Wild Strawberries - Criterion Collection (1959)

"I must tell myself something I won't listen to when awake..."

So says Professor Isak* Borg (Victor Sjostrom), the protagonist in "Wild Strawberries," who's been having some frightening dreams that call into question his whole life. Beginning with the famous opening scene of Borg's nightmare of loneliness, isolation, and death, the film moves us between past and present with a series of day dreams and sleep dreams, some of them pleasant memories, some of them bitter memories, some of them forboding nightmares that speak to the aging Borg's anxiety that his life has somehow gone wrong.

The film is wonderfully conceived: a one-day car journey symbolizing Borg's life journey; Borg's "dream" encounter with the past, especially his memories of his cousin Sara, symbolized by his present encounter with youth in the form of the hitchhiker Sara (both roles cleverly played by Bibi Anderesson); the continuity of coldness between generations, from mmother to son to grandson; Borg's daughter-in-law Marianne's decision that the child in her womb will break the pattern of alienation characteristic of the Borgs; the nonsexual intimacy between Professor Borg and his housemaid that Borg never found with his wife. Past merges into present, the future seems now (hitchhiker Sara; Marianne's pregnancy), and the message is one of great hope. Even a life that's gone wrong can be redeemed.

The performances are stellar. Ingrid Thulin is superb as the wounded but strong Marianne (she's also stunningly beautiful). Bibi Andersson is perfect as the spunky teenager Sara (present-day). Max von Sydow, although he has only a walk-on role, is touching and convincing. Even Gunnar Bjornstrand, an incredibly wooden actor in every performance I've ever seen, is good here--precisely because his role calls for a wooden, emotionally shutdown man. And Victor Sjostrom is simply magnificent, capturing with heartbreaking realism the nostalgia and regrets, but also dignity and wisdom, of old age.

So why do I give the film only 4 stars? I just don't think the dream sequences work all that well. As in the overture to "Persona," they strike me as overdone and sometimes heavy-handed, particularly the opening nightmare and the latter examination dream. I could forgive this. But what I found almost unbearable was the mawkishness of the summer house scenes, where everyone is happy and wholesome, somewhat reminiscent of the syrupy "It's a Wonderful Life." Perhaps Bergman intended them as such--a kind of parody of middle-class, late nineteenth- century contentment. But I don't think so. That interpretation really does seem forced. So the only conclusion to be drawn is that Bergman meant them as genuinely happy memories, and they come off as grindingly pollyanna-like.

So "Wild Strawberries" isn't one of my favorite Bergman films. But it's a great one nonetheless.
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*Is there some significance in the fact that almost all the film's characters have Hebraic names? Knowing Bergman, there must be. July 22, 2008

Maybe the Best Film Ever Made

In 1975 my literature professor told us we were going to study the greatest movie ever made and it was about an old man driving an old car to receive an award for being a good doctor. Plus, instead of Technicolor, it was in black & white. On top of that, the firm was in Swedish and I would have to read the English subtitles. But never fear, with the promise of such an exhilarating, action-packed movie, he planned on showing it twice in a row, and wagered all who attended the first screening would stay for the second. And he nailed it.

We began by reading the stage play, which is the same as the screenplay. Then we had a chance to see the film. I indeed watched both showings and it changed my thinking about what makes a good "film" (this was way too highbrow for my young self to call a movie, but now I think "movie" is the right word, because the action, plot and production are all so powerful, against all odds! This movie is a blockbuster!)

At the time I was a wild boy about campus who's taste for movies was more action/adventure, western and mystery/suspense. The funny thing about Wild Strawberries is there's a little of all those genre's in it (if you understand what a cowboy Bergman was at this point in his career).

This is the story about the late-life introspection of an elderly physician. It really appears on the surface to be about as dull a concept for a film as one could ever want to suffer through. But this is a story about facing reality, and reality is rarely dull. The plot moves seamlessly through many phases, but much of it involves a road trip through the Swedish countryside.

A few years ago I bought a DVD of the 70's cult car-chase flick "Vanishing Point"; I hadn't seen it since the drive-in in my college years. I also own a Criterion Collection copy of Wild Strawberries and I've watched both recently. I realized that Wild Strawberries is a car chase flick as well.

But Bergman's Isak (played by Victor Sjöström) is not running from war weariness but from a life of nihilism cloaked in the old-world respectability of a family doctor. The chase is his lifetime of self-certainty, agnosticism and increasing isolation finally catching up to him. He realizes that he has been a walking dead man for much of his life (something he partially inherited from his mother, and impacted all his close associations throughout his long and successful, but sad life). Getting too far into the details may yield spoilers, although there is enough complexity in this plot to keep literature classes struggling for an A for a long time.

The plot is a series of amazing dialogue scenes, with interruptions for disturbing dream sequences, most from his classic 1937 Packard Eight Touring limousine. The day's accumulation of insights, linking dreams, reverie and conversation gradually lead to a turning point, a crisis precipitated by unyielding reality checks that befuddle the normally unflappable Dr. Borg.

The ground-breaking dream sequences, the first early in the film, are Hitchcock-like and terrifyingly surreal (or was the early Hitch being Bergmanesque?). The dreams set the tone of tension in a film that could have so easily been a drone, but not with Bergman in charge. Of incredible beauty is the reverie scene, where Isak relives some of his childhood while making a stop at his family's deserted summer lake house.

The continuing, front-seat of the Packard dialog scenes between Isak and his daughter-in-law, and later with the Almans (including another disturbing dream sequence) and with the "children" (hitchhiking college-age kids) are all filled with symbols and conversation pointing to Isak's living-dead existence. As the day progresses, they chip away at Borg's long-held control, coldness and distance.

It's interesting that Bergman himself, at this point in his young career, was much like Isak; agnostic, distant, self-absorbed, incapable of intimacy. Yet his conclusion to Wild Strawberries is much more hopeful than Bergman's own life. One wonders if Bergman may have ended his life with a Wild Strawberries conversion, or if he considered it at the end.

The turning point of the movie, easy to miss if you're not paying close attention, is the love-promise from the young hitchhiker Sara (Bibi Andersson). This is the sea-change moment for Isak. The incredible sweetness and innocent passion, freely offered in grace by the beautiful young girl, serves as a regeneration moment, a freely-given justification of Isak, imputing her child-like passion and righteousness into his heart. In a way it was as though his childhood sweetheart (also named Sara, also played by Bibi) came back in her youthful beauty to heal the wound of rejection she inflicted on Isak almost 70 years earlier.

The first Sara's betrayal of young Isak (seen in the summer reverie scene), choosing his brother as the better lover and husband, probably lead to Isak's walled-off life. But when this new Sara promises her Platonic, childlike love to the old Isak, he replies with solemn acceptance: "I'll remember that". This seems to break the spell of living death dealt to him by his first love, and exacerbated by so many others in his life.

Unlike Bergman, Isak closes his eyes that night with the hope of a life of meaning, of love in service, not just service as a foil for maintaining personal dignity and image. He sees that loving for loves sake is worth the risk of pain. Unlike Bergman, Isak has a hope of seeing God when his death does arrive, and has demonstrated a new life has begun. This is Isak's Today; his day of repentance, of stopping the tortuous task of hardening his heart against the call of life, yielding in submission to love, mercy and grace.

This film requires many viewings, and I have yet to tire of it. Bergman's troupe of actors were on par with the best of any generation, his cinematography is spartan and overwhelmingly effective; his location shooting in the beautiful Swedish summer is fascinatingly appealing, yielding a foreign, forgotten land yet with a "down-home" feeling that's almost Mayberry-like, if that's not too extreme a comparison.

This movie shows the dichotomy of living for self versus living in loving service to and with others. Isak thought he lived to serve but discovered that service is only of meaning to the server if it is from the heart. Service without love is only partial service to those in need, and is a self-inflicted affront to the server. This is ultimately a hopeful picture that we can all learn from if we watch with an open heart. Otherwise, we see the wasted tragedy of existential living with no greater good than one's own dead image.

Does YOUR watch have any hands?

July 19, 2008

Classic Bergman

An aging Professor is due to collect his honary degree. The night before the ceremony he has a disturbing dream which he believes is a prediction of his own death. So he decides to drive to collect the award rather than fly. From then on we are in what is esstentially a road movie but with all the trappings you associate with Bergman.

The opening dream sequence is very disturbing. Its quite probable that this was influenced by certain modern/surreal artists. I'd also suggest that this scene was, if only indirectly, an influence on certain later horror films. The photography and camerawork is marvellous.

The remainder of the film (about another 80mins) is a largely somber look at lonliness as seen through the Professors eyes. Despite some previous reviewers comments that they found this an uplifting film I would advise caution. Yes there are a few uplifting moments, but in general this is a frankly depressing film, as the Professor, although a hugely respected man, seems to have no friends, and has upset various members of his family.

I've only watched it once and will certainly watch it again. Then it may get 5 stars as it is undoubtably a classic movie which will repay repeated viewings. Just be aware that you may finish watching it and feel quite depressed. July 9, 2008

INGMAR BERGMAN, OPUS 18

***** 1957. Written and directed by Ingmar Bergman. Golden Berlin Bear and Golden Globe in the Best Foreign Film category. An old doctor, solitary and egocentric, remembers his childhood while driving to an honorific appointment. Right after The Seventh Seal - Criterion Collection that was a rather cold and desperate motion picture about Death, the Swedish master handles the same subject with a more human approach. WILD STRAWBERRIES is a psychoanalysis without psychiatrist and is undoubtedly a masterpiece. Take the time to watch the 75 minutes Bergman interview presented as bonus feature of this Criterion release. Bergman talks about his childhood, his writing, life and death. A DVD zone your library. May 8, 2008

A very touching, poignant film

This was my first Ingmar Bergman movie, and let's just say I was very impressed. While several reviewers have correctly noted that "Wild Strawberries" is full of symbolism (some of it hazy) and somewhat slow-moving, it is anything but plodding or dull. Rather, the film is pretty accessible to just about any audience, even a non-Swedish one, as it beautifully examines personal issues that will ultimately effect all of us: aging, regret, bitterness, and redemption. While I am completely unfamiliar with his work, I read that the star, Victor Sjosstrom was one of Sweden's finest actors in the early 20th Century. This is not surprising, for as the central character, Dr. Isak Borg, he carries both the film and emotional weight of his character with each utterance, grimace, and movement throughout the movie. As the movie progresses, I felt a host of emotions -- some negative, some positive -- for Dr. Borg as he evolved from an angry old man into a warm being that can accept his disappointments and is able to move on without any lingering bitterness.

Since several of the reviewers have already provided good summaries of the plot, I'll skip providing those details and instead focus on a small handful of the great scenes in the movie which really stuck with me. First, the dream sequences. A couple of Dr. Borg's dreams are tremendously eerie and piercing. The first one of note, which numerous other reviews have commenting on, appears at the very beginning, with Dr. Borg waking along completely empty streets until a carriage carrying his coffin goes by. When the carriage gets its wheel caught on a lamp-post, a creepy creaking noise emanates until the carriage breaks free and the coffin spills onto the street in front of Borg. After dead Borg's hand comes out and grabs the living Dr. Borg, I was awe-struck. Great scene, and of the better nightmare sequences you'll ever see in cinema.

Similarly, the dream where old Dr. Borg is sitting with young Sara, the love of life and his young fiance, is superb and shattering. It is very difficult not to feel empathy for Borg as Sara coldly tells him that she is going to marry his brother Siegfried, and then forces him to stare at his old face in a mirror before abruptly running off. Another wrenching, powerful scene.

I think, though, that the last five minutes of "Wild Strawberries" may be the best, most satifying part of the film. It is at the end that Dr. Borg finally realizes redemption for his life and disappointments, and is able to bask in the love of those who mattered most to him: Sara, his daughter-in-law Marianne, and the son whom he imparted his coldness to. When present-day Sara tells him he is the one she always loved, and he is able to lie in the warmth of pleasant dreams of his childhood, the journey ends for Borg and the viewer. This ending is exceptionally gratifying. While I am sure that Bergman's symbolism can be interpreted in a plethora of intelligent ways, the film struck me as kind of dark cinema, but with a moral that anyone can overcome their regrets and disappointments at any time, even at the very end of their life.

Four stars.
March 20, 2008

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