Directed by Ingmar Bergman • 1969 • Sweden
Ingmar Bergman conceived this experimental work as a response to his controversial tenure at the Royal Dramatic Theatre. Focusing on four characters—a trio of actors charged with obscenity (Ingrid Thulin, Gunnar Björnstrand, Anders Ek), and the judge assigned to try them (Erik Hell)—THE RITE alternates between criminal interrogations and interpersonal confrontations shown in flashback, leading to a final “performance” that makes for one of the most bizarre moments in Bergman’s filmography. Staged on bare sets and shot almost entirely in close-up, THE RITE condenses a decade’s worth of cinematic exploration into seventy-five tense, unsettling minutes.
Up Next in Directed by Ingmar Bergman
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The Touch
Directed by Ingmar Bergman • 1971 • Sweden
Starring Elliott Gould, Bibi Andersson, Max von SydowWith his first English-language film, a critical and box-office disaster, Ingmar Bergman delivered a compelling portrait of conflicting desires. In THE TOUCH, a chance encounter between seemingly con...
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Cries and Whispers
Directed by Ingmar Bergman • 1972 • Sweden
Starring Harriet Andersson, Kari Sylwan, Ingrid ThulinThis existential wail of a drama concerns two sisters, Karin (Ingrid Thulin) and Maria (Liv Ullmann), keeping vigil for a third, Agnes (Harriet Andersson), who is dying of cancer and can find solace...
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SCENES FROM A MARRIAGE: Episode 1
“Innocence and Panic”
Directed by Ingmar Bergman • 1973 • Sweden
Starring Liv Ullmann, Erland JosephsonSCENES FROM A MARRIAGE chronicles the many years of love and turmoil that bind Marianne (Liv Ullmann) and Johan (Erland Josephson) through matrimony, infidelity, divorce, and subsequent partne...
