Skip to content

Details

This is a watch at home, discuss in person event.

Part 2 continues our two-part Deep Dive into Ingmar Bergman, whose emotionally and philosophically ambitious films transformed the possibilities of modern cinema.

These films find him at the height of his creative powers, turning his attention ever more deeply toward the complexities of identity, memory, fear, and human relationships. Hour of the Wolf descends into fear, obsession, and the fragile boundary between reality and nightmare. Cries and Whispers is a profound meditation on suffering, compassion, and the bonds between sisters. Scenes from a Marriage strips away romantic illusion to reveal the tenderness, cruelty, and complexity of long-term relationships. Together, these films examine the ways people struggle to understand themselves and one another, revealing emotional truths that remain as powerful today as when Bergman first brought them to the screen.

We will meet to discuss our thoughts on Thursday, August 20, at Edgewater Public Market. We will likely be at a picnic table outside, but please watch the comments for our exact location. Please try to watch all three before attending.

***

Here is the list of films with instructions on how to find them.

HOUR OF THE WOLF (1968, Ingmar Bergman, Sweden)
Hour of the Wolf follows an artist and his wife who retreat to a remote island in hopes of escaping his growing psychological turmoil. As strange visitors begin to appear and the boundary between reality and nightmare starts to dissolve, Bergman becomes less interested in explaining what is happening than in exploring fear, obsession, and the isolation that can exist even within the closest relationships. Drawing on elements of horror and gothic fantasy, the film transforms inner anxiety into something vivid and unsettling. One of Bergman’s most haunting works, it reveals the darker reaches of the imagination and the emotional cost of confronting them.

CRIES AND WHISPERS (1972, Ingmar Bergman, Sweden)
Cries and Whispers centers on three sisters who gather at a secluded country estate as one of them nears the end of her life. Old resentments, unspoken longings, and fragile moments of tenderness surface as they struggle to comfort one another in the face of suffering. Bergman uses the intimate setting and striking visual style to explore the complicated ways people express, and withhold, love. At once deeply painful and profoundly compassionate, the film asks whether genuine human connection is possible even in our most vulnerable moments, and is widely regarded as one of Bergman’s greatest achievements.

SCENES FROM A MARRIAGE (1974, Ingmar Bergman, Sweden)
Scenes from a Marriage follows a seemingly happy couple over the course of many years as their relationship evolves through love, betrayal, separation, and reconciliation. Rather than reducing marriage to a simple success or failure, Bergman examines the shifting needs, expectations, and vulnerabilities that shape intimate relationships over time. With remarkable honesty and psychological insight, the film explores how two people can wound one another, remain deeply connected, and continue searching for understanding even after love has changed. Originally produced as a television miniseries, it remains one of cinema’s most incisive and influential portraits of modern relationships.

NOTE: There's a theatrical version and a longer television version. Feel free to watch either, but it seems the theatrical version is more widely available.

***

BONUS VIEWING: PERSONA (1966, Ingmar Bergman, Sweden)
For those interested in exploring further, we recommend Persona. Widely regarded as one of Bergman’s greatest achievements, it follows an actress who has suddenly stopped speaking and the young nurse assigned to care for her. As the boundaries between the two women begin to blur, Bergman creates one of cinema’s most daring explorations of identity, intimacy, and the instability of the self. A natural companion to our core discussion, Persona pushes many of the psychological themes found in these films to their most enigmatic and uncompromising expression. Martha and I will stay late to discuss this “bonus” film with anyone who elects to watch it.

  • Watch on Criterion Channel
  • Watch on HBO Max

Related topics

Events in Edgewater, CO
Classic Films
Cult Films
Foreign Films
Indie Film
Watching Movies

You may also like