Ingmar Bergman

Ingmar Bergman was a dark passionate filmmaker who was one of the first foreign filmakers who fascinated me. I've seen something like 30 of his films and was always impressed. Persona, Smiles of A Summer Night, Winter Light, Wild Strawberries, The Seventh Seal; they were highlights of my college years. I still remain in awe of his talent and I am sorry he is gone.

I am surprised by just how little the passing of one of the greatest film directors in history received. I saw plenty of tributes to Bill Walsh, Tom Snyder and here in Pittsburgh, ex-Pirate Bill Robinson. But, Ingmar Bergman's passing barely registered a blip on the media radar.

mr. chips-
I am impressed by how many films of his you have seen. I have only seen The Seventh Seal, Cries & Whispers and Fanny & Alexander. I will have to go make a point of seeing Wild Strawberries soon. Thanks for starting a thread on this topic!

Yes, thanks for starting the thread. I think that why the aforementioned names were noted more in the news and not his was because he just wasn't that widely known here in the States. And many people would be like, "Who?" Sad but it's true. My favorite that immediately comes to mind is the T.V. version of "Scenes from a Marriage". I loved anything with Liv Ullmann in it, and that was just great.

Hello All,
Ingmar Bergman...every film I've seen he made disturbed, entertained, and
made me think. It made me fearful of the darkside of honesty and questing.
It also haunted me to the point I must embrace and heal the darkside.
It's easier to do in film than in reality.
He was soul-surgeon.
Take Care,
Fieldthistle

Monday morning driving to work, I heard the BBC reporter say "Filmmaker Ingmar Bergman..." and I honestly thought she was going to follow that up with "has a new film out".

And really, that wouldn't have been surprising, even though he was almost 90. His last film, Saraband, came out a couple years back, and was very good, a moving continuation of Scenes From A Marriage. He continued directing theater after he retired from filmmaking.

He was in a class of his own. His worldview tended toward the bleak. His films nearly always made me feel depressed afterwards, but at least they made me feel. How many movie makers working today can honestly say they raise any kind of genuine emotion in their audience today?

My favorite Bergman movie? Hard to say. Wild Strawberries and Smiles of A Summer Night are the two I saw first. I really love Wild Strawberries.

The Virgin Spring is great, as is Persona, and Cries and Whispers, and everything I've seen by him. Virgin Spring is probably my favorite of his, followed by Wild Strawberries and The Seventh Seal. It's hard to choose.

Michangelo Antonioni died the same day as Bergman. I just watched The Passenger the other day for the first time. Great movie.

Two great directors gone on the same day.