Passon of Anna? (1 Viewer)

[Jim Rankin]

Hi, I just watched this film for the first time last night,I very much liked it even though some of the darker scenes were a little difficult to watch. For all you die hard Bergman fans out there, how does the animal brutality depicted fit into the overall storyline?? Did they ever identify the sicko?

I thought it was particulary interesting during the story they would cut to the actor for insight into his/her character - it kind of threw me off at first, but once Von Sydow's part was over I got the hang of it. This is definitely one of the best films I've seen on the subject of isolation, on both physical and emotional levels. Next up is Cries and Whispers Regards, Jim

 

[Pascal A]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Jim.

Regarding your spoiler question, I'd have to say, not really:

If you take the episodic flow of the encounters in the film as symptomatic of her delusions, then the animal cruelty sideplot becomes just another manifestation of her mental illness.

In any case, while I find The Passion of Anna to be slightly uneven, I agree with your assessment of the film's harrowing accuracy in the portrayal of profound isolation. Cries and Whispers explores very similar issues on illness (in this case, physical) and disconnection, so if you enjoyed The Passion of Anna, Cries and Whispers will likely have a similar rewarding experience. By the way, another Bergman film in a similar vein is Through a Glass Darkly, and is also worth a look.

 

[Jim Rankin]

Thanks for replying Pascal, I did a little checking around and see that The Passion of Anna is part of an "island" trilogy by Bergman with Hour of the Wolf and Shame being the other two films. All three are currently distributed under the MGM World Films label on VHS - any word or any chance they may release these in the near future?

BTW - this film along with 3 other Bergman films will be on Sundance in June - I realize now that it is part of a rotation, but in case anyone is interested in checking it out. Regards, Jim