Tweetienator Det sjunde inseglet/The Seventh Seal with Max von Sydow is my most favorite movie by Ingmar Bergman, Jungrukällan/The Virgin Spring the 2nd.Bergman did some movies, who I dare to say, are ageless classics because they are deep and profound meditations of human life and its relations to god and/or to the creation and of all wonderful and terrible things that are part of life (and death) and how the individual tries to cope and deal with all those challenges and questions.Again with Max von Sydow, this is a great story set in the medieval times in rural Sweden. Rape, murder, superstition, belief, revenge, are the ingredients to this outstanding dish. As far as I know the movie is based on an old legend and Bergman again tells us the story in a very reduced manner and in pictures with a quiet, poetic and meditative character.

Kirpianuscus for me, for long time, it was adaptation of a story from Balkans. Haunting, tragic, an admirable proof of high art of detail. one of films who need to see for a special form of beauty of image and great performance, for the introduction status in the vision of a great director. a story about innocence and Medieval flavor and cruelty and justice. almost a poem in image. about murder and about implacable justice. about sin and about the truth. about a father and his daughter. and nothing more. because this film is real remarkable. or brilliant . or precious experience. so, see it !

punishmentpark I saw the 'remake' 'Last house on the left' by Wes Craven before this one, and in spite of that one having some odd comedic scenes in it, I still think it has more punch than 'Jungfrukallän'. One problem is that this film feels a bit like a play and lacks a certain rawness that 'Last house...' does have, although this does not apply when finally Töre (the father) exacts his revenge. Another problem is the ending: the choice of divine intervention (the miraculous spring that appears when the body is moved) is just not a believable one, it seems Bergman was mistaking the directing chair for the pulpit. One other thing that doesn't sit right, is that the thugs choose to knowingly offer Karin's robe to her family... such is just beyond ány reason.On the positive side, Max von Sydow and Birgitta Pettersson present us with some fairly iconic characters, and Bergman's attention to detail (for the most part) is a joy to watch.With a heavy heart, I can't go higher than 5 out of 10.

atlasmb The screenplay for The Virgin Spring was adapted from a 13th century Swedish ballad (search for the movie title in Wikipedia for notes about differences between the ballad and the movie). The goatherds in the ballad might have represented the pagan world, as Ingeri represented the world of Norse religion. Karin was killed by the amoral pagan world where only base motivations and instincts are in control. Karin's family represents the finer ethics of Christianity--a newer life view in 13th century Sweden. Man is not so far removed from paganism; and so Store is unable to completely abandon the vengeance of the old ways.One could probably write a paper just about what the writer and director intended by making the changes to the ballad's story. This would illuminate their intentions regarding the film's morality. From their 20th century perspective, the Catholic views of punishment and redemption would much clearer. But the world has had centuries to move past the simplistic philosophic views of the old world. Modern man has challenged the dogma and principles upon which Christianity is based, let alone the individual man's questions to a god that allows evil to exist.I enjoyed this film for its imagery and beautiful B&W photography. The acting was uniformly effective and convincing despite the fact that the characters were symbols for very basic moral roles.Some writers have tried to analyze the story in terms of (sexually) political issues, but their arguments seem contrived. This is a story about primitive emotions and modern attempts to cope with those emotions. It is effective in that.The primary question at the end of the film is whether Store's decision to build a church is relevant. Can every individual choose his own path to redemption? I guess if you believe that the spring is a message from god, then you can believe that man can choose his answer.