On the surface, the story seems very straightforward. A young woman, Karin ("Cries and Whispers") who suffers from some mental ailment returns home and begins to hear things. the family tries to figure out what to do. Underneath the surface however, the family dynamics seem almost more important than the daughter's health. The other son feels ignored by his father and thus feels especially close to yet jealous of his sister. Her husband is frustrated with her father's decisions about Karin's health and the seeming distance that father, David, keeps as he observes his daughter slipping into madness.
As is true in many Bergman films, the characters do more than tell a simple straightforward story. They stand in as symbols for other ideas and thoughts. Saying you understand completely what Bergman was going for might imply to much intention on Bergman's part but he was a genius so we can say that, at the very least, it implies hubris on the part of the speaker. Knowing this full well, I offer some of my own meager thoughts which I found provoked by this film.
In some ways, David (Gunnar Björnstrand, "Wild Strawberries") represents God. He seems cold and distant yet his creativity is undeniable. In many ways it seems as if he does not care for his daughter so much as he is interested in her and seeing what happen as she goes through her trials.
Contrast this with Martin (Max von Sydow, "Seventh Seal") who seems a sort of Christ figure to me. Martin seems to want nothing more than to lavish love upon her and care for her but her illness causes her to push him away. What I found interesting about this was that the two children Karin and Minus, both want the love of their father and attention but his care and attention is mostly seen after something bad has happened.
Minus complains that David, his father never speaks to him. We see David speak to Minus throughout so we are left to wonder what he means by this. It is only after harm comes to Minus and his sister is taken to get medical treatment that we see. Minus is distraught and David comforts him. This is what Minus was referring to. He longed for his father's comforting words and in his hour of despair his desire is granted him.
I know that these thoughts barely scratch the surface of a film that is operating on many levels of symbolism and meaning which ca be frustrating for the part of me that wants to understand but is also exhilarating to the part of me that wants to watch this film over and over again.
As is true in many Bergman films, the characters do more than tell a simple straightforward story. They stand in as symbols for other ideas and thoughts. Saying you understand completely what Bergman was going for might imply to much intention on Bergman's part but he was a genius so we can say that, at the very least, it implies hubris on the part of the speaker. Knowing this full well, I offer some of my own meager thoughts which I found provoked by this film.
In some ways, David (Gunnar Björnstrand, "Wild Strawberries") represents God. He seems cold and distant yet his creativity is undeniable. In many ways it seems as if he does not care for his daughter so much as he is interested in her and seeing what happen as she goes through her trials.
Contrast this with Martin (Max von Sydow, "Seventh Seal") who seems a sort of Christ figure to me. Martin seems to want nothing more than to lavish love upon her and care for her but her illness causes her to push him away. What I found interesting about this was that the two children Karin and Minus, both want the love of their father and attention but his care and attention is mostly seen after something bad has happened.
Minus complains that David, his father never speaks to him. We see David speak to Minus throughout so we are left to wonder what he means by this. It is only after harm comes to Minus and his sister is taken to get medical treatment that we see. Minus is distraught and David comforts him. This is what Minus was referring to. He longed for his father's comforting words and in his hour of despair his desire is granted him.
I know that these thoughts barely scratch the surface of a film that is operating on many levels of symbolism and meaning which ca be frustrating for the part of me that wants to understand but is also exhilarating to the part of me that wants to watch this film over and over again.