the ending's a bit of a letdown

"One of cinema's great comedies." - Keith Uhlich

Trademark Bergman. This is a powerful visual conveyance of 'the silence of God.' This seems to be his bleakest treatment of the subject of faith, here it's almost completely lost, even non-existent. The rays of hope are few and far between, but his honesty and his treatment of the subject matter here in a sincere and thoughtful fashion are second to none. As always, Bergman teeters on the edge of faithlessness but there is always a shred of something pointing back towards it. A beautiful crisis.

Beautiful and thoughtful interpretation of a crisis of faith.

I've heard that this was one of Bergman's more serious, bleak films; e.g., one of the ones that give him the reputation of being joyless that he doesn't deserve. That's definitely not wrong, but it's also one of his most moving. Even with my personal feelings on religion, I felt I understood all the characters' suffering perfectly. The hunchback's speech near the end is inspired. I would put this high up in my list of favourite Bergmans.

All time favorite. A truly harrowing film that's unremittingly bleak and pessimistic in its analysis of faith in both God and humanity. It is concerned not only with the silence of god, but with the impossibility of finding comfort from that silence in the people around us. The performances are all equally devastating and Nykvist's always masterful cinematography perfectly captures these characters' crippling existential anxieties.

Confronts the intense subjects of loss of faith and tragedy, but in such a low key manner that it never feels manipulative or overbearing, despite its bleakness. The cinematography, acting, and writing all excel. Powerful.

It is appropriate that the light through the window can be seen both as God trying to show his presence to this believer and also as a sign that maybe the world is just a cold, chaotic place where the elements, and not a deity, rules. The letter scene ranks as one of the greatest scenes I have ever seen. When the end comes it is no surprise that it leaves us with no resolution. In truth there is no other way to end it, as men in this situation will never find resolution until death.

It deserves a re-watch sometime in the future. Boring performances lead to a rather boring film, and the worst in the trilogy.

First let me say that this is probably the most captivating cinematography Nykvist has every done. So instead of writing some obvious review of how great Bergman is I'm going to dedicate this to him. He really captures the bleak torturous imagery that is the christian faith. The contrasts are so crisp. The use of the sun and white light really gave it that essence of god even though the film deals with the absence of His presence. Probably the best black and white photography I've ever seen.

Beautiful photography. Bergman is more economic with this story, imparting every line with maximal weight. I feel inadequate trying to impart my thoughts on it, but I'll just say one thing. The scope of the film is enormous, it confronts the ideas of love and faith, and the impact Bergman makes in a scant 80 minutes is quite impressive.

Hani lan bunun devami.?

#452

fantastic cinematography and interesting ideas. I can, however, not help but thinkingIve watched this god/no god discussion so many times throughout the movie history its getting tiresome, as monumental as it may be. some very nice things: the letter, how the dialogues cant be heard under the noise from the weather and the stream.

Winter Light is my best and most different from the rest of Bergman movies experience so far. Its conflict is so vivid and the torments of the souls on the screen are so real that I could really feel their pain. Absolutely unforgettable.