"Certain intelligent people say we're completely blind. That we're moving in prescribed patterns and that we're predetermined from birth on...or oppressed. By the way, it makes absolutely no difference."
Certainly a valley in between the peaks of Autumn Sonata (1978) and Fanny and Alexander (1982). It's also a far cry from Scenes From a Marriage (1974), from which the characters are derived. With the premise of the murder of a prostitute, Bergman explores the unseen forces that act on us and which, given the right circumstances, could lead us to snap and commit a heinous crime. While the idea had promise, its execution was ponderous, lacking clarity of thought and ending up with the problematic conclusion that "latent homosexuality" was to blame (argh).
Along the way we get a glimpse into the killer's mind, from his fantasies over killing his wife to his suicidal thoughts. We also get plenty of banal chatter, perhaps in there to show just how humdrum life could be so shortly before a murder, as if we could look at it as both out of the blue and pre-ordained at the same time. The film began going downhill after the conversation with the mother, which was a complete waste, followed by the scene of the married couple having insomnia and getting up to have a drink, which wasn't much better. We then get the husband dictating a letter about investment costs to his secretary which goes on far too long. You get the idea.
The gay friend's dialogue has some high points, including the parallel to the main character "I'm controlled by forces I can't control", and a contemplation of aging which rang true with the "I close my eyes and feel like I'm ten years old" bit. Unfortunately Bergman perspective on being gay and his armchair psychoanalysis is weak (he has the man say "I just have a guilty conscious. I blame my homosexuality for it," which didn't ring true).
The characters were unlikeable which could have been overcome had the script been profound, but here when Bergman tried to liven things up, we got dream sequences, humiliating sexual anecdotes, and lurid nudity. I kept hoping for a breakthrough, and it never came. I was already actively disliking the film despite my reverence for Bergman, and then the "latent homosexuality" horse bleep came along and took my review score down further. Watch Scenes From a Marriage instead.
Certainly a valley in between the peaks of Autumn Sonata (1978) and Fanny and Alexander (1982). It's also a far cry from Scenes From a Marriage (1974), from which the characters are derived. With the premise of the murder of a prostitute, Bergman explores the unseen forces that act on us and which, given the right circumstances, could lead us to snap and commit a heinous crime. While the idea had promise, its execution was ponderous, lacking clarity of thought and ending up with the problematic conclusion that "latent homosexuality" was to blame (argh).
Along the way we get a glimpse into the killer's mind, from his fantasies over killing his wife to his suicidal thoughts. We also get plenty of banal chatter, perhaps in there to show just how humdrum life could be so shortly before a murder, as if we could look at it as both out of the blue and pre-ordained at the same time. The film began going downhill after the conversation with the mother, which was a complete waste, followed by the scene of the married couple having insomnia and getting up to have a drink, which wasn't much better. We then get the husband dictating a letter about investment costs to his secretary which goes on far too long. You get the idea.
The gay friend's dialogue has some high points, including the parallel to the main character "I'm controlled by forces I can't control", and a contemplation of aging which rang true with the "I close my eyes and feel like I'm ten years old" bit. Unfortunately Bergman perspective on being gay and his armchair psychoanalysis is weak (he has the man say "I just have a guilty conscious. I blame my homosexuality for it," which didn't ring true).
The characters were unlikeable which could have been overcome had the script been profound, but here when Bergman tried to liven things up, we got dream sequences, humiliating sexual anecdotes, and lurid nudity. I kept hoping for a breakthrough, and it never came. I was already actively disliking the film despite my reverence for Bergman, and then the "latent homosexuality" horse bleep came along and took my review score down further. Watch Scenes From a Marriage instead.