Sjunde inseglet, Det (1957)

Calificación de los usuarios:

8.4/10   

Director:

Ingmar Bergman

Writers:

Ingmar Bergman (play)
Ingmar Bergman (screenplay)

Release Date:

13 octubre 1958 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Fantasy

Plot:

A man seeks answers about life, death, and the existence of God as he plays chess against the Grim Reaper during the Black Plague.

Plot Keywords:

Squirrel | Surrealism | Reverse Footage | Knife | Surreal

Awards:

5 wins & 1 nomination

Comentarios de los usuarios:

Chilling, audacious, and awe-inspiring. An undisputed masterpiece.

Cast

Gunnar Björnstrand	...	Jöns, squire
Bengt Ekerot	...	Death
Nils Poppe	...	Jof
Max von Sydow	...	Antonius Block
Bibi Andersson	...	Mia, Jof's wife
Inga Gill	...	Lisa, blacksmith's wife
Maud Hansson	...	Witch
Inga Landgré	...	Karin, Block's Wife
Gunnel Lindblom	...	Girl
Bertil Anderberg	...	Raval
Anders Ek	...	The Monk
Åke Fridell	...	Blacksmith Plog
Gunnar Olsson	...	Albertus Pictor, Church Painter
Erik Strandmark	...	Jonas Skat
listado alfabético del resto del reparto:
Siv Aleros	...	Flagellant (uncredited)
Sten Ardenstam	...	Knight (uncredited)
Harry Asklund	...	The landlord (uncredited)
Benkt-Åke Benktsson	...	Merchant at the inn (uncredited)
Catherine Berg	...	Young woman kneeling for the flagellants (uncredited)
Lena Bergman	...	Young woman kneeling for the flagellants (uncredited)
Tor Borong	...	Farmer at the inn (uncredited)
Gudrun Brost	...	Woman at inn (uncredited)
Bengt Gillberg	...	Flagellant (uncredited)
Lars Granberg	...	Flagellant (uncredited)
Gunlög Hagberg	...	Flagellant (uncredited)
Gun Hammargren	...	Flagellant (uncredited)
Tor Isedal	...	Man (uncredited)
Ulf Johansson	...	Knight commander (uncredited)
Tommy Karlsson	...	Mikael, Jof and Maria's son (uncredited)
Uno Larsson	...	Flagellant (uncredited)
Lennart Lilja	...	Flagellant (uncredited)
Lars Lind	...	The young monk (uncredited)
Monica Lindman	...	Flagellant (uncredited)
Gordon Löwenadler	...	Knight (uncredited)
Mona Malm	...	Young pregnant woman (uncredited)
Josef Norman	...	Old man at the inn (uncredited)
Gösta Prüzelius	...	Man (uncredited)
Helge Sjökvist	...	Flagellant (uncredited)
Georg Skarstedt	...	Flagellant (uncredited)
Ragnar Sörman	...	Flagellant (uncredited)
Fritjof Tall	...	Man (uncredited)
Lennart Tollén	...	Flagellant (uncredited)
Nils Whiten	...	Old man addressed by the monk (uncredited)
Caya Wickström	...	Flagellant (uncredited)
Karl Widh	...	Man with crotches (uncredited)

Dirigida por
Ingmar Bergman

Créditos del guión (in alphabetical order)
Ingmar Bergman		play "Trämålning"
Ingmar Bergman		screenplay

Producida por
Allan Ekelund	....	producer

Música original por
Erik Nordgren

Fotografía por
Gunnar Fischer

Montaje por
Lennart Wallén

Diseño de producción por
P.A. Lundgren

Diseño de vestuario por
Manne Lindholm

Departamento de maquillaje
Nils Nittel	....	makeup artist

Ayudante de dirección
Lennart Olsson	....	assistant director (as Lennart Ohlsson)

Art Department
Carl-Henry Cagarp	....	props

Departamento de sonido
Evald Andersson	....	sound effects
Lennart Wallin	....	sound
Aaby Wedin	....	sound

Camera and Electrical Department
Åke Nilsson	....	assistant camera (as Åke G. Nilsson)

Music Department
Sixten Ehrling	....	conductor
Erik Nordgren	....	music arranger

Otros miembros del equipo
Katinka Faragó	....	script girl (as Katarina Faragó)
Else Fisher	....	choreographer (as Else Fischer)

Production Companies

• Svensk Filmindustri (SF)

Distributors

• Janus Films (1958) (USA) (theatrical) (subtitled)
• Tartan Video (1993) (UK) (video) (laserdisc)
• Criterion Collection, The (1999) (USA) (DVD)
• Manga Films (2003) (Spain) (DVD)
• Image Entertainment (2006) (USA) (DVD)
• Arthaus Filmverleih (????) (Germany) (theatrical)
• Cinetel (????) (Hungary) (DVD)
• Continental Home Vídeo (2007) (Brazil) (DVD)
• Continental Home Vídeo (????) (Brazil) (VHS)
• Criterion Collection, The (????) (USA) (VHS) (laserdisc)
• Cult Filmes (????) (Brazil) (VHS)
• Embassy Home Entertainment (????) (USA) (VHS)
• Gutek Film (2007) (Poland) (all media)
• Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) (1976) (USA) (TV) (network premiere)

También conocida como:

The Seventh Seal (USA)
Séptimo sello, El (Argentina) (Spain) [es]

Duración:

96 min | USA:92 min

País:

Sweden

Idioma:

Swedish | Latin

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sonido:

Mono

Clasificación:

Australia:PG | South Korea:15 | Italy:T (re-rated) | Italy:VM14 (original rating) | Argentina:Atp | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | UK:PG | West Germany:16 | Spain:13 | UK:X (original rating) | Iceland:12 | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Gustavsberg, Värmdö, Stockholms län, Sweden

Company:

Svensk Filmindustri (SF)

Trivialidades:

The last-but-one scene in which Death is dancing away with his followers was shot when some of the actors had gone home for the day, using some technicians and a few tourists as stand-ins.

Goofs:

Factual errors: The story begins with a knight and his squire returning to Sweden after spending ten years away in the Crusades. His country is being ravaged by the Black Death. The last Crusade to the Mid-East ended in 1291 (late-13th century) with the fall of Acre, but the Black Death, also known as the Black Plague, first struck Europe about 60 years later in the mid- to late-14th century (1347-1351) reaching Germany and Scandinavia from 1348 to 1350. There were other crusades, such as those between factions in Europe, but they came either earlier or later; none of them fell within the ten-year period just before the plague.

Quotes:

Antonius Block: I want knowledge! Not faith, not assumptions, but knowledge. I want God to stretch out His hand, uncover His face and speak to me.
Death: But He remains silent.
Antonius Block: I call out to Him in the darkness. But it's as if no one was there.
Death: Perhaps there isn't anyone.
Antonius Block: Then life is a preposterous horror. No man can live faced with Death, knowing everything's nothingness.
Death: Most people think neither of death nor nothingness.
Antonius Block: But one day you stand at the edge of life and face darkness.
Death: That day.
Antonius Block: I understand what you mean.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Cookie Jar (2003)

Soundtrack:

DIES IRÆ, DIES ILLA / VREDENS STORA DAG ÄR NÄRA

Chilling, audacious, and awe-inspiring. An undisputed masterpiece.

The mysteries of religion and death have long been a popular focus among artists of all media, including film. And while many films question these mysteries, they seldom provide any real insight into the world of the unknown. In Ingmar Bergman's THE SEVENTH SEAL, these mysteries are not only questioned; they are dissected, splayed, and scrutinized.

THE SEVENTH SEAL could very well serve as sort of a manifesto for existentialism. Its deep acuity and haunting imagery is powerful enough to jar even passive viewers out of their complacency and force them to examine their own reality. The delicately crafted story centers around a 14th century knight named Antonius Block and his ongoing game of chess with a shadowy, hooded figure: Death. Bergman uses this allegory not just to personify death, but to illustrate the lengths man will go to in order to avoid it. In the end, however, Death is a much better player than any of us, and though he may humor some of his opponents by letting them think that they have the advantage, the end result is inevitable: Death always wins. No matter how skillfully we plan our moves or how determined we are to win, we can never beat Death.

In Antonius's search for answers, he encounters a variety of very unique characters, each with their own outlook on life, death, faith, fear and love. Their commentary on such matters is often dryly funny and always brilliant, continuously and effectively challenging our perceptions of the world around us. For me, the dialogue was definitely the high point of the film, as it was extremely thought-provoking and carefully constructed throughout. Almost every line spoken is, in one way or another, daunting and unforgettable. Jöns's description of love as "the blackest of all plagues" is a quote that will forever be engraved in my mind.

THE SEVENTH SEAL truly is a remarkable accomplishment in the world of cinema. It is a deep, mesmerizing, and darkly beautiful work of art. More importantly, THE SEVENTH SEAL is one of those rare movies that doesn't just entertain, but also has the power to change the way one thinks.