The Passion of Anna
Whoa, this was a lot better than I was expecting! For a "vanilla ice cream" type of director, there was a lot more spice in this! I loved the complexities and depth of the characters and how fleshed out they were. The acting is always great in a Bergman film, but I was surprised that Liv Ullmann was actually tolerable to me and gave a really good performance in this! Max von Sydow and Bibi Andersson are always a joy to watch as well!
Of course, there is some bad pacing in this, but not as bad as some of his other movies. Also, there is random behind-the-scenes footage spliced in, and I have no idea if it's mad genius or just asinine antics. Oh, also be warned: there is some pretty depressing animal abuse in this. It's important to the story as a whole, but I didn't like it, and I couldn't find out if actual animals were harmed or not. As for the rest of the film, it's one I would want to watch again to get my full thoughts on it, but overall I liked it.
Of course, there is some bad pacing in this, but not as bad as some of his other movies. Also, there is random behind-the-scenes footage spliced in, and I have no idea if it's mad genius or just asinine antics. Oh, also be warned: there is some pretty depressing animal abuse in this. It's important to the story as a whole, but I didn't like it, and I couldn't find out if actual animals were harmed or not. As for the rest of the film, it's one I would want to watch again to get my full thoughts on it, but overall I liked it.
Mini Review: Whoa, this was a lot better than I expected! For a "vanilla ice cream" type of director, Bergman brought more spice than I expected. I loved the complexity of the characters. The performances are great, especially Liv Ullmann, who surprised me. Max von Sydow and Bibi Andersson are always a joy to watch. The pacing drags, and the behind-the-scenes footage is either mad genius or bizarre. The animal abuse is depressing but important. I’d like to revisit this, but overall I enjoyed it.