Cries and Whispers

Cries And Whispers - Dvd

Ingmar Bergman's acclaimed drama, which deals with the fractured relationships between three sisters, is set in a vast turn-of-the-centur y manor house where unidentified voices are continually whispering and mingle with a dying woman's cries of pain. Karin and Maria (played by Ingrid Thulin and Liv Ullmann, respectively) have come to stay with their sister Agnes (Harriet Andersson), who is suffering from cancer, during the final stretch of her illness. Attending to Agnes is her faithful maid Anna (Kari Sylwan), who, in spite of her apparent social inferiority, is the only one who remains steadfast and dauntless until the very end--the two other women, plagued by guilt, loneliness, and jealousy of one another, are unable to offer assistance or even sympathy in their sister's hour of need. Lauded often for its innovative stylistic elements (such as flashbacks introduced by a fade to red--a color that dominates the picture as a whole--and extreme, expressive close-ups of the actresses' faces), CRIES AND WHISPERS

Cries and Whispers [VHS]

One of Ingmar Bergman's most honored and critically acclaimed films, Cries and Whispers is a complex and harrowing drama of four women's search for spiritual peace in a world that seems to offer only disorder and despair. Harriet Andersson renders a powerful performance as Agnes, a spinster dying of cancer, who is visited one last time by her sisters, Maria (Liv Ullmann) and Karin (Ingrid Thulin). The sisters, and the peasant housekeeper (Kari Sylwan) who cares for them, struggle to make connections within this barren landscape. Bergman, through his lean style of direction, his masterful use of the color red, and his revealing close-ups, creates a disturbing psychological realm through which his characters roam. Sven Nykvist's stunning cinematography earned him an Oscar® and the brilliant ensemble performances gave further evidence of Bergman's legendary skill as an actor's director.