
On the island of Åstol, everything is peaceful and joyful. Around two hundred people live there. One of them is Åke. He works at the island's herring salting factory. The salting factory is the livelihood of the people of Åstol. One day, the owner of the salting factory, the terrible manufacturer Ivar, shows up and announces that he has sold the factory to a summer visitor who plans to tear it down and build a summer house instead. A crisis erupts on the otherwise peaceful Åstol. What will happen to the islanders if their main source of income disappears? It's a terrible thought. Åke is persuaded to start a course on the mainland, Tjörn. Tjörn is just over 10 minutes by boat from Åstol, but for Åke it becomes a nasty journey into a terrible world. The course turns out to be a computer training course, and Åke has a brainwave. He's going to sell herring over the internet!
Directed by Anders Eriksson, Knut Agnred, Åke från Åstol leans on a strong ensemble — Knut Agnred, Per Fritzell, Jan Rippe — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.
The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about comedy titles of 1998.
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