Scenes from a Marriage

"Scenes from a marriage (1974, Ingmar Bergman) is an adaptation of the TV mini-series from the same director a year earlier. At the moment of writing this review (december 2021) the film is the highest rated Bergman movie on the IMDB database.

The film can be interpreted as a sort of "When Harry met Sally" (1989, Rob Reiner) in reverse. In "When Harry met Sally" a man and a woman take a very long time finding out that they are destined for each other. In "Scenes from a marriage" a man (Johan played by Erland Josephson) and a woman (Marianne played by Liv Ullmann) take a very long time finding out that their breaking up and divorce is not the end of their relationship (and maybe not even the end of their love). When we add "Who's afraid of Virginia Woolf" (1966, Mike Nichols) to the equation we can make the following mapping:

"When Harry met Sally" is about the pre marriage phase.

"Who's afraid of Virginia Woolf" is about the marriage phase.

"Scenes from a marriage" is predominantly about the post marriage phase.

From this mapping it can be derived that in essence the naming of "Scenes from a marriage" is less fortunate.

Given the high rating the movie was a bit of a disappointment for me. I have seen better Bergman films, for example "Fanny and Alexander" (1982), also a TV mini series turned into a feature film.

The reason for the disappointment is I think the fact that in the movie the blame for the failure of the marriage is somewhat unilateral put on Johan. It is not a bad guy versus good girl movie, certainly not, but already in the first scene we see a confident Johan boasting at a journalist while Marianne is the modesty itself. Also in later scenes the man (not always Johan) is usually the one acting annoyingly. In the second scene for example Johan and Marianne are dining with a couple that starts quarilling with each other after a couple of drinks. By the way this scene owes a lot to "Who's afraid of Virginia Woolf".

Disappointing for me or not the film has had a lot of influence. Sometimes the influence is on the whole oeuvre of directors such as Woody Allen and Richard Linklater. Sometimes the influence is on specific films about failed marriages such as in "Winter sleep" (2014, Nuri Bilge Ceylan) and "Loveless" (2017, Andrey Zviagintsev).

"Scenes from a Marriage" (1974) directed by Ingmar Bergman is yet another of his numerous masterpieces, having directed more than 40 feature films in his career.

The film follows two characters, Marianne and Johan, and in typical Bergman style, he examines ontological questions of love, loneliness, being and what it means to be 'fulfilled' through the two protagonists. As with all of Bergman's films, 'Scenes From a Marriage' is not simply a plot narrative, in this case about a married couple and their 'ups and downs'. Rather, with his usual finesse and intellect, Bergman successfully probes into what it means and feels like to need the love, security, and validation of another person and the consequences of life-changing decisions that can happen in a marriage.

"Scenes from a Marriage" is a seminal masterpiece from one of the greatest directors in film history, and on par with many of his other films, and in my opinion only bested by two of his films "Winter Light" (1963) and "Persona" (1966).

Originally a miniseries, it was edited down to 169 minutes. It concerns itself with Liv Ullman, a divorce lawyer, and academician Erland Josephson. Over the course of ten years their marriage breaks down. Written by director Ingmar Bergman in a reported three months, it was shot quickly; cinematographer Sven Nykvist later stated that, given its later theatrical release, he would have liked more moving shots. Given the short schedule and tiny budget, that seems impossible in retrospect. As it is, the transfer from videotape to film gives it an inconsistent look, even within individual scenes; that seems to contribute to its intimacy and subjectiveness.

I think the lack of rehearsal, and the central roles being played by two Bergman regulars give the performances a freshness and lack of polish that contribute to the truth of the movie. These are two people who change, hesitantly and unwillingly, in the throes of overwhelming emotions. The lack of polish, the enormous emotional shifts with scenes give it a documentary feel, even as the characters talk almost endlessly.

Unlike Bergman's earlier works, which are often theological musings on why G*d doesn't give us more directions, this shows two people trying to make their way in a world where G*d, if he exists, is irrelevant. It's a search for meaning without any hope of objective guide, of people trying to snatch some happiness desperately, in a existential world. It offers no grand messages, no singular route to happiness for all of humanity, just for two individuals.

... or at least until one of us has had enough, although that will more than likely be reciprocated. There's a good chance you'll recognise a lot of the characteristics, dialogue and awkwardness on show here although everybody's story is different, but it's the craft of the actors moulding the directors words and wisdom that creates a near perfect marriage made in heaven - as so many of Ingmar Bergman's films do, and as such, you'll struggle to divorce your eyes and ears from the conversation, your mind and memory from reflection.

Out of all of Ingmar Bergman's movies I've watched, this one's probably my least favorite, although I do think that it is a very good movie.

It has all the qualities of a great Bergman film, but I just felt that the story was too mundane to be succesfully carried by Bergman's slow, dialogue heavy style for such a long runtime.

It's still really good though, and Liv Ullmann's performance alone makes it more than worth watching.