33° TORINO FILM FESTIVAL
JULIEN TEMPLE - MATTERS OF LIFE AND DEATH
DET SJUNDE INSEGLET
by Ingmar Bergman
Country: Sweden
Year: 1957
Duration: 96'
The knight Antonius Block returns from the Crusades to the beaches of Scandinavia, where he finds Death waiting for him. In a last attempt to save his life, Antonius challenges Death to a chess match. And so Antonius and his squire Jons set off on a journey through his lands, running into the black-cloaked figure several times along the way. As they continue playing chess, the match turns into a philosophical debate between the two opponents. Meanwhile, the plague has been ravaging the lands, throwing people in a state of panic and despair. Some deal with it by atoning for their sins, others indulge in earthly pleasures. A deep personal crisis is consuming Antonius from within. “My heart is void. The void is a mirror. I see my face and feel loathing and horror,” he confesses to a monk, revealing his desperate search for God, his sense of divine betrayal, and his lack of faith. The knight carries the burden of the vanity and the emptiness of human existence. He is chased by an enemy he cannot escape.
Biography
film director
Ingmar Bergman
Ingmar Bergman (Uppsala, Sweden, 1918-Fårö, Sweden, 2007) started off in theater as a playwright and director. He made his debut in cinema with the feature Crisis in 1945, but his claim to international fame came in 1955 with the comedy Smiles of a Summer Night, where we start seeing the subtle study of human nature that will characterize his productions. Existential issues and faith intertwine in The Seventh Seal (1957), strengthening his position as an auteur and an intellectual, also thanks to his subsequent works like: Wild Strawberries (1957), winner of the Golden Bear in Berlin; The Magician (1958), Special Grand Jury Award in Venice; Persona (1966); Cries and Whispers (1972), Fanny and Alexander (1982), both of which received the Oscar for Best Foreign Film. In 1971 he was awarded the Career Golden Lion in 1971. A prestigious jury made of filmmakers who had previously won the Cannes Festival awarded him the Palm of the Palms in 1997.
FILMOGRAFIA
Kris (Crisi, 1945), Sommaren med Monika (Monica e il desiderio, 1953), Sommarnattens leende (Sorrisi di una notte d’estate, 1955), Smultronstället (Il posto delle fragole, 1957), Ansiktet (Il volto, 1958), Såsom i en spegel (Come in uno specchio, 1961), Tystnaden (Il silenzio, 1963), Persona (1966), Vargtimmen (L’ora del lupo, 1968), Viskningar och rop (Sussurri e grida, 1972), Scener ur ett äktenskap (Scene da un matrimonio, tv, 1973), Höstsonaten (Sinfonia d’autunno, 1978), Aus dem Leben der Marionetten (Un mondo di marionette, 1980), Fanny och Alexander (Fanny e Alexander, 1982).
Cast
& Credits
regia, sceneggiatura/director, screenplay
Ingmar Bergman
soggetto/story
dal dramma Pittura su legno di/from the play Trämålning by Ingmar Bergman
fotografia/cinematography
Gunar Fischer
montaggio/film editing
Lennart Wallén
scenografia/production design
P.A. Lundgren
costumi/costume design
Manne Lindholm
musica/music
Erik Nordgren
interpreti e personaggi/cast and characters
Max von Sydow (Antonius Block), Gunner Björnstrand (Jons), Bengt Ekerot (la Morte/the Death), Nils Poppe (Jof), Bibi Andersson (Mia), Inga Gill (Lisa), Maud Hansson (la strega/witch), Inga Landgré (Karin)
produttore/producer
Allan Ekelund
produzione/production
Svensk Filmindustri
Ingmar Bergman
soggetto/story
dal dramma Pittura su legno di/from the play Trämålning by Ingmar Bergman
fotografia/cinematography
Gunar Fischer
montaggio/film editing
Lennart Wallén
scenografia/production design
P.A. Lundgren
costumi/costume design
Manne Lindholm
musica/music
Erik Nordgren
interpreti e personaggi/cast and characters
Max von Sydow (Antonius Block), Gunner Björnstrand (Jons), Bengt Ekerot (la Morte/the Death), Nils Poppe (Jof), Bibi Andersson (Mia), Inga Gill (Lisa), Maud Hansson (la strega/witch), Inga Landgré (Karin)
produttore/producer
Allan Ekelund
produzione/production
Svensk Filmindustri
