depths of winter knowing he will never see him again….this film is indeed a masterpiece.Every scene is a painting and Max Von Sydow and Pelle Hyenegaard are perfect. The character actors, if in fact they were actors, were sometimes disturbingly authentic.The story is simple. A father searching for a new wife to take care of himself and especially his son while at the same time struggling to survive in very difficult times made even more difficult by the relentless weather. This is not an upbeat film by any means. It is, however, a triumph of spirit and the love of a father for his son and the son's realization that he has to leave and his father cannot come with him. A new life for the worn out father is not possible in the new world. He accepts that only his young son can have the chance that they cannot have in Denmark…he turns and walks away.You will never forget this film.