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Cult Review
Senior Film Conservator
Skip this immediately if you can't stand crackly audio and dusty black-and-white Swedish people shouting in tiny rooms. But if you love those old, incredibly silly farce plots—the kind where a guy needs a fake wife for exactly 24 hours to get cash from his rich aunt—then Hustru för en dag is a weirdly charming watch. 🍿
It is definitely not a masterpiece, but it doesn't try to be one either.
The whole setup is about Mr. Wall trying to scam his aunt because he needs her inheritance money. To do this, he has to find a woman willing to pretend to be his wife for just one single day.
You already know exactly how this goes. There is lots of slamming doors, awkward silences, and characters hiding behind curtains while sweating profusely.
The lead actor Nils Ohlin has this amazingly anxious face. He looks like he is about to throw up through most of the movie, which honestly kept me laughing more than the actual jokes did. 😂
The real reason to watch this is Tollie Zellman as the aunt. She has this amazing, wild-eyed energy and a laugh that sounds like a teapot screaming.
Every time she is on screen, the movie gets twice as fast. When she leaves, things drag a bit, especially when the writers Gösta Rodin and Torsten Lundqvist try to explain the legal stuff about the money.
We do not care about the paperwork, guys! Just give us more chaotic dinner scenes.
It reminded me a bit of the silly family drama in The Feather Bed, though that one had a bit more polish. This one feels like it was filmed in a rush over a weekend, which gives it a weird, messy charm.
If you liked other old black-and-white comedies like Beckoning Roads or maybe even Chasing Rainbows, you will find some cozy comfort here. Just don't expect anything deep.
It's just a silly little time machine to 1930s Sweden. Sometimes that's exactly what you need on a rainy Sunday afternoon.
IMDb 5.4
1933
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