From the Life of the Marionettes (1980)

An account of the events before and after a murder committed by Peter Egermann (Robert Atzorn), 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 Writer, Producer, and Director Ingmar Bergman's tax-related exile in Germany, the movie continues the story of Katarina (Christine Buchegger) and Peter Egermann (Robert Atzorn), 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 movie 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

Did You Know?

Trivia

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

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Quotes

Tim Mandelbaum: I'm only a child. Then again, maybe not. I don't know about time. It doesn't exist, say those who've thought about it. I shut my eyes and feel like a 10-year-old. Physically as well. Then I open them and look in the mirror and an old man stands there. A childish old man, isn't that strange. A childish old man, that's all. No, something more.

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Connections

References Persona (1966)

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Soundtracks

Touch Me, Take Me
Performed by Rita Wright

User Reviews

another Bergman experiment, lots of interesting psychological bits

Ingmar Bergman's From the Life of the Marionettes, his last film done while in exile during the late 70's, hearkens back to his experimental period in the mid to late 60's. Here he's trying for a deconstructive way to get inside the mind of his subjects, most notably the character of Peter Egermann. The fatal flaw of the film, however, is also something that adds an unusual kind of connection to the material for a Bergman film. It's erratic in its narrative as the director tests himself with jumping around from different times around a single event. But unlike how this has been done by the likes of Tarantino, this is meant not really as a useful story trick, but to try to get different perspectives and acute angles of the subject at hand. The film doesn't reach its greatness for the same reason that it does keep itself watchable- this is very murky, depressing times, loaded with dialog that may or may not go ways to help explain or give some interest in the supporting/main characters, and some startling, if dated, surreal experiences.

It's also a little strange that Bergman decided to connect these characters, however loosely, to the couple in the first episode of the Scenes From a Marriage series, where Peter and Katarina (then played by Jan Maljsmo and Bibi Andersson) were the volatile arguers who juxtaposed the main focus of the film. Here, portrayed by Robert Atzorn and Christine Buchegger, are not only not as spot-on as the former actors (though they are still quite good and splendid in some scenes), the couple is picked under Bergman's psychological microscope where the relationship is very strained and a fatalistic. The opening scene is definitely a mind-blower, with an intensity and harsh sexual edge that is uncommon to Bergman's films (one of his best openings to be sure). Indeed, one of the nice twists, a little shocking at first and then intriguing, is how the filmmaker lets out inhibitions and shows the more explicit images of nudity and the sensual, as well as rock and disco music.

Along with a fragmented approach to the storytelling, where infidelities, insecurities, shame, depression, and outright rage and confusion are brought out in segments that range from the convincing to missing the mark. In a way, maybe Bergman's aims are lowered this time in exile, and he delves more into a doomed personality with visual surprise. Sven Nyvkist, as usual, is still very good with what he does in the frame, especially as this is 90% black and white (with a strange blue tint at times), and his services come into great use in a visual detailing of a dream involving Peter and Katarina naked in a wide, white space. It's maybe the best sequence in the film. In experimenting with the dramatic interpretations, it's not as successful, and some of the supporting actors aren't as good as the leads (a scene with one of the actors talking into a mirror is one of my least favorite scenes Bergman's ever wrote/directed).

Its obscurity is not, therefore, that staggering to see. But it is a good and occasionally spine-tingling character study, and if you are into the filmmaker's work already it's a find that might prove better or more fulfilling. 7.5/10

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

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$4,293

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