An innocent yet pampered young virgin and her family's pregnant and jealous servant set out to deliver candles to church, but only one returns from events that transpire in the woods along the way.
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Title: The Virgin Spring (1960)
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Edit
Cast
| Complete credited cast: | |||
| Max von Sydow | ... | Töre | |
| Birgitta Valberg | ... | Märeta | |
| Gunnel Lindblom | ... | Ingeri | |
| Birgitta Pettersson | ... | Karin | |
| Axel Düberg | ... | Thin Herdsman | |
| Tor Isedal | ... | Mute Herdsman | |
| Allan Edwall | ... | Beggar | |
 |
Ove Porath | ... | Boy |
|
|
Axel Slangus | ... | Bridge Keeper |
| Gudrun Brost | ... | Frida | |
| Oscar Ljung | ... | Simon | |
| Rest of cast listed alphabetically: | |||
|
|
Tor Borong | ... | Farm-hand |
|
|
Leif Forstenberg | ... | Farm-hand |
Edit
Plot Summary
|
Plot Synopsis
Storyline
Set in beautiful 14th century Sweden, it is the sombre, powerful fable of wealthy land-owning parents whose daughter, a young virgin, is brutally raped and murdered by goat herders after her half sister has invoked a pagan curse. By a bizarre twist of fate, the murderers ask for food and shelter from the dead girl's parents, who, discovering the truth about their erstwhile lodgers, exact a chilling revenge. Written by L.H. Wong <as9401k56@ntuvax.ntu.ac.sg>
Genres:
DramaParents Guide:
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See full technical specs »
Details
Country:
SwedenRelease Date:
14 November 1960 (USA) See more »Also Known As:
The Virgin Spring See more »Company Credits
Show more on
IMDbPro »
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Sound Mix:
MonoColor:
Black and WhiteAspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1
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See more »
Did You Know?
Trivia
Received the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film 1960. See more »Goofs
After seating himself in the room where the three drifters are asleep, Tore drives the point of his dagger into a table with a loud thump. It defies belief that none of the drifters were awakened by this. See more »Quotes
Märeta: If you always get your way, you'll please the devil so much that the saints will punish you with boils.See more »
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A powerhouse piece of filmmaking from one of the all-time great directors. This 14th-century exploration of good and evil, morality and chaos, love and revenge is pretty much a faultless viewing experience and one which retains its ability to shock and provoke thought in the viewer even today. I can only imagine what it would have been like to see this on first release.
The story is deceptively simple and yet filled with harrowing imagery. The assault in the woods is difficult to watch, even in these jaded times, and of course Bergman wrings the maximum tension out of it right from the very beginning. The second half is, perhaps, even more tense, with the expectation of impending violence and the strong, subtle filmmaking techniques (think: lots of lurking shadow, religious iconography, haunted faces). The excellent use of black and white photography reminded me of Kurosawa's work on RASHOMON. Max von Sydow holds it all together as the brusque father and family man, but he heads a cast who can do no wrong.
Wes Craven went for a lurid, contemporary remake in LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT, but despite the graphic nature of Craven's film I don't think it holds a candle to this one.