two masters gone, back to back

yesterday, ingmar bergam, today, michelangelo antonioni. a retrospective would be in order but i’ll be damned if i feel like it.

8 thoughts on “two masters gone, back to back”

  1. I’m not sure I’ve seen anything except Blow Up. Did Antonioni direct that movie with Jack Nicholson? Bergman on the other hand is worth the effort . . . I think Wild Strawberries, Smiles of a Summer Night, Fanny and Alexander and, yes, The Seventh Seal to be very beautiful ruminations on the mysterious joys of living (despite all the hardships and the ocassional appearance of Death). The young couple in Strawberries, the medieval theatre troupe in Seventh, the uncle farting fire in F&A: I wouldn’t call these films glum in any way.

  2. despite my poking fun, i like a lot of antonioni: la notte and l’avventura, in particular. and yes, he directed the passenger as well. if nothing else, antonioni’s films prepare you for tarkovsky, who stops time altogether.

  3. Mauer recommended ‘The Passenger’ on the blog a long time ago. The movie is pretty great overall, but the final long shot is simply stunning. The commentary on the DVD explains how the shot seems to move through walls and rotate 360 degrees to come back in on itself. It is one of those moments that remind you of why you love movies, and how little real craft goes into most of them.

  4. Jeff left off the excellent diarrhea scene in Persona–way funny! I bet Bergman is up there in heaven tickling Antonioni’s funny bone!

    Or, down in hell, teasing Joel Siegel, while demons eat their livers.

    Either way, you know it’s komickal!

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