jrc007

It was a haunting and shattering film experience, as promised.

I've never before seen a Bergman film, however, judging by the praise awarded to "Cries and Whispers," I decided to try this one out first. And I couldn't have been more rewarded. The film, even though it clocked in at a short ninety-one minutes, I estimate less than half of those minutes contained dialogue. As Gloria Swanson put it in "Sunset Boulevard," they "had faces." And how they used them! The facial expressions and mannerisms the characters in this film used were breathtaking. Going from Liv Ullman's smug, teasing grin in her flashback scene with the doctor to Ingrid Thulin's anguish-cum-rhapsody in the scene with the broken class (that undoubtedly stays in the minds of all who see the film for one reason or another!) is truly incredible. Each character uses their body language to convey the meaning of their characters and their situations. In fact, I could have watched the film in Swedish without English subtitles and still have known perfectly well what was going on. The dialogue was truly superfluous and unnecessary. Combining the characters' body language with Bergman's masterful use of color to convey the personalities of the characters as well as their environment in general is something that (1) I've scarcely, if ever, seen used in a film before and (2) could not stop marvelling at its brilliance.

The performances were top notch. All of the performances by the four leading ladies were exceptional and perfect in every way. The homoeroticism that pervades the film is perfectly captured by the ladies in a manner that is not sexual, but rather something the farthest possible being from sexuality.

I do not even need to speak of Sven Nykvist's cinematography beyond that it is perfection incarnate.

I am now convinced that Bergman is a master, and I cannot wait to see another of his films! Sure, the film is depressing and certainly is not for those who think that "The Italian Job" is the best film of the year, however, for those who can just watch the relationships of the sisters unfold in all its splendor and anguish, this is truly a work of art rivalling those of any medium.

MY RATING: 10/10 (and I don't give tens lightly)

HIGHLIGHTS: Liv Ullmann, Harriet Andersson, Ingrid Thulin, Kari Sylwan, Sven Nykvist's cinematography, Bergman's use of color and his direction in general

Next time you have trouble sleeping, don't fumble in the medicine cabinet for sleep aids, just pop this into the VCR and off you'll be in minutes. This positively one of the most boring films I've ever seen. Every single minute of this film is so heavy and lumbering that you'd think little lead sinkers had been attached to the celluloid. The problem with this film is mainly the cast. Except for Luise Rainer, who was wonderful and one of the film's only good points, there is no charm at all. William Powell is irriatingly self-confident as Ziegfeld--not Ziegfeld's self confidence, mind you, it's his own big head there. Myrna Loy, who got second billing for very limited screen time, doesn't distinguish herself as Billie Burke, and makes you wonder why somebody so flamboyant as Ziegfeld would want to marry her. This film is so unberably top heavy that by intermission, you feel as if it should have fallen and been over already. That said, the musical numbers are spectacular. They were truly glimpses into the glamor of the past. The most notable is the one set to Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue, right before the intermission. It is so archeytpically golden age Hollywood/Broadway that it'll knock your socks off. It truly defines the word spectacle. However, these little breaks in the boredom are not enough to make up for a truly uninteresting and tiresome film.

HIGHLIGHTS: Luise Rainer, musical numbers, seeing "The End" on the screen

RATING: 4/10

NOTES: -I believe that James Cagney or even Clark Gable would've made a far better Florez Ziegfeld than William Powell.

-Luise Rainer won the Oscar for Best Actress for this film, but it was really more of a supporting role IMO.

-This won the Oscar for Best Picture of 1936, but pales in comparison to other films from that year such as MODERN TIMES, MR. DEEDS GOES TO TOWN, and MY MAN GODFREY.

All in all, just don't waste your time (unless you're an insomniac!)

When I first began to watch this film, I remember people saying that it was one of the most disturbing film's they'd ever seen. I beared that in mind while watching the beginning segments, yet I didn't see why they were so "disturbed" by this film. Was it just the rathe odd-looking inbred child? Was it the too-peaceful mountain setting? Was it the banjo music? I decided that I should just wait and see...and inevitably, I saw! The scene in the woods between Jon Voight, Ned Beatty, and the two homosexual mountain-folk was one of the creepiest scenes I've ever seen in any movie. Could any of you imagine yourselves canoeing downriver in the mountains and being confronted by two violent-minded hillbillies? Just imagining myself in that situation makes me cringe. As the film progresses and the characters' plights become more and more life-threatening, I became more and more intrigued. It was fascinating how John Boorman used settings that reflected what was happening in the story, and the acting (especially Jon Voight) was fantastic. This truly is one of the most disturbing films I've ever seen, but it's a kind of disturbance that I'd recommend to all; I guarantee you'll never hear "Dueling Banjoes" again without thinking of DELIVERANCE!

HIGHLIGHTS: "Dueling Banjoes"; the cool, detached cinematography; the infamous scene in the woods; Jon Voight; the rock climb; the swim to safety.

RATING: 8/10

NOTES: -Definitely deserved to be nominated for Best Picture in 1972! -Probably John Boorman's best and best-known film. -Not for the faint of heart, so proceed with caution!