Trespassing Bergman

A nice and entertaining documentary, but left wishing there had been a lot more shots of the actual house and grounds. Someone shoulda took a drone...

I found this documentary shown recently on TV Ontario to be a revealing insight into the work of one of the 20th century's major film-makers. Granted, Bergman is not to everyone's liking but this film helps to explain this complex human being. The filming began with a journey to the Faro Island off the northeast coast of Sweden. It is a bleak place, evocative of many of his films with his house hidden away in the woods behind barbed wire and walls with announcements that the visitor is trespassing. One of the visitors remarked that it was like entering George Orwell's 1984 and seemed genuinely concerned that she would be attacked by guard dogs. A number of the leading directors of today are interviewed. I found Woody Allen to be the most perceptive and honest in his assessment. Others were Francis Coppola, Robert deNiro, Martin Scorsese, Ang Lee. All seemed to have various views of the director's individual works and overall legacy but all of them had enormous respect for him. Bergman's first major film A Summer with Monica showed the famous nude scene that captured much attention in the early 1950's but seems very innocent by today's standards. Allen admitted that this scene was the reason he went and Scosese shunned it because it was considered immoral by the standards of his Catholic upbringing. We go on to view a compelling excerpt from The Seventh Seal, pitting the black caped figure of death against his victim in a chess match. The death character affirmed his mission in which he never failed or postponed. Powerful stuff! I was disappointed with the omission of Winter Light, which is one of the strongest statements of nihilism and existentialism in modern cinema. Another was Shame, another excellent movie. The lavish Fanny and Alexander was seen as a Hollywood style extravaganza. To me, it seemed more like a contrast between two ways of life in the director's own childhood. This documentary draws you into Bergman's character and whether you agree or disagree with the views expressed, it is clear that Bergman was a pivotal influence on many directors who came after him with a body of work too lengthy to be discussed in one documentary. Nevertheless, this documentary is well worth seeing.

Interesting documentary.

Let's get the bad bits out the way first. The subtitles are white and often appear on a white background. Bit of a fail there, guys.

Also, the music varies from well Over The Top, particularly during the initial scenes, to just plain discordant at the end. It's not rockets science guys (the music is credited to more than one person) and it's a documentary, not a Bergman film for goodness sake!

So, to the movie...

Ingmar Bergman is a legend in the film world.

The bottom line here, though, is that he was a writer and director of his day. It would take a churlish director - and there is one in the movie - to belittle his achievements but however influential his movies may have been, they were of their day and you couldn't possibly make a Bergmanesque movie now. That's not to detract from his abilities or legacy at all, just to put it into perspective.

I love movies about artists and I quite liked this one. It's a little more of an insight into Bergman, his movies and little bit of his life, but it's mostly about directors saying how good he was.

You may come away with a few tit bits of info about the man and his movies - and some directors' thoughts on them - but there's no great revelation.

Looking inside his house is wonderful and being there must have been inspiring but there's little here that anyone with a passing knowledge of Bergman probably didn't know before.

But still watch it!

The idea of name film makers on a pilgrimage to Ingmar Bergman's Faro Island home is enough to strike a chill into the heart of any seasoned viewer. Surprisingly, this proves to have room for a large slice of irreverent material without decrying Bergman's status as the heavyweight champion of sixties Euro Art cinema.

The over-all impression is that of a swarm of talented individuals who like to talk about the influences that shaped their own work and for whom Bergman represented one of the high achievers of their craft. The interviews are remarkably skillful - Woody Allen playing it straight, Lars Von Trier getting laughs, Robert De Niro, who is notoriously awkward in interviews, at ease and making valid comment. Technical aspects are good large screen standard and the clips are well chosen and reasonably reproduced - WINTER LIGHT conspicuously absent.

The photos of The Great Man with Ang Lee are a strong finale but I must admit Beat Takashi's encounter with VIRGIN SPRING is the part I tell friends about.