The Roy Andersson Collection (6-Disc Blu-ray Box Set)

Over the years Roy Andersson has cultivated his incredibly idiosyncratic view of the world through his surreal, philosophical, humorous and, ultimately humanist cinema. His dedication to his work has made him one of the most revered auteurs of our time. A highly collectable limited edition, this box set brings together all of Roy Andersson’s critically-acclaimed works.

• A Swedish Love Story (1970)
• Songs from the Second Floor (2000)
• You, the Living (2007)
• A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence (2014)
• About Endlessness (2020)
• Being a Human Person (2020)

In A Swedish Love Story, two adolescents meet and cautiously fall in love in beautiful surrounds during the peak of an idyllic Swedish summer. Oblivious to social boundaries, they innocently create their own milieu in contrast to the distorted relationships, disillusionment, and world-weariness of adult life around them. Roy Andersson's feature debut is a sunny, optimistic work that has drawn comparison to the early films of Ingmar Bergman.

With the absurd and original comedy Songs from the Second Floor we are treated to a glimpe into the brilliantly offbeat worldview of Swedish filmmaker Roy Andersson, director of the acclaimed You, the Living. Described by critic J. Hoberman as slapstick Ingmar Bergman, the film unfolds as a series of comic interconnected vignettes which portray scenes from an urban world that has ground to a halt and whose citizens teeter on the brink of madness.

You, the Living can be seen as a gentler companion piece to Roy Andersson's 2000 Cannes Jury Prize winner Songs from the Second Floor, and takes a slightly lighter tone in presenting a series of tragicomic vignettes from modern life. This hilarious film from one of European cinema’s true originals features an assortment of washed out interiors that provide the backdrop for a motley crew of characters: a stout depressive and her long-suffering husband; a young girl with an unrequited crush on a rock musician; an Arab barber taking sweet revenge on a racist customer; couples with too much to say, or too little; and a diligent tuba player...

Following Songs from the Second Floor and You, the Living, Roy Andersson’s award-winning film (Best Film, Venice 2014) A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence forms the third part of a loose trilogy about life, death and what it means to be a human being. Sam and Jonathan are two travelling salesmen peddling novelty items – mostly unsuccessfully. Like modern-day Don Quixote and Sancho, they take us on a kaleidoscopic journey through multiple human destinies. It is a trip that shows us beauty in one moment, pettiness in another and the humour and tragedy within us all. One that evokes the grandeur of life as well as the ultimate frailty of humanity. By turns tragic, absurd, meditative and hilarious his work has drawn comparisons with Samuel Beckett, Monty Python, Ingmar Bergman and Laurel & Hardy, but in truth is utterly unique. Pulling together all the various strands of his previous films into a cohesive, resolved whole, A Pigeon… is the culmination of one of modern cinema’s greatest talents and is nothing short of a masterpiece.

With About Endlessness, Roy Andersson adds to his cinematic oeuvre a reflection on human life in all its beauty and cruelty, its splendour and banality. We wander, dreamlike, gently guided by our Scheherezade-esque narrator. Inconsequential moments take on the same significance as historical events: a couple floats over a war-torn Cologne; on the way to a birthday party, a father stops to tie his daughter’s shoelaces in the pouring rain; teenage girls dance outside a cafe; a defeated army marches to a prisoner of war camp. Simultaneously an ode and a lament, About Endlessness presents a kaleidoscope of all that is eternally human, an infinite story of the vulnerability of existence.

The collection also includes the exclusive home entertainment release of the BIFA-nominated documentary Being a Human Person. Following the making of what Andersson has proclaimed is his final film, About Endlessness, Being a Human Person is a deeply moving look at the life and work of this brilliant artist.

• A compilation of excerpts from Roy Andersson films
• Director’s commentary
• Behind the scenes featurette
• An introduction to About Endlessness by Ruben Ostlund
• An introduction to Songs from the Second Floor by Mike Leigh
• Toby Ferris on A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence and Bruegel
• Lisa Dwan on the influence of Samuel Beckett on Roy Andersson