Ach, diese Frauen

It's taken a few goes, but I have finally discovered that I can dislike a Bergman film. Perhaps Swedish humour shares some characteristics with Danish humour which tends to leave me cold and perplexed.

Several years on, I still cannot get the cheesy, syncopated version of "Yes, We Have No Bananas" out of my head.

The cast try their best but the material is beyond redemption. in fact, this cast does not include the best Bergman people anyhow.

This film simply is not at all funny nor is it interesting once you get 10 minutes in.

It is merely irritating.

This film is a lemon.

I do say this with a heavy heart as I love and admire Ingmar Bergman and many of his films and thought I'd never see a film of his I didn't like. Until now. By all means it has its good points, the cinematography, settings and music are beautiful and the female cast(with three of Sweden's finest ever actresses) look splendid and really try their best. Unfortunately, Jarl Kulle does nothing to make his annoying character remotely likable. Cornelius isn't the only bad character here though, I didn't care for any of them and none are interesting, for a Bergman film that is unusual. Bergman I love as a director, but he too seems out of his depth with a lack of momentum. The writing seems forced and unfunny, while the story tries to do much but does so in a clumsy and stilted manner.

Overall, I really wanted to love All These Women considering the talent involved, but I found it a really disappointing miscalculation.

4/10 Bethany Cox

Amazing that this film is on DVD. I saw it in 1967 (in suburban Sacramento of all places) and have never seen a trace of it since.

It is a fairly terrible movie, but it does have its place in Bergman's movies. Swedish reviewers at this point in his career were among his severest critics, and this movie was his response. It should have been deft and ironic but, as I think we're all aware by now, Bergman is not exactly over-burdened with a sense of humor. I suppose he also thought color as something of a joke at that time, which might explain some of the very ugly effects.

I can't really recommend the movie but it does give some insight into Bergman, so I rank it a little higher than the other reviewers.

P.S. And I thank Anders, the foreign exchange student from Stockholm at my high school, for making me see this movie and who filled me in on the info about Bergman and the critics. He too thought it a lousy movie.

I never thought that I would have to say that but I did not like the Ingmar Bergman's film "All These Women". In spite the very pretty and delicate pink and blue cinematography and the presence of the charming and talented actresses, the movie was a mess of an attempt to create a comedy. Everything that was subtle, sensual, and charming in B/W "Smiles of a Summer Night" (1955) was missing here. First of all - the Jarl Kulle's performance as a music critic - biographer, Cornelius. Kulle was very effective and funny in "Smiles...", in "Women..." - he plays an irritating, annoying, and the worst - absolutely not funny (which is a crime for a comedy) character. If in "Smiles... the writing was a first class and sparkled, I got the impression that in "Women.." Bergman did not care or did not want to work on the script and was more interested in experimenting with colors and music. The movie looks and sounds fine - it is Bergman, after all, but that's the only redeeming qualities that I found.

4/10

I agree that "All These Women" is misunderstood, especially if you look at it in the context of Bergman's filmography. He had just completed the "Silence of God" trilogy, one of the deepest, most serious works in the history of cinema. So, cut the man some slack and allow him his lark, his goof, his chance to riff on fans and critics and the illusion of the exalted artist (himself), before returning to his true work with his next film, the universally praised "Persona."

I also think he was a little influenced by "8 1/2" which had come out the year before, appreciating Fellini's playfulness as well as his insight into the creative process and, of course, "all these women." Bergman will always be thought of as a somewhat austere and oft despairing artist, but thankfully we have several films that belie that, like "Smiles of a Summer Night," "The Magician," and this little oddball gem.