The Emigrants

The Emigrants (Utvandrarna, 1971), directed by Jan Troell, is a Swedish historical epic you can watch online on iFILM. Max von Sydow and Liv Ullmann star as Karl and Kristina Nilsson, a farm couple from southern Sweden who sell everything they own and board a ship for America — with a handful of neighbors, their children, and no guarantee of land on the other side.

The ocean crossing alone takes weeks. Then comes the overland push through a continent neither of them has seen. Troell films the journey on location, letting the geography carry the emotional weight. Ullmann's Kristina is the film's anchor: quietly determined, quietly exhausted, quietly grieving a home she chose to leave. First of two films; the story continues in The New Land (1972).

The Emigrants landed four Oscar nominations — including Best Picture and Best Director — a striking reach for a Swedish-language film at the 1973 ceremony. Stream The Emigrants online on iFILM.