Waiting Women (aka Secrets of Women aka Kvinnors Väntan)
At last a more mature and interesting film from Bergman. He hasn't quite shaken off the 'young couple in love' obsession, but he's found a way to do it more interestingly.
The framing of the story is a group of women waiting for their husbands to return home, and discuss relationships, especially the problem of infidelity. There are three main stories told, the first and the third about infidelity, but the second is the young couple in love section. The second section features regulars Birger Malmsten and Maj-Britt Nilsson as another young couple, but this section is told (mostly) without dialogue, so becomes gestures and shows which is more interesting. But the best episode in the film has to be the third one in which Eva Dahlbeck and Gunnar Björnstrand play a married couple who accidentally get stuck in a life for the night. It's expertly played and quite funny as well as saying something more serious about relationships in general.
I must admit I do like episodic structures in movies, but I find that by and large they aren't done too well. The main trouble is that not all of the episodes are of equal quality, and I think that is a problem this film has with the first episode. I also do have a liking for ensemble casts in films and this does have a good ensemble cast, and most of the players are given their moment in the spotlight, but in larger scenes they work well together.
A good film, and hopefully a good indication of things to come.
Rating- 7/10
Top 5-
1) Waiting Women
2) Prison
3) To Joy
4) Music In Darkness
5) Torment
Friday, 17 April 2009
Summer Interlude (1951)
Summer Interlude (aka Illicit Interlude aka Summerplay aka Sommarlek)
Another early Bergman- another young couple in love. As much as the young people in love interests Bergman I don't think in any of these movies it's very convincing or interesting (sorry, Ingmar). The story for this is a dancer (Maj-Britt Nilsson) reminisces when she was younger and had a summer romance with Henrik (Birger Malmsten). Sound familiar? The plot could have been easily interchangeable with To Joy or Port of Call, all of them equally formulaic and predictable.
Despite my major gripe there are some positives about this movie. Maj-Britt Nilsson is quite touching as the younger Marie, and the the dialogue has a nice edge of realism too it. My favourite moment was before the end when Marie and the dance-master (Stig Olin) both sit in their costume and make-up and discuss facades and the masks we wear.
Good in small moments, but otherwise uninteresting and unconvincing.
Rating- 5/10
Top 5-
1) Prison
2) To Joy
3) Music In Darkness
4) Torment
5) Summer Interlude
Another early Bergman- another young couple in love. As much as the young people in love interests Bergman I don't think in any of these movies it's very convincing or interesting (sorry, Ingmar). The story for this is a dancer (Maj-Britt Nilsson) reminisces when she was younger and had a summer romance with Henrik (Birger Malmsten). Sound familiar? The plot could have been easily interchangeable with To Joy or Port of Call, all of them equally formulaic and predictable.
Despite my major gripe there are some positives about this movie. Maj-Britt Nilsson is quite touching as the younger Marie, and the the dialogue has a nice edge of realism too it. My favourite moment was before the end when Marie and the dance-master (Stig Olin) both sit in their costume and make-up and discuss facades and the masks we wear.
Good in small moments, but otherwise uninteresting and unconvincing.
Rating- 5/10
Top 5-
1) Prison
2) To Joy
3) Music In Darkness
4) Torment
5) Summer Interlude
Tuesday, 14 April 2009
To Joy (1950)
To Joy (Till Glädje)
There are three main theme in this film- music, young couple in love and troubled artistry; the latter two being themes visited by Bergman before. The music theme is new, but a strong presence- Bergman was a music lover for most of his life, and in the orchestra scenes of the film there's a clear passion for it.
The film opens as Stig Ericksson (regular supporting player Stig Olin promoted to lead) learns his wife Marta (Maj-Britt Nilsson) has died in an accident. Their story is then told in flashback as we see them as an even younger couple who both play violin in an orchestra lead by Sönderby (Victor Sjöström). Stig dreams of being a great soloist but Marta is content to be in the background. The film charts their relationship over the years.
I thought the first half of the movie was, if I'm quite honest, dull and uninvolving. The character of Stig came off as arrogant, though there was an unsuccessful attempt to make him seem like a loser who wants to be accepted. The second half was much more enjoyable and the music sequences were especially good in that half.
A good film. I'd have rated it a seven if it weren't for the dull first half.
Rating- 6/10
Top 5-
1) Prison
2) To Joy
3) Music In Darkness
4) Torment
5) Port of Call
There are three main theme in this film- music, young couple in love and troubled artistry; the latter two being themes visited by Bergman before. The music theme is new, but a strong presence- Bergman was a music lover for most of his life, and in the orchestra scenes of the film there's a clear passion for it.
The film opens as Stig Ericksson (regular supporting player Stig Olin promoted to lead) learns his wife Marta (Maj-Britt Nilsson) has died in an accident. Their story is then told in flashback as we see them as an even younger couple who both play violin in an orchestra lead by Sönderby (Victor Sjöström). Stig dreams of being a great soloist but Marta is content to be in the background. The film charts their relationship over the years.
I thought the first half of the movie was, if I'm quite honest, dull and uninvolving. The character of Stig came off as arrogant, though there was an unsuccessful attempt to make him seem like a loser who wants to be accepted. The second half was much more enjoyable and the music sequences were especially good in that half.
A good film. I'd have rated it a seven if it weren't for the dull first half.
Rating- 6/10
Top 5-
1) Prison
2) To Joy
3) Music In Darkness
4) Torment
5) Port of Call
Thursday, 9 April 2009
Three Strange Loves (1949)
Three Strange Loves (aka Thirst aka Törst)
Without meaning to pun on the title Three Strange Loves is a strange little film. There are a couple of different plot threads weaved together very flimsily. Often whole sequences feel random, or serve as just a little vignette, with no real function to the main plot (which is vague anyway).
The film is based on short stories by Birger Malmsten, and I think this is the problem. If the scriptwriter (Herbert Grevenus) could have picked just one or two to put the main focus on, rather than (seemingly) include as many as possible. One thing the film has going for it is that it contains references to lesbian relationship- remember this is 1949 and that sort of thing just wasn't done or talked about, let alone put on film! So full marks for bravery.
Stylistically there's a lot of long shots, but Bergman cleverly makes it almost unnoticeable. Other than that the film is unremarkable. A book on writing screenplays I once read said: "You can make a bad film out of a good script, but you can never make a good film out of a bad script." This film suffers from that problem.
Rating- 5/10
Top 5-
1) Prison
2) Music In Darkness
3) Torment
4) Port of Call
5) Three Strange Loves
Without meaning to pun on the title Three Strange Loves is a strange little film. There are a couple of different plot threads weaved together very flimsily. Often whole sequences feel random, or serve as just a little vignette, with no real function to the main plot (which is vague anyway).
The film is based on short stories by Birger Malmsten, and I think this is the problem. If the scriptwriter (Herbert Grevenus) could have picked just one or two to put the main focus on, rather than (seemingly) include as many as possible. One thing the film has going for it is that it contains references to lesbian relationship- remember this is 1949 and that sort of thing just wasn't done or talked about, let alone put on film! So full marks for bravery.
Stylistically there's a lot of long shots, but Bergman cleverly makes it almost unnoticeable. Other than that the film is unremarkable. A book on writing screenplays I once read said: "You can make a bad film out of a good script, but you can never make a good film out of a bad script." This film suffers from that problem.
Rating- 5/10
Top 5-
1) Prison
2) Music In Darkness
3) Torment
4) Port of Call
5) Three Strange Loves
Wednesday, 8 April 2009
Prison (1949)
Prison (aka The Devil's Wanton aka Fängelse)
The film opens with a marvellous prologue- a retired maths teacher goes to a former pupil, Martin (Hasse Ekman), now a film director, with an idea for a film about hell. The following conversation about hell and the devil is the moment that Ingmar Bergman becomes Bergman. The film that follows is the true beginnings of what interests the director- religion, God's silence, existential doubt, dreams, cinema and the politics of relationships. There are two plots threads to begin with- that of Tomas (Birger Malmsten), a drunken writer to whom Martin relates the devil story idea to. The other story line is that of Birgitta Karoline (Doris Svelund), a 17 year old prostitute. As the film goes on the two plots lines converge when the two met up again and decide to break away.
The film seems to be post-modern in the sense that it has several scenes of a film been made. The film-within-a-film seems to be little more that a shoddy romance (perhaps a reference to the previous film Bergman had been making?). The conversation at the end about putting questions about the devil and evil on film is fantastic, especially since I know where the later films will go.
There are several very good moments throughout the film-including a nightmare sequence, and Tomas using a small project to show a little silent comedy. This film really is sowing the seeds of Bergman's later films, and it's an enjoyable watch as well, but be warned that Bergman doesn't deliver a predictable ending like his other films.
In comparison with the previous films this really is a stand out.
Rating- 7/10
Top 5-
1) Prison
2) Music In Darkness
3) Torment
4) Port of Call
5) Crisis
The film opens with a marvellous prologue- a retired maths teacher goes to a former pupil, Martin (Hasse Ekman), now a film director, with an idea for a film about hell. The following conversation about hell and the devil is the moment that Ingmar Bergman becomes Bergman. The film that follows is the true beginnings of what interests the director- religion, God's silence, existential doubt, dreams, cinema and the politics of relationships. There are two plots threads to begin with- that of Tomas (Birger Malmsten), a drunken writer to whom Martin relates the devil story idea to. The other story line is that of Birgitta Karoline (Doris Svelund), a 17 year old prostitute. As the film goes on the two plots lines converge when the two met up again and decide to break away.
The film seems to be post-modern in the sense that it has several scenes of a film been made. The film-within-a-film seems to be little more that a shoddy romance (perhaps a reference to the previous film Bergman had been making?). The conversation at the end about putting questions about the devil and evil on film is fantastic, especially since I know where the later films will go.
There are several very good moments throughout the film-including a nightmare sequence, and Tomas using a small project to show a little silent comedy. This film really is sowing the seeds of Bergman's later films, and it's an enjoyable watch as well, but be warned that Bergman doesn't deliver a predictable ending like his other films.
In comparison with the previous films this really is a stand out.
Rating- 7/10
Top 5-
1) Prison
2) Music In Darkness
3) Torment
4) Port of Call
5) Crisis
Port of Call (1948)
Port of Call (Hamnstad)
Once again Bergman is making a film about a young couple who fall in love. This seems to be a big recurring theme in these early films. Before seeing these films the earliest Bergman I'd seen was Summer With Monika which comes 5 years after this, but still this film feels like a test run for that later film. But I get ahead of myself.
Gösta (Bengt Eklund) is a sailor who's had enough of the sea. Berit (Nine-Christine Jönsson) is a suicidal factory girl. They meet at a dance and it looks like romance is inevitable, and so it is but there are complications- the past. Berit spent time in a reformatory, and the shadow of it still hangs over so. Gösta can't seem to forgive Berit for her past.
The idea of forgetting the past is interesting, but it's not quite fully developed or explored in this film. I think it's been too tied down to been a romance, and I think this is because Bergman co-authored the screenplay with the author of the novel the film is based on. The film tends to be dull in places, and I think this is due to a fatal flaw Bergman makes- it's clear he wants to make a realist film and makes good use of exterior shots, but when the film is studio shot it falls down, and most of the film is studio based.
Not a bad film, could be better.
Rating- 5/10
Top 5-
1) Music In Darkness
2) Torment
3) Port of Call
4) Crisis
5)--
Once again Bergman is making a film about a young couple who fall in love. This seems to be a big recurring theme in these early films. Before seeing these films the earliest Bergman I'd seen was Summer With Monika which comes 5 years after this, but still this film feels like a test run for that later film. But I get ahead of myself.
Gösta (Bengt Eklund) is a sailor who's had enough of the sea. Berit (Nine-Christine Jönsson) is a suicidal factory girl. They meet at a dance and it looks like romance is inevitable, and so it is but there are complications- the past. Berit spent time in a reformatory, and the shadow of it still hangs over so. Gösta can't seem to forgive Berit for her past.
The idea of forgetting the past is interesting, but it's not quite fully developed or explored in this film. I think it's been too tied down to been a romance, and I think this is because Bergman co-authored the screenplay with the author of the novel the film is based on. The film tends to be dull in places, and I think this is due to a fatal flaw Bergman makes- it's clear he wants to make a realist film and makes good use of exterior shots, but when the film is studio shot it falls down, and most of the film is studio based.
Not a bad film, could be better.
Rating- 5/10
Top 5-
1) Music In Darkness
2) Torment
3) Port of Call
4) Crisis
5)--
Tuesday, 7 April 2009
Music In Darkness (1948)
Music In Darkness (aka Night Is My Future aka Musik I Möker)
In between this film and his debut Crisis Bergman made three films, and in Music In Darkness the difference is plain to see. The film is essentially a tired old fashion romance routine, a formula that was well worn even in the late 40's, but none the less I enjoyed the movie. I generally despise formulaic movies, but the reason this stands out is that it's directed with confidence and flair. Bergman's gone from strength to strength as a director, and this film seems to be the beginnings of some 'firsts' that will recur in Bergman's career.
The story is about a blind musician (Birger Malmsten) and the young maid who falls in love with him, Ingrid (adeptly played by Mai Zetterling, especially in the early scenes). It seems class difference and Bengt's disability keep them apart. No surprises how it's going to end, huh? There's quite a bit of melodrama in the film, for example Bengt is blinded in an accident at a firing range as he was trying to rescue a puppy. Yes, that's right- a cute, white, little puppy. Though I knock the melodrama, the scene that follows is a fantastic surreal, expressionist nightmare as Bengt goes blind and unconscious.
Bengt is the first Bergman tortured artist (at least in this collection anyway), a recurring stock character in his films. The films also is the fist time Gunnar Björnstrand appears (in this collection) in a speaking role, it was hard not to think of him without knowing that he will become a regular player in Bergman's troupe, so his small role as a glum musician has extra relevance with foreknowledge.
I enjoyed the film, pretty good in places but too much melodrama for me to swallow.
Rating- 6/10
Top 5-
1)Music In Darkness
2)Torment
3)Crisis
4)--
5)--
In between this film and his debut Crisis Bergman made three films, and in Music In Darkness the difference is plain to see. The film is essentially a tired old fashion romance routine, a formula that was well worn even in the late 40's, but none the less I enjoyed the movie. I generally despise formulaic movies, but the reason this stands out is that it's directed with confidence and flair. Bergman's gone from strength to strength as a director, and this film seems to be the beginnings of some 'firsts' that will recur in Bergman's career.
The story is about a blind musician (Birger Malmsten) and the young maid who falls in love with him, Ingrid (adeptly played by Mai Zetterling, especially in the early scenes). It seems class difference and Bengt's disability keep them apart. No surprises how it's going to end, huh? There's quite a bit of melodrama in the film, for example Bengt is blinded in an accident at a firing range as he was trying to rescue a puppy. Yes, that's right- a cute, white, little puppy. Though I knock the melodrama, the scene that follows is a fantastic surreal, expressionist nightmare as Bengt goes blind and unconscious.
Bengt is the first Bergman tortured artist (at least in this collection anyway), a recurring stock character in his films. The films also is the fist time Gunnar Björnstrand appears (in this collection) in a speaking role, it was hard not to think of him without knowing that he will become a regular player in Bergman's troupe, so his small role as a glum musician has extra relevance with foreknowledge.
I enjoyed the film, pretty good in places but too much melodrama for me to swallow.
Rating- 6/10
Top 5-
1)Music In Darkness
2)Torment
3)Crisis
4)--
5)--
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