This is Bergman’s represented film. As previously we know, Bergman is able to combine fiction into real world. This time he is going to discuss about death. Unlikely in Wild Strawberry, he put much on indifference of relationship and regret, he took words from Bible to open the topic. The opening and the ending are scenes can’t miss. The weather at beginning is sunny day accompany wind blowing. With tide patting, the camera turn to the leader actor, the knight, who set a chess board on the sand. The weather at the end is thunder night along with heavy rain. With tiny fire light in castle without man except the knight’s wife, they have their last dinner. Fortunately, Bergman comprehensive his style, I am glad that the heart-warming, optimistic, and believable couple survive.

To be frankly, this is my first time to watch it, and I don’t take note. Though I want to do notes, but I am so tire these days that I decide just appreciating it. There are numerous elements in the film (or it can’t be recognized an iconic cinema). Not only topics, but shooting style. Remember the beginning that the death agree to play chess with the knight? The scene is so amazing where the death’s up side is on the left, and the knight is on the right, the background of the death is sunshine contrast to the knight, which is heavy cloudy. I guess many of you who have watched the movie notice that this is one of cover photos. It is too typical and the importance would not less the death itself. Just analysis the picture we are informed the end, death, is designated and can’t avoid. Through the process of sunshine passing to heavy cloudy, it also reveals the film’s path would be, including the knight’s thinking. By the way, the scene occurred perfectly in five minutes from opening which obeys the rule of movie shooting. If someone has watched The Man from U.N.C.L.E may probably find that Gay Rich, Madonna’s ex-husband, let the theme unmask at seventeenth minutes, even longer than golden fifteenth minutes (but I forgive him since the song and action are matching my expect)! Again, Bergman is really a great director, who can use a simple construction tell all story, and that is the terrific mise-en-scene!

Sorry, let us back to film. We’ve talked about the opening, then let me turn our view to the process of their tour. Because it is a long road, the director arranged the second couple as another aspect to discuss the God, kind actor couple. Contrast to the knight and the servant who fight religion war for ten years and feel tire, they bring laugh to people in the period of plague contamination. The most obvious evidence is that he saw Maria when he first appeared to audience. Until I finished whole film did I know why Bergman put this strange scene while the night and the death are bargaining delay deadline. Everyone who see the death in the film only the life is close to the end as candle is going to burn out, only the actor who saw Maria can run away the fate. Actually, it is virtually that everyone who company the knight back to his castle would die with him. This isn’t surprise since we are given the message previously: plague is wideness contamination in whole country, especially in south, which is said by the knight (I am not sure, it may be from his servant) and that means they came from south. In addition, the wife of actor mentioned that forest is dangerous that embeds disease and danger, which soon happened at the thief who steals from dead people. We can infer that the knight and his servant were contracted for a period and they continuously communicated to others. When they back to the castle, the building full of virus, they face the death.

So the last topic I want to discuss is the death. The last scene, they are asked to dance the death dance on the hill by a strict master death, which is another stunning scene of the movie. Six men and women in a line follow the death. That’s really so cruel scene when I saw it. Bergman took the actor’s view of point to illustrate it, so the scene was long shot, which has the figure of hill cut the middle of scene separating up side and down side. This responds to the wife of the night has read: when the seventh angel pick up its horn…. When we go forward, we can see how different ways people facing die. The girl who slaughtered by fate, the servant who don’t believe the god, and the knight, who then questioned the God, three of them are the real theme that Bergman discussing and exploring. These are three typical types of people’s mind when man facing death, though kinds of people are so various. The girl knees down and preys. The servant gives up and deny. The knight looks to God but questions it. They form a well triangle construction and either like a circle. The mise-en-scene is the all, and I have no words to describe it.

To conclusion, this is really a good cinema that worth watching again and again. I will find another time to watch again, and take notes. For people who know how to watch a movie, there are so many things to study, including the light. For people who are interesting in, this is a good way to think the issue of death more completely and explore new aspect to consider it. Please don’t forget to think: why Bergman pick the knight, the servant, the couple of actors, the hammer man…. They are very important symbol of living style types. I won’t say which type is better but we should think deeper to explore what we are and the world is.