back in 1971, luchino visconti's film death in venice made a screen icon of bjorn andresen, a swedishly declared to be "the most beautiful boy in the world." in the film, adapted from thomas mann's 1913 novella, andresen played the youth with whom dirk bogarde�*s ageing composer becomes obsessed — an obsession that was mirrored in real life when film fans around the world fell in love with the fictional figure of tadzio. yet for andresen, death in venice also turned him into a commodity, an object to be marketed around the world with little regard for his own well—being. now in the documentary the most beautiful boy in the world, andresen looks back over his life — on the struggles he endured in the wake of early fame and on the ghosts of our past filled with loss and uncertainty. from the disappearance of his mother when he was a child to his own harrowing memories of parenting, andresen�*s tale is a million miles away from the image of serene, self—possessed beauty projected by his overnight stardom. important questions are raised about the commodification of young bjorn, which is l

back in 1971, luchino visconti's film death in venice made a screen icon of bjorn andresen, a swedishageing composer becomes obsessed. an obsession that was mirrored in real life, when film fans around the world fell in love with the fictional figure of tadzio. yet for andresen, death in venice also turned him into a commodity, an object to be marketed around the world with little regard for his own well—being. now in the documentary the most beautiful boy in the world, andresen looks back over his life, on the struggles he endured in the wake of early fame and on the ghosts of a past filled with loss and uncertainty. from the disappearance of his mother when he was a child to his own harrowing memories of parenting, andresen�*s tale is a million miles away from the image of serene, self—possessed beauty projected by his overnight stardom. important questions are raised about the commodification of young bjorn, which is likened by one contributor to child abuse. but this documentary goes much further, following the strange twists and turns of andresen�*s life, including pop—culture st