Tystnaden (1963)

Director:

Ingmar Bergman

Guionista:

Ingmar Bergman (writer)

Release Date:

3 febrero 1964 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

"The Silence" is about the emotional distance between two sisters. The younger one is still attractive enough to pick up a lover in a strange city...

Plot Keywords:

Masturbation | Very Little Dialogue | Surrealism | Female Masturbation | Porter

Awards:

3 wins

Comentarios de los usuarios:

The Cries and Whispers of Silence

Cast

Ingrid Thulin	...	Ester
Gunnel Lindblom	...	Anna
Birger Malmsten	...	The Bartender
Håkan Jahnberg	...	The Waiter
Jörgen Lindström	...	Johan

También conocida como:

The Silence (USA)
Silencio, El (Argentina) (Spain) [es]

Duración:

96 min

País:

Sweden

Idioma:

Swedish | English | German | French

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sonido:

Mono (AGA Sound System)

Clasificación:

Finland:K-16 (cut) (1963) | Finland:K-16 (cut) (1964) | West Germany:16 (f) (re-rating) | West Germany:18 (f) (original rating) | France:-12 | Finland:K-16 (cut) (1965) | Finland:K-18 (uncut) (2004) | Argentina:16 | Norway:16 (cut) | Norway:18 (1970) | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | UK:X (original rating)

Filming Locations:

Svensk Filmindustri, Filmstaden, Råsunda, Stockholms län, Sweden

Company:

Svensk Filmindustri (SF)

Trivialidades:

The language in the movie is Bergman's own creation, though it has a Slavonic ring to it. The name of the city, which is indicated first in the train's speaker, and then by Anna, as Timoka, is a real word however. Bergman found it in a book in Estonian on the bookshelf of his wife Käbi Laretei. When he asked what it meant, she replied "belonging to the hangman".

Quotes:

Ester: Erectile tissue... it's all a matter of swollen tissue and secretion; a confession before extreme unction. Semen smells nasty to me. I've a very keen sense of smell and I stank like rotten fish when I was fertilized.

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in Masculin féminin: 15 faits précis (1966)

Soundtrack:

THE GOLDBERG VARIATIONS

The Cries and Whispers of Silence

The title of a dark and erotic final chapter of "faith" trilogy may sum up Bergman's own philosophy regarding religion and God – "God has never spoken because He does not exist". Bergman mentioned that he wanted to make a film with as little dialog as possible because "he had made many films with a lot of talking". He wanted "The Silence" to be a pure cinematographic experience where the images do all the talking. The films centers on two sisters, Ester (Ingrid Thulin) and Anna, (Gunnel Lindblom) to whom Ester is physically attracted. Esther, Anna and her 10-year-old son travel together and had to stop in a hotel located in an unnamed European country due to Esther's serious illness.

The film may be viewed on several levels -as the story of two sisters who apparently used to be close but are not able to communicate and understand one another anymore. Or it can be interpreted as a parable of Sensuality, Intellect, and Innocence, that cannot coexist in the world where God does not exist. As with every great and intelligent work of art, "The Silence" has so much to offer to its viewer, it's got so many questions to ask and it does not provide the easy answers.

Complex, suffocating, screaming through the silence, poignant, passionate, harrowing yet strangely hopeful and even funny sometimes - this is an unforgettable film, a masterpiece, a hidden treasure that has to be rediscovered and to receive as much praise and admiration as "Persona" and "Cries and Whispers" - for both of which "The Silence" was an inspiration. The acting by two Bergman's actresses is a miracle (as usual) as well as Sven Nykvist's camera work in creating the claustrophobic world where silence cries, whispers, and kills...