I actually didn't know Bergman ever made a film in English until seeking this out yesterday; my first assumption was that it was dubbed. The Touch is, in fact, largely forgotten in spite of its pedigree and novelty. The film was a critical and financial failure, even though I'd never seen Bibi Andersson's breasts in an earlier film.
The Touch is, in many ways, quite beautiful, particularly in its photography and music during the opening credits. The film, as the title suggests, is very intimate. That's to be expected from a director whose marriages and adulteries exceeded just about anyone's; watching this, you get the feeling a great deal can be autobiographical. The ending, where the two lovers separate, is very mournful.
Unfortunately, the film is, to a degree, lost in translation. I've heard Bergman say, in Swedish interviews, that he is "no writer," a director first. In English, this feels especially true. Some of the dialogue is leaden and clumsy. And it sounds absolutely awful coming out of Elliott Gould, particularly when he has to act angry, which he simply can't do. I was unfamiliar with Gould; I had seen some of his films, including MASH, but never really realized who he was. Looking him up after watching the film, I was surprised to find out he was a professional actor, because he's really, really bad here.
Still, there are definitely things to recommend in The Touch, and it is a curiosity.
The Touch is, in many ways, quite beautiful, particularly in its photography and music during the opening credits. The film, as the title suggests, is very intimate. That's to be expected from a director whose marriages and adulteries exceeded just about anyone's; watching this, you get the feeling a great deal can be autobiographical. The ending, where the two lovers separate, is very mournful.
Unfortunately, the film is, to a degree, lost in translation. I've heard Bergman say, in Swedish interviews, that he is "no writer," a director first. In English, this feels especially true. Some of the dialogue is leaden and clumsy. And it sounds absolutely awful coming out of Elliott Gould, particularly when he has to act angry, which he simply can't do. I was unfamiliar with Gould; I had seen some of his films, including MASH, but never really realized who he was. Looking him up after watching the film, I was surprised to find out he was a professional actor, because he's really, really bad here.
Still, there are definitely things to recommend in The Touch, and it is a curiosity.