The Outlaw and His Wife

Sjöström's performance may disappoint those familiar with his marvellous contribution many years later to Bergman's Wild Strawberries, but there is still much to admire in this tale, set in 19th century Iceland, of a sheep-stealer finding work and love with a rich widow (the director's wife), and then being hounded by society into the freezing wilderness. If the story tends to aim too self-consciously for grand passions (often resulting in an unfortunately melodramatic tone), there is no denying the film's visual beauty, with Sjöström's use of the sparse farm sets and the monumental landscape serving to ensure that Nature, as opposed to the humans on view, takes precedence as the most forceful character.