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Det sjunde inseglet (1957)
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Overview
User Rating:
Release Date:
13 October 1958 (USA) morePlot:
A man seeks answers about life, death, and the existence of God as he plays chess against the Grim Reaper during the Black Plague. full summary | full synopsisAwards:
7 wins & 1 nomination moreNewsDesk:
(22 articles)
DVD Playhouse--July 2009 (From The Hollywood Interview. 6 July 2009, 11:32 PM, PDT)
Raymond Benson Reviews Two Major Ingmar Bergman DVD Releases From Criterion
(From CinemaRetro. 27 June 2009, 10:05 AM, PDT)
User Comments:
Grim, but not entirely hopeless moreCast
(Complete credited cast)| Gunnar Björnstrand | ... | Jöns, squire | |
| Bengt Ekerot | ... | Death | |
| Nils Poppe | ... | Jof / Joseph | |
| Max von Sydow | ... | Antonius Block | |
| Bibi Andersson | ... | Mia / Mary - 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 |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
View content advisory for parentsRuntime:
96 minCountry:
SwedenColor:
Black and WhiteAspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1 moreSound Mix:
MonoCertification:
Australia:PG | South Korea:15 | Italy:T (re-rated) | Italy:VM14 (original rating) | South Africa:PG | USA:TV-PG (cable rating) | Argentina:Atp | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | UK:PG | West Germany:16 | Spain:13 | UK:X (original rating) | Iceland:12 | Singapore:PGFun Stuff
Trivia:
The procession of flagellants chant the Dies Irae, a famous thirteenth century Latin hymn thought to be written by Thomas of Celano. Before stopping in the village they chant stanzas 1-4 and the Lacrimosa, stanza 18. These are repeated as the procession departs. moreGoofs:
Audio/visual unsynchronized: Just before the arrival of the Christian entourage, Jof and Mia were performing their presentation at the village. At that moment, both of them were supposed to slowly stop playing their instruments - Jof, who was playing the stringed instrument; and Mia, playing the tambour. The sound of the stringed instrument can be heard as Jof is not stroking the strings anymore. moreMovie Connections:
Referenced in "Saturday Night Live: Christopher Lee/Meat Loaf (#3.15)" (1978) moreSoundtrack:
DET SITTER EN DUVA moreFAQ
Any recommendations for other movies by Ingmar Bergman?How much sex, violence, and profanity are in this movie?
Is this movie based on a novel?
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Middle Ages: Antonius Blok, a Swedish knight, returns from the Crusades only to find his country dying of the plague, religious fundamentalists taking over and Death himself wanting him to come along. Antonius challenges Death to a game of chess and is meanwhile driven to desperation because of the absence of God. This description sounds like a very serious, philosophical and dour film, and actually it is serious, philosophical and dour; but there is also a little warmth, hope and humor, maybe not for Antonius, but for the viewer.
When Blok and Death interrupt their game of chess (due to the plague, Death is very busy), he meets two actors, Jof and Mia, with their little son, the most human characters of the film, and I don't think it's a coincidence that there names sound very much like Joseph and Mary. These people may be a little dim, but they are good at heart and you can see the happiness in Antonius' eyes when he is together with them for the first time.
But the main aspect of Ingmar Bergman's arguably best film are Antonius Blok's grim encounters, as the young girl about to be burnt at the stake, as a scapegoat for the plague. And the haunting image of a huge crowd of flagellants interrupting a play of Jof and Mia and trying to convince the crowd thery are doomed; hardly any other film is that direct in asking controversial and essential questions about God, religion and mankind as The Seventh Seal.
Another reason for the impact this almost 50-year-old film has still today is the acting: Max von Sydow's face always seems to reflect what Antonius Blok is thinking, Nils Poppe's performance as the naive actor and caring father is priceless and Bengt Ekerot's Death became a part of film history and survived all its spoofs (the best one being in Woody Allen's tremendously funny "Love and Death"). But the best performance is done by Gunnar Björnstrand as Antonios Blok's misogynist squire, dryly commenting all their encounters even in the face of death.
The Seventh Seal is not subtle in raising it's questions, that's for sure. But it makes you think about these questions nevertheless. It's disturbing and grim most of the time, but at the end it gives you the hope that it might become better.