By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 3.75 cats
Director: Ingmar Bergman
Starring: Börje Ahlstedt | Erland Josephson | Liv Ullman
Country: austria, denmark, finland, germany, italy, norway, sweden
Year: 2005
Running time: 120
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0299478/combined
Bruce says: “Very few of the world’s top directors have ever left their careers on the highest of notes. That cannot be said of Ingmar Bergman. His SARABAND has the touch of genius, revealing the wisdom of age but none of the weariness which often accompanies it. Not known for his light touches, Bergman’s swan song ranks among his bleakest works, which is not a damning statement merely a fact. Bergman understands the complexities of human nature. At times his characters seem to exist precisely to illustrate that point. He shows us the very best and the absolute worst of his four main characters. Partly autobiographical, the ever self-critical Bergman presents male characters who are much darker than their female counterparts.
“Liv Ullmann is Marianne whom many viewers may remember from Bergman’s SCENES FROM A MARRIAGE. Marianne is the film’s narrator and the film begins with her addressing the viewer. After 32 years of no correspondence or contact, she is compelled to visit her former husband Johan (Erland Josephson) at his mountain retreat. Marianne has maintained her relationship with Sara and Martha, the two daughters from their marriage but Johan has not been in contact with them for thirty years. Johan has become a recluse occasionally seeing Henrik (Börje Ahlstedt), his son from a previous marriage whom he passionately dislikes and his granddaughter Karin (Julia Dufvenius) whose late mother Anna he adored. ANNA was the working title of the film. Anna has died prior to the opening scenes of SARABAND , Although we only see photos of her, lingering memories of her permeate the film.
“Shortly after her arrival which is greeted less than enthusiastically by Johan, Marianne finds herself in the middle of a dramatic triangle. Johan has loathed his son since he was a child. He hated the fact that Henrik was unattractive, overweight and starved for affection. Each time he looks at the adult Henrik he sees that child. Although he is aged and wealthy, Johan is anything but generous, using his wealth as a means of maintaining an upper hand.
“Karin (Julia Dufvenius) is a gifted cellist being tutored by her father until she goes to the conservatory to study for a solo career. Henrik is dogmatic and relentless in teaching his daughter. His career is disintegrating and he is pouring his energy into shaping a career for his daughter. After a heated battle with her father, Karin breaks down in front of Marianne. When an unforeseen opportunity arises Johan uses his money as a wedge between his son and granddaughter. The consequences of his actions are unexpected.
“Anna’s serenity and capacity to love have made indelible impressions on Henrik, Karin and Johan. Henrik describes his marriage to Anna as giving him a sense of belonging to someone. For Henrik the feeling of belonging was nothing short of a miracle. Could the sense of belonging be what Marianne is trying to recapture by her visit? Is it something she has always felt with Johan? If so, belonging can also be a curse.
“Initially we are led to believe that SARABAND will be about the visit but Bergman is much more shrewd than we expect. Marianne is more of a witness to the drama than a participant. The storytelling is straightforward untilone surprising moment when the viewer is startled by a flashback. The editing is superb. Later Bergman uses other techniques for emphasis, techniques which take the viewer by surprise.
“Above all, it is Bergman’s superb writing that makes this film so extraordinary. Add to that an acute visual sense and the result is sublime. 5 cats” Diane says: “More struggles with fathers (after “DE BATTRE MON COEUR…”). Bergman’s sequel to SCENES FROM A MARRIAGE. Liv Ullman as Marianne, divorced from Johan for over 30 years, goes to visit her ex on a whim and gets embroiled in the drama between Johan, his son, and his granddaughter. The men hold on to emotions from years and years ago and seem likely to carry them beyond the grave, while the women play the comforter role. Bergman accomplishes so much with so little: mostly close-ups and static dialogue. 4 cats.”
Michael says: “I’m perplexed by Ingmar Bergman’s latest film, SARABAND, a sequel of sorts to his masterpiece from 32 years ago, SCENES FROM A MARRIAGE. It’s curious that SARABAND focuses on Marianne and Johan, the two main characters from MARRIAGE. It seems almost unnecessary, and as Chris put it, almost an excuse just to work with Ullman and Josephson again. Still, Bergman has written a simple, yet deceptively complex story involving a triangle between a father, son and granddaughter.
“Marianne (Ullman) is our narrator, and she tells us up front that she hasn’t seen Johan, her former husband, in over 30 years. On a whim, she tracks him down in his mountain retreat for a visit. Once there she finds herself largely on the sidelines while a complex family drama unfolds. Johan, his despised son Henrik, and his granddaughter Karin, are all still reeling from the two-years gone past death of Henrik’s wife, Anna. Anna’s capacity to love has affected each of these characters, even Marianne, who has never met her, to a great degree. There are several conflicts running through SARABAND. Johan and his son have a barely civil relationship that keeps them from each other’s company. Henrik is overly possessive as Karin’s father and cello teacher, preparing her for an audition at the Conservatory. He has transferred the intense love he felt for his late wife to his daughter and it is both chaining her to him and oppressing her. Karin longs to flee from her father’s insufferable attention, yet loves him so much and fears what her departure will do to him.
“We see much of this through Marianne’s eyes, and hovering around it all is the curious nature of her relationship to her ex- husband, Johan. Have these characters matured? Is there any growth to be seen?
“For Johan, I would have to say no. And even though we are meeting Henrik for the first time, it becomes clear through the story that his growth has been stunted by his wife’s death. Marianne is a difficult case. At first it seems she might just be indulging in some nostalgia for the relationship she once shared with Johan during a lonely time in her life. As the story plays out however, we see that she may still be trapped in a relationship that has never really provided much joy to these characters. But Bergman gives us one last parting look at Marianne in the final frames of the film which lead us to believe that perhaps there has been growth in her life. It’s a moving moment, albeit somewhat out of left field. Of all the characters, Karin has a chance to escape and build a life for herself. Does she? I don’t want to say what happens, but even still, we aren’t sure. The movie ends while Karin is still fairly young. Who knows what the years have in store for her.
“There were a couple of odd inconsistencies that don’t really take away from the film. Johan and Marianne are 13 years apart in MARRIAGE, while in SARABAND they are suddenly 23 years apart. Did Johan remember the 10 years the passed during MARRIAGE while Marianne did not? Or was it simply a conceit to let Ullman retain her actual age in both films? It is never mentioned in MARRIAGE that Johan was married before he wed Marianne, and certainly never a mention of a son. Granted, given the amount of attention he paid to the two daughters he bore with Marianne, it’s not surprising the lack of contact with Henrik. I am glad that I saw MARRIAGE before seeing SARABAND (just this past weekend in fact) but perhaps the proximity of the two films also took away the pleasure of rediscovering two complex characters. Whatever the reason, SARABAND gets 3 ½ cats.”