The Saga of Gösta Berling

Mauritz Stiller's sprawling, passionate adaptation of Selma Lagerlöf's beloved novel — and the film that introduced the world to Greta Garbo. Gösta Berling is a defrocked minister, expelled from his parish for alcoholism, who takes refuge among the colorful, dissolute "cavaliers" living at a wealthy countess's estate. A sweeping saga of love, redemption, and the clash between old aristocratic Sweden and the forces of modernity, the film showcases Stiller's extraordinary visual sense and gift for ensemble storytelling. But it was the eighteen-year-old Garbo, radiant and already unmistakable, who stole the picture and caught the eye of Louis B. Mayer, launching one of cinema's most legendary careers. A grand, romantic epic that vibrates with life.