La visita

I'm ashamed I've never seen this film till now. I've always known "of" it, as I've always known "of" the play, and "of" Friedrich Dürrenmatt's controversial take on "epic theater." So its allegorical aspects don't put me off at all. It's amazing to see how realistically and cinematically this play is filmed and acted.

Co-Produced by Anthony Quinn and Ingrid Bergman, who co-star, this entire enterprise is a work of love and art: not commercial entertainment.

And what a payoff! The suspense, the emotional builds, are incredible. Yes, you can see the act breaks that were in the play. No matter. The film surges along seamlessly to the unexpected and shattering climax.

And the acting, from the entire cast, but especially Quinn and Bergman, is something to behold.

The conclusion cuts like a knife.

Watch it again and again for the layers in Bergman's performance. The transitions in her close-ups alone are astonishing.

As I watched the moral at the heart of "The Visit" revealed, I couldn't help thinking it was like a lavish version of an episode of "The Twilight Zone".

The blurb on the movie's poster could almost serve as Rod Serling's introduction:

"A woman... once framed and betrayed, then alone on the streets... now wealthy and worldly. Corrupting a town to buy the death of the man she loved. The man... once lover and betrayer... now haunted and hunted. The price on his life is high. And there are many bidders".

Well, sort of.

Mega-rich Karla Zachanassian (Ingrid Bergman), returns to the impoverished town of Guellen, which she left years earlier. She wants revenge on Serge Miller (Anthony Quinn) who forced her to leave pregnant, unwed and disgraced, She offers the townspeople a deal. She will take care of their financial woes in exchange for the execution of Serge. As the story proceeds, the inhabitants at first reluctant, find more and more reasons to go along with her request.

Like other reviewers, I was a little wary about the film at first. The town of Guellen is set in a fictional Eastern European country, and I find movies set in "Ruritania" dead boring. They usually have an overload of eccentric characters all working their accents overtime.

But "The Visit" got me in with Ingrid Bergman rasping out advice and commands as though she was channelling Bette Davis, while Anthony Quinn as Serge acquires insights into human nature through the moral corruption of his friends, fellow citizens and even Mathilda his wife. Nobody could do suffering and haunted like Anthony, see "Barabbas" and "The 25th Hour" for confirmation. Apparently William Holden wanted the role, but William Holden doing an accent? Quinn probably saved him from embarrassment.

The cast is a mix of international stars including Irina Demick, stunning as usual in her relatively short, 10-year movie career.

The movie feels felini-esque or even Bergman-esque, Ingmar that is. Nothing quite beats the marriage of light and shade in a well-made B/W film.

"The Visit" is a metaphor for the way even whole countries have been seduced into going against their better natures. "The Visit" has more than a little in common with Orwell's "Animal Farm". It's too interesting a film not to be seen at least once.

Too often, there are many films that are hidden away from the public even though they are really very well written and well acted movies. "The Visit" is one of these movies, unfortunately, not available on video or DVD. The story is of a poor young girl who leaves a mythical country in Europe (Bergman) only to return years later as the richest woman in the world! The way the movie opens is with a train going across the landscape which adds to the suspense because of the title of the film and the town in this mythical country is very anxious and glad that Karla is coming to visit them since they are poverty stricken. A rare gem, the story is solid and interesting--not like the critics said about it being choppy and hard to follow--and Ms. Bergman's costumes are an eyeful. Anthony Quinn is her leading man and together they both deliver more than fine performances, Ms. Bergman's being the strongest. If you ever see this film, you won't regret it. Put a tape in your VCR to record yourself a copy as "The Visit" is a haunting film with moral issues that are unusual for the time in which it is filmed. This is one you will want to see definitely more than once. You've never seen Ingrid Bergman like this before!!!

a play. great performances. nuances of acting as fireworks. bitter and clear and ambiguous atmosphere. two great actors in a fight about revenge, power and the force of past. a seductive story about a return who change life of community and defines options. Ingrid Bergman seems be the perfect choice for Clara. Anthony Quinn, far to give something real new, has a beautiful mixture of pride and humility, vulnerability as answer to profound cold fierce. a film who reminds moral laws and the lost of innocence behind the truth. a film who reminds the Old Testament episodes and who reminds the idea of justice in a special angle. a Durrenmatt - a lot of questions and the need of honesty for yourself. a special couple. and a beautiful film.

Well, I haven't seen the play, but I enjoyed all the performances and plot of this disturbingly gripping and compelling film. Ingrid Bergman is riveting and enigmatic - does a great job with portraying a deeply hurt woman underneath a cold, stoney, vengeful exterior. My palms began to sweat and I felt like I was suffocating during the scene where Anthony Quinn's character tries to leave the town on the train...an excellent mob scene that develops slowly and builds, allowing you to feel Quinn's terror, helplessness and entrapment. Bergman is clearly the most stellar of the cast; her acting is bionic femme fatale and she looks phenomenal in her multi-millionaress outfits. Yes, there are some weaker spots, but I think if one over analyzes any movie one is able to find something worthy of criticism. Just sit back and enjoy "The Visit".