Die Jungfrauenquelle

A powerhouse piece of filmmaking from one of the all-time great directors. This 14th-century exploration of good and evil, morality and chaos, love and revenge is pretty much a faultless viewing experience and one which retains its ability to shock and provoke thought in the viewer even today. I can only imagine what it would have been like to see this on first release.

The story is deceptively simple and yet filled with harrowing imagery. The assault in the woods is difficult to watch, even in these jaded times, and of course Bergman wrings the maximum tension out of it right from the very beginning. The second half is, perhaps, even more tense, with the expectation of impending violence and the strong, subtle filmmaking techniques (think: lots of lurking shadow, religious iconography, haunted faces). The excellent use of black and white photography reminded me of Kurosawa's work on RASHOMON. Max von Sydow holds it all together as the brusque father and family man, but he heads a cast who can do no wrong.

Wes Craven went for a lurid, contemporary remake in LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT, but despite the graphic nature of Craven's film I don't think it holds a candle to this one.

Now, this was a true work of art. A quietly designed yet devastating story of a religious Medieval family and how their faith becomes challenged when their young daughter is brutally raped and murdered by three derelict brothers. Max von Sydow plays the father who is a God-fearing believer, yet finds himself overcome by his own sweet desire for revenge against those who wronged his little girl. I am happy to say I appreciated Ingmar Bergman's genius just by this movie alone. It's a visually beautiful piece to look at, but also with a story and strong convictions. So much is said without really needing to go overboard. I can see there is a recurring theme in his work where he questions the existence of God, or at least the complicated ways in which God works things out on Earth. I'm not sure whether Bergman was a full-blooded atheist or not at this point but I'd suspect he was at least a questioning agnostic. I'm sure this is partly why Woody Allen is so enamored with the director, as a similar religious thread runs through some of Allen's own movies. For the record, I am a strong believer in God, though these days I too have been faced with personal issues which have had me having difficulties in understanding, much like the father of THE VIRGIN SPRING. So this movie also touches a personal nerve within me. The performances here are all first-rate, with a special nod to Birgitta Petterson as the friendly and generous young woman who we take an instant liking to, but becomes the victim. What more can I say? An exceptional and deeply-moving film. **** out of ****

... (in 14th century Sweden) and were naïvely happy, beautiful and endearing and a little bit gay, the chances are you'll come a cropper, as rogues and fiends uncork your stopper (amongst other dastardly deeds).

A tragic tale unfolds over a day or so, with emotions bouncing off the thatch and hearts and minds broken and dispatched. Great film making accentuating sublime performances through a story of despair and disillusion.

Max von Sydow is, once again, out of this world and Gunnel Lindblom's pretty impressive too, in a tale not written by the director but transpires to be one of his absolute best.

Virgin Spring, The (1960)

**** (out of 4)

Ingmar Bergman's classic (and influential) film about three brothers, two of whom rape and kill a young girl only to end up at the girl's house later that night where her father (Max von Sydow) seeks vengeance. This was my second viewing of this film and it was certainly better this second time even though I loved it on the first viewing. As I said last year, Wes Craven's The Last House on the Left and the Italian shocker House on the Edge of the Park ripped this film off quite heavily and went over the top with graphic violence, gore, nudity and everything else imaginable yet these cheap shock thrills can't hold a candle to this film. This is masterfully directed and contains so much power that very few directors could have pulled it off. The eerie and haunting rape scene is very casual yet contains extreme power. The revenge sequence as well as the conclusion are also very subtle but pack a wonderful punch. I think it was a great choice for these scenes to play out without the use of a music score. This really helps the bitterness and creepiness of the film. A perfect atmosphere and brilliant performances really push this film over the top. von Sydow doesn't say much here but his acting with his eyes and body jesters are priceless.

... and that's about all I can SAY about it. I saw this film four, maybe five years ago. And to this day, I feel a blow to my gut whenever I remember it. To this day, it haunts me - especially (and not surprisingly) the figure of the little boy.

This is a raw, uncompromising, unbiased parable on love and revenge; on humanity. It is set in 14th century Sweden - but its "message" is timeless: as timeless as love and vengefulness themselves. As timeless as humanity itself. Because the mores may change, but today, as 800 years ago, people are still helpless in their (perhaps inevitable) core existential ignorance, still subject to the immense pain of losing a loved one, of the inexplicable torments that often befall just and righteous, "good" people.

And that is what makes this a brutal, heartrending, unforgettable film.