Strong camerawork by Gunnar Fischer. Many of Bergman's early themes are on full display here, making this one of his stronger early works. Notably, Berit's desire to escape the reformatory school recalls the critique of boarding school as seen in Torment.

I came into this movie expecting a kind of cliche'd Hollywood style romantic story. And for the first 15 minutes or so that's what it felt like. But surprisingly, the story quickly becomes quite complex and nuanced. Bergit's relationship with her mother is tense and unhealthy. Even more-so with her absent father. We get a one night stand. We have a main character with serious psychological problems. You don't get any of this stuff in 1940s cinema. Bergman surpassed my expectations here.

A simple melodrama, at turns quite sweet and quite bitter. Well-shot, solidly acted, and visually stimulating.

Probably the best I've seen of Bergman's really early work. I really enjoyed the drama and connected to the characters in a way that I couldn't in Thirst, and thought it even more successful than To Joy was. The photography is really striking, with great uses of shadows, lots of mature shots and fancy angles. The ending is a bit uncharacteristically upbeat, and I'm not sure how well it suits the tone of the movie, but it's not a huge detriment or anything.

The photography is superb, the acting is excellent, and the script reveals much of Bergman's trademark style: bitter exchanges, frustrated outbursts, and contrite regrets. We also see a bit of the abortion issue that would come up again in Brink of Life, and frank handling of sexuality. The story itself is engaging, although it does take a while before it really gets cooking. Not an incredibly impressive film, but certainly a step up from Hollywood imitations like Crisis.