Is ‘The Swedish Connection’ based on a true story?
Nothing beats the excitement of a midweek Netflix original release, and this week, the buzz is all about the period drama film, The Swedish Connection.
For those curious about whether The Swedish Connection is based on a true story, it is, indeed.
Based on a little-known story of red-tape heroism in the wake of Nazi terror, the period film follows a young unsung diplomat, Gösta Engzell, who is absolutely obsessed with exactitude, rules, and regulations. As the head of the legal department at Sweden’s Foreign Ministry, it’s no wonder, given all of this, that he follows the government’s directives meticulously.
His department is primarily responsible for reviewing all types of visa applications. However, since Hitler’s rise, their work focus has been completely reduced to asylum cases. With Jews all over Europe desperately seeking ways to escape the horror of the Holocaust in despair, initially, Gösta unwillingly accepts Sweden’s stance of neutrality by declining every visa application belonging to Jewish descent, regardless of their Swedish heritage.
After all, it is not in Gösta’s bosses’ best interest to anger Hitler and turn his attention to Sweden, considering his troops are busy wrecking European nations. But The Swedish Connection reaffirms that it only takes one person to initiate a change, and similarly, just one person to make you uncomfortable with the truth, which turns out to be his new assistant, Rut Vogel.
After working with Ruth, Gösta’s opinion of the refugee crisis begins to slowly change as the former questions both his and the government’s choices. When Hitler’s idea of “final solution” finally begins to solidify, accompanied by reports of Nazi raids on Jewish homes in Oslo, Gösta can no longer keep stamping the rejections sanctioned by the government.
So, he gives his team a new mission, which is to save even one Jewish person of Swedish descent through any paperwork or loophole possible.
While The Swedish Connection is definitely based on a true story, for those unaware, Gösta Engzell was born in 1897. He led the legal division of the Swedish Foreign Ministry in the late 1930s and 1940s.
Gösta Engzell’s activism and contribution were crucial to the rescue and relief of tens of thousands of Jews during the actual war. Consequently, he became the Swedish ambassador to Poland and then Finland, before his demise in 1997. So, to know more about his story, actions, and heroism, don’t forget to watch The Swedish Connection, currently streaming on Netflix.