Depression, aggression and the restorative powers of art are, not surprisingly, the subject matter of Ingmar Bergman's latest opus, "In the Presence of a Clown" (Larmar Och Gor Sig Till).
The dreary Un Certain Regard think piece is a compendium of Bergman themes and aesthetics, a tedious rehash of his oeuvre shot in a static, altogether listless style.
This serioso work for Swedish TV, based in part on a character from Bergman's family chronicle "Fanny and Alexander", centers on Carl Akerblom (Borje Ahlstedt), a mental patient who is institutionalized because he tried to kill his wife.
Alternately grandiose and infantile, Carl is obsessed with the work of Franz Schubert; in particular, he is enamored with Schubert's thoughts on his dying day and the erotic experience he had with a prostitute. Somehow, in Carl's addled mind, it all gets mixed in with love and creation. Since he's in a mental home, his fruity thoughts actually make sense to another patient, Professor Osvald Vogler (Erland Josephson). Together, they get the grandiose notion to start a joint Film Production, which they dub "the living talkie," in explication of Schubert's torment and genius.
Aesthetically, the film most resembles a filmed play, with a generally static camera and all the fussy accouterments of big-stage performances. Unfortunately, most of the dialogue is dry, pretentious and utterly uninteresting; as such, viewing "Clown" is akin to watching an amateur theater group perform in a church basement. Throughout, Bergman repeats many of his old refrains, waxing repetitively about the nature of theater and film and sprinkling the script with better-written quotes from Shakespeare, all of them pessimistic.
Though it runs just under two hours, the psychological impact of the film makes one think that it has played for days, so monotonously inert is its dramaturgy.
IN THE PRESENCE OF A CLOWN
SVT Drama
Director-screenwriter: Ingmar Bergman
Directors of photography: Per Noren,
Per Sundin, Raymond Wemmenlov,
Sven-Ake Visen
Production designer: Goran Wassberg
Music: Franz Schubert
Editor: Sylvia Ingmarsson
Cast:
Carl Akerblom: Borje Ahlstedt
Osvald Vogler: Erland Josephson...
The dreary Un Certain Regard think piece is a compendium of Bergman themes and aesthetics, a tedious rehash of his oeuvre shot in a static, altogether listless style.
This serioso work for Swedish TV, based in part on a character from Bergman's family chronicle "Fanny and Alexander", centers on Carl Akerblom (Borje Ahlstedt), a mental patient who is institutionalized because he tried to kill his wife.
Alternately grandiose and infantile, Carl is obsessed with the work of Franz Schubert; in particular, he is enamored with Schubert's thoughts on his dying day and the erotic experience he had with a prostitute. Somehow, in Carl's addled mind, it all gets mixed in with love and creation. Since he's in a mental home, his fruity thoughts actually make sense to another patient, Professor Osvald Vogler (Erland Josephson). Together, they get the grandiose notion to start a joint Film Production, which they dub "the living talkie," in explication of Schubert's torment and genius.
Aesthetically, the film most resembles a filmed play, with a generally static camera and all the fussy accouterments of big-stage performances. Unfortunately, most of the dialogue is dry, pretentious and utterly uninteresting; as such, viewing "Clown" is akin to watching an amateur theater group perform in a church basement. Throughout, Bergman repeats many of his old refrains, waxing repetitively about the nature of theater and film and sprinkling the script with better-written quotes from Shakespeare, all of them pessimistic.
Though it runs just under two hours, the psychological impact of the film makes one think that it has played for days, so monotonously inert is its dramaturgy.
IN THE PRESENCE OF A CLOWN
SVT Drama
Director-screenwriter: Ingmar Bergman
Directors of photography: Per Noren,
Per Sundin, Raymond Wemmenlov,
Sven-Ake Visen
Production designer: Goran Wassberg
Music: Franz Schubert
Editor: Sylvia Ingmarsson
Cast:
Carl Akerblom: Borje Ahlstedt
Osvald Vogler: Erland Josephson...
- 5/27/1998
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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