Persona
Composite Score: 85.47
Starring: Bibi Andersson, Liv Ullmann, Margaretha Krook, Gunnar Björnstrand, and Jörgen Lindström
Director: Ingmar Bergman
Writer: Ingmar Bergman
Genres: Drama, Thriller
MPAA Rating: Not Rated
Box Office: $90,556 worldwide
Why should you Watch This Film?
Persona is Ingmar Bergman’s psychological thriller about an actress who has stopped speaking and the nurse assigned to treat her. The film stars Bibi Andersson and Liv Ullmann as its leading ladies, Nurse Alma and Elizabet Vogler the actress, with Bergman having written the film with them in mind for their roles. Filled with Jungian psychology, dream sequences, and more symbolism than a C.S. Lewis novel, the film is considered one of Bergman’s greatest films. Bibi Andersson received a BAFTA nomination for “Best Foreign Actress” for her work in the film, and it currently sits at 249th on IMDB’s list of Highest Rated Films and 43rd on Letterboxd’s Top 250. The film has been a constant focus for film and critical analysis and remains one of the best ever made.
Why shouldn’t you Watch This Film?
Within the complexity and immersion of Persona also lies its biggest challenge for audiences: Bergman has not tailored it to please his viewers; he has tailored it to challenge their minds. For more casual audiences, this makes for a highly unapproachable film. While it doesn’t shun all convention, it certainly shies away from most of it as much as it possibly can – embedding stories within stories within dreams within memories – all of it chock full of symbolism, psychology, and undertones both subtle and overt. It’s a film that invites you to think about it and dwell on its meaning for hours and days on end, and if that’s not something you’re prepared to commit to at this point, I don’t think I can recommend watching Persona. If you can, though, read on.
So wait, why should you Watch This Film?
For those prepared to engage with it, Persona is one of the most enthralling films ever made, layering story on symbol on subtext in a beautiful execution of what film can be in the hands of a great director and writer like Bergman. (Note: a lot of film students set out to make films like this from the jump, and most of them suck. You’ve got to first be good at convention before you’re allowed to throw it out the window.) Bergman’s understanding of story and audience expectations shines in the ways that he constantly subverts and fulfills expectations from moment to moment in this film. He has cast two phenomenal actresses in the film’s central roles, both of whom are fully bought in to Bergman’s vision for the film, helping him execute it in two of the best female performances of all time. Ullmann’s silence plays so well against Andersson’s expressivity, and the personification of one into the other comes on so naturally as they continue to interact. This is a different film with different actresses, and I don’t know if it quite hits the same notes with anyone else. The twists and turns of their relationship offer the audience a moving yet cryptic look at power dynamics, relational taboos, performance art, and human obligation.
Without spending thousands of words breaking down each scene of Persona piece by piece, I don’t know how else to convince you of its greatness other than by saying that the film might be the prime example of a director in full mastery of his art working with his ideal script and two incredibly talented performers. It’s not an easy film to dive into by any stretch of the imagination, but its rich palette of psychologically engaging symbolism makes for a fantastic watch when you’re feeling it. You can currently stream this film on Max if you’d like to check it out any time soon.
