SummarySet from 1944 to 1956, the Swedish-language film shows how painter Tove Jansson finds worldwide success from an unexpected side project, in the midst of artistic struggles and an unconventional personal life.
Directed By:Zaida Bergroth
Written By:Eeva Putro, Jarno Elonen
Tove
Metascore
Generally Favorable
63
User score
Mixed or Average
6.0
My Score
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Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
50% Positive
5 Reviews
5 Reviews
50% Mixed
5 Reviews
5 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Dec 17, 2020
80
Marking her fifth feature, Bergroth flexes her considerable cinematic powers, conjuring vibrantly expressive visuals and confident performances from her talented cast, especially the petite theater thesp Pöysti, who excels in her first leading film role and strongly resembles the real Tove.
Jun 1, 2021
75
Poysti’s subtle, layered performance conveys Tove’s complex dilemma with sweetness and pain. This is a portrait not of a lady on fire, but of a woman struggling to strike the match.
Jun 2, 2021
70
Whereas Cruella sent me back to Dodie Smith, as a blessed escape from what Disney has done to her creations, Tove dispatched me down a rabbit hole, or through a Moomin door. I recommend the trip.
Jul 11, 2021
60
Alma Pöysti is luminous as Jansson, bringing to life her playful, pleasure-seeking artist’s spirit.
Jul 9, 2021
60
This is a rather conventional artist’s biopic for an unconventional person and it’s a film that ends as suddenly (and frustratingly) as it begins.
Jul 8, 2021
60
Where biopics often end up with a cardboard-tasting blandness, the focus on Jansson’s interior world gives this film moments that really come to life.
Jun 3, 2021
40
The soft-focus cinematography is beautiful but drippy, and this general tendency toward mushy melodramatics presents an unflattering contrast to the sharp-lined vivacity that Jansson brought to the page.
User score
Mixed or Average
75% Positive
3 Ratings
3 Ratings
0% Mixed
0 Ratings
0 Ratings
25% Negative
1 Rating
1 Rating
Jun 26, 2022
7
This is a quirky, insightful biopic about the life of an intriguing person - writer and artist/cartoonist Tove Jansson. I was a fan of the Moomins as a kid - I remember watching the cartoon show on CBBC and so this film appealed to me, as I knew little about the creator. I could certainly understand her wanting a form of escapism from the war, as the characters were invented during WWII it'd seem. The LGBT aspect was also interesting. I thought the main character was portrayed well by Alma Poysti. This is a good film I'd recommend, yes.
Production Company:
- Helsinki-Filmi
- Anagram
- Nordisk Film
- Yleisradio (YLE)
- Sveriges Television (SVT)
- Business Finland
- Eurimages
- Finlands Filmstiftelse
- Föreningen Konstsamfundet
- Nordisk Film & TV-Fond
- Svenska Filminstitutet (SFI)
- Svenska Kulturfonden
Release Date:Jun 4, 2021
Duration:1 h 43 m
Awards
Jussi Awards
• 7 Wins & 10 Nominations
Göteborg Film Festival
• 1 Win & 2 Nominations
OUTshine Film Festival
• 1 Win & 1 Nomination
