Mr. Vinner (Olof Winnerstrand) comes home from work tired only to find his house is inundated with kids. It seems that his wife (Frida Winnerstrand) invited some female friends over for a visit. The friends brought their kids. Not wanting to be social, Mr. Vinner goes to bed. His wife comments that he is behaving like a Stone Age savage. Mr. Vinner lies down and falls asleep.
Mr. Vinner dreams that he is a caveman. In the dream he and other cave people are attacked by a dinosaur. Mr. Vinner tries to battle the creature to save the others.
When he wakes up from his dream, Mr. Vinner is a new man with a newfound appreciation for what he has in life.
“Mr. Vinner’s Stone Age Dream” AKA “Mr. Vinner’s Dream” AKA “Herr Vinners stenåldersdröm” was released in 1924 and was written and directed by Pauline Brunius. It is a Swedish silent comedy fantasy. For a long time, the film was believed to be totally lost, however, fragmented pieces of the film survive.
Pauline Brunius was an actress that, during the 1920s, directed a number of short films based on stories she wrote herself. The six films were based on her writings about a fictitious Stockholm family, the Vinners. The Vinners were played by a real-life married couple, Olof and Frida Winnerstrand.
Only a portion of the film survived. Fortunately, the fragments consist of most of the dream sequence, which include a rather silly looking dinosaur. There are no intertitles, or at least none are among the fragments.
There’s only one dinosaur in the film. It looks to be some type of carpeted horned stegosaurus, and it’s quite adorable.
There isn’t much information available about the film other than a few pretentious fake reviews I found online. One critic said the film lacked depth and felt clichéd. Another said it was a visual feast for the eyes. The Stunning cinematography and breathtaking set pieces create an immense cinematic experience. In reality it is a scratchy one hundred-year-old partial piece of film. A bit silly, and no way near the dramatic piece the fake reviews make it out to be, but still an easy ten-minute or so view it you have the time.