From the Life of the Marionettes (1980)

An account of the events before and after a murder committed by Peter Egermann, a disturbed businessman in a strained marriage, and what led Peter to perform such a shocking act.

Director:

Ingmar Bergman

Writer:

Ingmar Bergman

Stars:

Robert Atzorn, Christine Buchegger, Martin Benrath

1 win.

Cast

Credited cast:
Robert Atzorn	...	Peter Egermann
Christine Buchegger	...	Katarina Egermann
Martin Benrath	...	Professor Mogens Jensen
Rita Russek	...	Katarina Krafft
Lola Müthel	...	Cordelia Egermann
Walter Schmidinger	...	Tim Mandelbaum
Heinz Bennent	...	Arthur Brenner
Ruth Olafs	...	Nurse
Karl-Heinz Pelser	...	The Interrogator
Gaby Dohm	...	Frau Anders - Secretary
Toni Berger	...	The Guard
Erwin Faber	...	The Servant
Heino Hallhuber	...	The Choreographer
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Doris Jensen	...	The Assistant in the fashion show

Storyline

Made during Bergman's tax-related exile in Germany, the film continues the story of Katarina and Peter Egermann, the feuding, childless, professional couple who appear in one episode of "Scenes From A Marriage." After Peter perpetrates a horrendous crime in its first scene, the rest of the film consists of a non-linear examination of his motivations, incorporating a police psychological investigation, scenes from the Egermanns' married life, and dream sequences.

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Plot Keywords:

male frontal nudity | male nudity | dream | death | epilogue | 

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Taglines:

The Woman He's About to Touch is a Dream. The Murder He's About to Commit is Not.

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

West Germany Sweden

Language:

German

Release Date:

30 June 1981 (USA)

Also Known As:

From the Life of the Marionettes

Filming Locations:

Germany

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bavaria Film, Incorporated Television Company (ITC), Personafilm

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min 90 min (theatrical)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor) Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

From the Life of the Marionettes (1980) is director Ingmar Bergman's only film shot in the German language. The Serpent's Egg (1977) was shot in Germany, too, but mostly in English.

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Quotes

Peter Egermann: I must stay calm, not fearful. Controlled, not unpredictable. All went wrong.

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Connections

Featured in ...But Film is My Mistress (2010)

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Soundtracks

Touch Me, Take Me
Performed by Rita Wright

User Reviews

Underrated and under-known

A complex dissection of a murder and a murderer, told by jumping back and forth in time, before and after the event, A deeply disturbing portrait of a man and a society so cut off from feeling that violence seems almost inevitable.

While more divided in public reaction then some of Bergman's most beloved works, I think this edgy, bold, uncomfortable film ranks close to some of his best work. While there are moments of pretension, there's also a lot of human and psychological complexity (and wonderful acting) in this bleak exploration of how near murder and madness lie to any of us.