A good film about a man’s reflection of a life poorly spent…

I prefer this film to another similar story ‘Ikiru’ in that Bergman directs the most serious topics with such sophisticated subtlety and reserve. Topics such as death, the absence of god, and other existential themes sadly drives some directors into the gauche realm of sentimentality and exagerrated pathos. Bergman approaches these themes intellectually, letting your mind roam free minus all the baggage that assualts ones person when you can’t get past the immediate physical realities. Although the film itself deals directly with emotion and relationships formed and lost, there is always this sense of intellectual observation. Very interesting, and hard to put your finger on. Freudians/Neo-Freudians will also enjoy the symbols throughout the film. I personally am not a Freud fan, but the use of that philosophy is used so well it is not annoying.

I realize my critique is somewhat abstract and will not be felt by all, but this is truly what Bergman brings out for me. I thoroughly appreciate this, and consider him now to be one of my favorite directors, if not my favorite.

Overall, this is my least favorite film of his so far, yet it is still a remarkable piece of work. After viewing this one we decided to just go ahead and d/l an anthology torrent of his work. I look forward to seeing his works in full over and over again.