Mai Zetterling's 1968 drama, The Girls (Flickorna), follows the lives of three actresses performing in a touring production of Aristophanes’ Lysistrata. As the film progresses, their personal lives become increasingly intertwined with the roles they play, blurring the boundaries between their real and imagined selves. The film received a mixed response upon its release, considered too experimental in its style and too radical in its messaging, but has since become a landmark of feminist filmmaking, screening continuously at festivals and special programs for nearly seventy years.Drawing on previously unpublished materials from the Swedish Film Institute, Anna Stenport and Mariah Larsson explore the film’s formal and aesthetic experimentations, highlighting Zetterling’s seamless blending of Scandinavian design elements with the whimsical pop-art trends characteristic of London during the Swinging Sixties. They analyse the contributions of cinematographer Rune Ericson, editor Wic’ Kjellin, and costume designer Ulla-Britt Söderlund, as well as the lead performances by national icons Bibi Andersson, Harriet Andersson, and Gunnel Lindblom.They also consider the film within Zetterling's long transnational career, exploring how international cinematic movements and cultural trends influenced both the film’s style and its lukewarm initial reception. They contrast this against the film's rediscovery as a feminist classic, one that has inspired influential filmmakers like Chantal Akerman and Marguerite Duras.
