Great post! Though I thought people do acknowledge subjectivity more than you mention here. Maybe it's the Twitter crowd that "asserts" the "this is great/rubbish" with implications that anyone who thinks otherwise is wrong? Or maybe it's just that I'm blind to this attitude being a particularly relevant one...
Kudos on a superb method of recommending films, something that should be way more prevalent in such discussions. People are going to like different films for different reasons, and for such a director like Bergman, keeping that in mind makes people's further explorations into his work all the more enticing and rewarding.
With respect to your comments on the 'all-or-nothing' opinionating on films, I think that's a function of it being (still conventionally regarded as) a community activity. There's a value people place on being part of the group that's joining in on a movie experience together in a way that reading books or listening to music are more easily separable into private and personal experiences. (That said, try to tell people "Hamilton" has this or that flaw and I expect you'll get a similar pushback).
Finally, want to note that I had co-hosted a podcast where we did in fact go through all of Bergman's films, and incredibly exhilarating and rewarding endeavor, one that took over 9 hours to talk about over 3 episodes. If you'd like to hear what we said about the 'heavy-hitters' like "Winter Light" or "Persona", you can listen to the middle episode at:
From my experience, I highly second Axel's comment on "Face to Face" (not just mixing "Persona" and his 70s but some "Wild Strawberries" / "Prison" in there too, and a titanic performance by Liv Ullman!), and if you want something different and surprising from Bergman, check out "A Lesson In Love" - it's a screwball comedy (and a good one)!
I’ve started watching all Bergman’s films during the 2020 pandemic. The next one in my list is Fanny & Alexander, so I can say I am finishing his filmography. Congratulations for the video! Is excellent. I agree with everything you say about the face. I think Bergman also makes a great emphasis on the motion of the body, the agressive impulses driven by inner thoughts or relationships inside the nuclear family (a couple or mother/daughter relationship are common). Also, he develops more about the past of the character than the present itself, and often what happened to their characters is of maximum importance to the plot of the present. I recommend you Face to Face (1976), which is not very famous but I think it kind of works as a sequel to Persona mixed with Bergman’s 70s themes. Also, my all time favourite Bergman film, Shame (1968), which does have some references to Tarkovsky. Anyway, thank you very much and if you would like to have a deep conversation about Master Ingmar don’t hesitate on contacting me.
Great post! Though I thought people do acknowledge subjectivity more than you mention here. Maybe it's the Twitter crowd that "asserts" the "this is great/rubbish" with implications that anyone who thinks otherwise is wrong? Or maybe it's just that I'm blind to this attitude being a particularly relevant one...
Kudos on a superb method of recommending films, something that should be way more prevalent in such discussions. People are going to like different films for different reasons, and for such a director like Bergman, keeping that in mind makes people's further explorations into his work all the more enticing and rewarding.
With respect to your comments on the 'all-or-nothing' opinionating on films, I think that's a function of it being (still conventionally regarded as) a community activity. There's a value people place on being part of the group that's joining in on a movie experience together in a way that reading books or listening to music are more easily separable into private and personal experiences. (That said, try to tell people "Hamilton" has this or that flaw and I expect you'll get a similar pushback).
Finally, want to note that I had co-hosted a podcast where we did in fact go through all of Bergman's films, and incredibly exhilarating and rewarding endeavor, one that took over 9 hours to talk about over 3 episodes. If you'd like to hear what we said about the 'heavy-hitters' like "Winter Light" or "Persona", you can listen to the middle episode at:
http://www.directorsclubpodcast.com/blog/episode168
From my experience, I highly second Axel's comment on "Face to Face" (not just mixing "Persona" and his 70s but some "Wild Strawberries" / "Prison" in there too, and a titanic performance by Liv Ullman!), and if you want something different and surprising from Bergman, check out "A Lesson In Love" - it's a screwball comedy (and a good one)!
I’ve started watching all Bergman’s films during the 2020 pandemic. The next one in my list is Fanny & Alexander, so I can say I am finishing his filmography. Congratulations for the video! Is excellent. I agree with everything you say about the face. I think Bergman also makes a great emphasis on the motion of the body, the agressive impulses driven by inner thoughts or relationships inside the nuclear family (a couple or mother/daughter relationship are common). Also, he develops more about the past of the character than the present itself, and often what happened to their characters is of maximum importance to the plot of the present. I recommend you Face to Face (1976), which is not very famous but I think it kind of works as a sequel to Persona mixed with Bergman’s 70s themes. Also, my all time favourite Bergman film, Shame (1968), which does have some references to Tarkovsky. Anyway, thank you very much and if you would like to have a deep conversation about Master Ingmar don’t hesitate on contacting me.