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Cries And Whispers [1972]
starring: Harriet Andersson, Liv Ullmann, Kari Sylwan, Ingrid Thulin, Anders Ek
directed by: Ingmar Bergman

Audience Rating: Suitable for 18 years and over
Binding: VHS Tape
EAN: 5023965136824
Format: PAL, Subtitled, Widescreen
Label: Tartan Video
Manufacturer: Tartan Video
Number Of Discs: 1
Number Of Items: 1
Publisher: Tartan Video
Release Date: February 25, 2002
Running Time: 88 minutes
Studio: Tartan Video
Theatrical Release Date: 1972
Sales Rank: 15874

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Editorial Review:

Amazon.co.uk Review:
Ingmar Bergman’s Cries and Whispers is a brilliant and at times shockingly traumatic piece of chamber cinema. It also represented a renaissance for Bergman, whose previous few films had flopped commercially. Set in a large house with interiors done out entirely in a disquieting red and against a soundtrack of ticking and barely audible chatter, the film features three of Bergman’s female stalwarts. Harriet Andersson plays Agnes--a thirtysomething woman dying of cancer--Ingrid Thulin plays her sister Karin--non-tactile and caught in a marriage with a man she finds physically repulsive--and Liv Ulmann is the almost childishly sensual second sister Maria. Kari Sylwan, meanwhile, stars as the earth-motherly maid Anna, whose cradling of the dying Agnes against her naked bosom is one of the centrepieces of the movie.

Much of what transpires here can be construed as fantasy sequence, including one extraordinary incident in which Thulin cuts her vagina with broken glass and smears the blood over herself, in order to avoid sex with her husband. Agnes’ unbearable cries of anguish in her death throes, however, are all too real. Many familiar Bergman themes are explored in Cries And Whispers--mortality, the existence of God (here doubted by a Pastor) and the space between people. However, they are set against a singular, blood-red, dreamlike ambience that is irresistible. This is Bergman at his finest.

On the DVD: the dominant red backdrops of the movie are richly enhanced in this edition. Text-only extras include notes from Bergman’s own memoirs. In a lengthy extract here, he reveals that he had considered Mix Farrow for the part of one of the sisters. Philip Strick’s additional notes add further context and background--it seems that the film’s success in America was due to its distribution by, of all people, Roger Corman. --David Stubbs

Customer Reviews

Average Rating: out of 5 stars

Rating:

- A CLOSE STUDY OF DYSFUNCTION
Cries and Whispers is a powerful study of three sisters and a faithful maid who share a manse in a remote location. One of the sisters, Agnes (Harriet Andersson), is dying from an indeterminate cancer, and it is her slow journey towards death that is the center of this story.

The other two sisters are variations of monstrous people: Karin (Ingrid Thulin) is what seems to be an icy control freak who can't stand human touch of any kind, and we're privy to her torment in a flashback where she uses a piece of a broken wine glass to literally mutilate her vagina. Maria (Liv Ullmann) is less stern, more casual, but equally manipulative: she not only tries to resume an affair with Agnes' doctor (who points out she her internal ugliness ... Read More:

Rating:

- Classic Bergman.
This is a powerful and intense film depicting the relationships between three sisters, one of whom is dying, as well as their maid, Anna. Colour was still a relatively new tool for Bergman when this was made, and the way he uses it adds to the visual power of the film, with an almost overwhelming amount of red being employed both in the sets and also in between scenes. (Instead of the usual cuts or fades, Bergman fades to a pure red screen and then fades into the next scene.) Viskingar och rop features outstanding performances from three of Bergman's favourite actresses: Harriet Andersson, Liv Ullmann and Ingrid Thulin.

Rating:

- One of Ingmar Bergman's Most Notable Films
Upon its release CRIES AND WHISPERS was hailed as one of Bergman's finest films. Although it has not quite held onto that original evaluation, it remains an excellent film--a subtle and delicately performed drama as remarkable for its silence as for its occasional moments of dialogue. And in many respects it offers an extremely good introduction to Bergman's work.

Like many of Bergman's films, CRIES AND WHISPERS shows the director's preoccupations with memory, communication, time, community, and death. The story is bleak: Agnes is dying and her sisters Karin and Maria have come to attend her during this final illness--but they prove unable to communicate in a meaningful way with either Agnes or each other, and Agnes' emotional care ... Read More:

Rating:

- One of Ingmar Bergman's Most Notable Films
Upon its release CRIES AND WHISPERS was hailed as one of Bergman's finest films. Although it has not quite held onto that original evaluation, it remains an excellent film--a subtle and delicately performed drama as remarkable for its silence as for its occasional moments of dialogue. And in many respects it offers an extremely good introduction to Bergman's work.

Like many of Bergman's films, CRIES AND WHISPERS shows the director's preoccupations with memory, communication, time, community, and death. The story is bleak: Agnes is dying and her sisters Karin and Maria have come to attend her during this final illness--but they prove unable to communicate in a meaningful way with either Agnes or each other, and Agnes' emotional care ... Read More:

Rating:

- A bit pretentious
I was really looking forward to seeing this film, but despite some great dialogue in places, i found the whole thing slightly over-indulgent, the idea to fade each shot out with a red background, became really quite tedious at times, the flashbacks that began with a still shot of the persons head with babbling whispers laid over the top, fading again to the same red background, and the pseudo symbolic scenes far from being moving just began to grate after a while, especially the frankly ridiculous final scene. I think the idea was a good one, it was just the execution which was lacking, the supposed emotional distance could perhaps have actually been shown in the film rather than by just trying to create some 'arty' scenes for an hour before basically ... Read More:

VHS : Cries And Whispers [1972]