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A name equivalent to the Swedish cinema, Ingmar Bergman's career as a cinematic artist is unique in its abundance as well as countless awards. Eleven of Bergman's significant works including "The Silence", "Summer with Monika", "The Seventh Seal" and "Wild Strawberries" will be shown from September 6 to 8 at the Hong Kong Science Museum Lecture Hall, and from September 13 to 15 at the Hong Kong Film Archive Cinema as a salute to his glorious day of directorship and screen writing.

The gifted director finished his first script at the age of 26 and started to direct three years later. Being a theatre enthusiast, his creativity has undergone constant bursts of energy. In his cinema creations, Bergman lingers between fantasies and reality and his films are full of symbols and metaphors.

His early works are poetic and light-hearted like "Smiles of a Summer Night", which has brought him international attention. However, his true style is signified by a series of existentialistic films that discuss in profound depth the fall of faith in God and the difficulty to exist without spiritual belief.

"Arts lose its basic creative drive the moment it was separated from worship..." said Bergman. Coming from a religious family with a priest father, Bergman has a strong association with religion in his films. Yet, when existentialism swept through Europe, he became the representative of such philosophical thinking with his films questioning the existence of God, unveiled human persona and exposed the cries and silence deep inside every mortal.

With the assistance of The Swedish Institute, "Ingmar Bergman - The Metaphor in His Dreams" is part of a series of retrospective film programmes "Repertory Cinema - A Spectrum of Film Classics and Masters" organized by the Film Programmes Office of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department. Curated by Mr Law Wai-ming, the other European film masters who will be featured from October to December include Werner Herzog, Robert Bresson and Rainer Werner Fassbinder.

The opening film "The Silence" (1963) together with "Through a Glass Darkly"(1961) and "Winter Light"(1963) forms the Bergman's trilogy about faith and redemption. It is a subtle narration of human relationships with the younger sensual sister seducing a waiter, thus forcing her intellectual, sick sister to watch their love play. The film is a straight-forward story with all the emotions generated from the director's brilliant camera movement and composition that vividly present the power of tension. It won the Best Film, Best Director and Best Actress at Guldbagge Awards in 1964.

Silence is golden, dialogues are minimal in "Persona" (1966). Through the masterly manipulation of pure images, Bergman depicts the most enigmatic inner thoughts and psychological world of two women in a closed space. The glowing performance by Bibi Andersson and Liv Ulimann are impeccable. The film won the Best Film, Best Director and Best Actress at the National Society of Film Critics Awards, USA in 1968.

An innocent true love story of a young couple is set in a bright and enchanting summer. But their relationship soon disintegrates when the autumn comes. "Summer with Monika" (1953) is Bergman's early work filled with beautiful summer colours and youthfulness. Harriet Andersson creates the most charismatic Monika ever lives inside the audience's heart. Her charm continues to grow in the love comedy "Dreams" (1955), which tells all the frustrations along the road to true love of two women.

Bergman's humour brings to a climax with the lovely poetic "Smiles of a Summer Night" (1955). A circle of confused relationships encompasses a lawyer and his wife, his son, his mistress who has an affair with the Count, and a maid. Bergman's brilliant cinematography execution and his wit won him the Best Poetic Humour at Cannes Film Festival in 1956.

Can one bargain with Death? A medieval knight challenges Death to a game of chess in "The Seventh Seal" (1957), which is the most influential art piece by Bergman. The film won him the Jury Special Prize at Cannes Film Festival in 1957. In "Sawdust and Tinsel" (1953), Bergman features the circus performers, who bring happiness to audience, are actually marionettes revolving around hopefulness and sarcasm.

Not to be missed are Victor Sjostrom's stunning performance and freshness of Bibi Andersson in Bergman's existentialistic masterpiece "Wild Strawberries" (1957). A renowned professor meets a teenage girl who resembles his long-departed sweetheart and sets a fantastic journey through the memories and dreams of the elderly man. The film won the Best Film Golden Bear and Special Award Life Work and Performance (Victor Sjostrom) at Berlin Film Festival in 1958.

With the same theme as in "Wild Strawberries", "Hour of the Wolf"(1968) presents the everlasting contradictions between reality and art, with a Dracula and Faust setting. A thriller which deals with an artist who is overpowered and devoured by his own internal demons, despite his deliberate move to lead a solitary life with his wife. It won the Best European Film at Denmark Bodil Awards in 1966. "The Shame" (1968), another story by Bergman on love and art, demonstrates the futility of escaping the consequences of war. It won the Best Foreign Film, Best Actress at New York Film Critics Circle in 1968.

Bergman said the film "Cries and Whispers"(1973) was to pay homage to his mother, with the four characters representing four traits of her. Through the tale between three sisters and a maid, it penetrates into the traditional values of sins, lies, despair and forbidden love in life. Three of Bergman's beloved actress starred in the epic complemented with divine cinematography and sophisticated costume design won Bergman the Technical Grand Prize at Cannes Film Festival in 1973.

All screenings at the "Ingmar Bergman - The Metaphor in His Dreams" are in Swedish with English subtitles. "The Silence", "Sawdust and Tinsel" and "Smiles of a Summer Night" will have Chinese subtitles.

Tickets for the Repertory Cinema screenings are priced at $50 each and are now available at all URBTIX outlets. Half-priced concessionary tickets are available for senior citizens, people with disabilities, full-time students and Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA) recipients. A 10% discount will be offered for each purchase of at least three screenings or five to seven tickets in the same classic series and 20% discount for at least five screenings or eight tickets and above in the same classic series as well as Manhattan id card members.

Enquiries can be made at 2734 2891 or browsing the website at www.lcsd.gov.hk/fp. Reservations can be made at 2734 9009 and internet booking at www.urbtix.gov.hk.

End/Friday, August 16, 2002

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