BETWEEN HEAVEN AND HELL: THE FILMS OF INGMAR BERGMAN – FEBRUARY AND MARCH AT THE IFI

The Irish Film Institute announces 

Ingmar Bergman Season 

Between Heaven and Hell: The Films of Ingmar Bergman 

 across February and March

22 films exploring some of his timeless masterpieces as well as lesser-known works, including:

The Seventh Seal, The Virgin Spring, Wild Strawberries, Through a Glass Darkly, Persona, Fanny and Alexander. 

In cinema and available for streaming on IFI@Home

Watch / share the season trailer HERE

Images can be downloaded HERE 

 

Tickets available HERE

 

Ingmar Bergman (1918-2007) made more than 60 films and documentaries, as well as directing over 10 plays and writing several novels and autobiographies.

This February and March, the Irish Film Institute (IFI) will present a curated retrospective over two months, reflecting part of his prodigious output, allowing audiences to explore some of his lesser-known works – early films such as Prison and To Joy, perhaps – while revisiting the timeless masterpieces such as Wild Strawberries and The Seventh Seal. A total of 22 of his films will be screened at the IFI in Eustace Street, with a large-scale hybrid season offering available to stream throughout the Republic of Ireland via IFI@Home from Saturday, February 1st. This retrospective has been curated for and is screening exclusively at the IFI and on IFI@Home.

A towering figure whose legacy permeates across twentieth-century culture, Ingmar Bergman has created images so iconic that his name alone has become shorthand for a particular strain of seriously intended, refined, intellectually stimulating European art cinema, to the extent that we are at risk of forgetting just how groundbreaking, beautiful, and truthful his films are.

No other filmmaker has so relentlessly plumbed the depths of the human psyche, and explored our relationships to one another, and to good and evil, and done so with greater visual invention, and with such élan and consistency. 

The season will begin on February 1st with the IFI@Home offering live online, and with his assured early film PORT OF CALL* (Hamnstad) (1948) screening at the IFI that day, and will continue in IFI cinemas throughout the month with: 

 

– PRISON** (Fängelse) (1949), the first Bergman directed from his own original screenplay. February 2nd. 

 

– TO JOY* (Till glädje) (1950) the compelling tale of a young man’s struggle with the demons standing in the way of his happiness.February 5th.

 

– SUMMER INTERLUDE* (Sommarlek) (1951) is considered to be a creative turning point. A reflection on life and death that unites Bergman’s love of theatre and cinema. February 8th.

 

– SUMMER WITH MONIKA* (1953) (Sommaren med Monika). Bergman had a major international breakthrough with this sensual and ultimately devastating tale of young love, featuring Harriet Andersson, in the first of her many roles for him. February 9th.

 

– SMILES OF A SUMMER NIGHT * (Sommarnattens Leende) (1955) Bergman’s first international success. February 12th.

 

– WILD STRAWBERRIES* (Smultronstället) (1957). A poignant, elegiac masterpiece, the film is, despite its subject, one of Bergman’s most humane and accessible works. February 15th. 

 

– THE SEVENTH SEAL* (Det Sjunde Inseglet) (1957). The best known of Ingmar Bergman’s films, and indeed one of the most iconic works in the canon of twentieth-century cinema. February 16th.

 

– THE MAGICIAN** (Ansiktet) (1958) Max von Sydow stars as Dr Vogler, a nineteenth-century travelling mesmerist and peddler of potions and magic lantern performances. February 19th.

The screening will be introduced by Tara Brady, writer and film critic at The Irish Times.

 

– THE VIRGIN SPRING** (Jungfrukällan) (1960). One of Ingmar Bergman’s most controversial films and winner of the Academy Award for best foreign-language film. February 22nd. 

The screening will be introduced by Donald Clarke, The Irish Times’ chief film correspondent.

 

– THROUGH A GLASS DARKLY* (Såsom I en Spegel) (1961). The first part of Bergman’s thematically linked ‘trilogy of faith’ exploring belief and alienation in the modern age. Winner of the Academy Award for best foreign-language film. February 23rd.

 

– WINTER LIGHT ** (Nattvardsgästerna) takes place one stark afternoon in a Swedish village where a widowed pastor (Gunnar Björnstrand) struggles to preside over his dwindling congregation. February 26th.  

 

Part Two of this intriguing retrospective will commence in March when audiences will have a chance to experience:

 

– THE SILENCE** (Tystnaden) (1963) the concluding film in Bergman’s triptych on themes of faith and religion. March 1st.

 

– PERSONA* (1966) features Liv Ullman in the first of her many collaborations with Bergman. The screening will be introduced by Professor Ruth Barton, Dept. of Film, TCD. March 2nd.

 

– HOUR OF THE WOLF (Vargtimmen) (1968) is a startling psychological horror. March 6th. 

 

– SHAME (Skammen) (1968) is Bergman’s scathing response to the escalation of the war in Vietnam, again featuring Liv Ullmann and Max von Sydow. March 8th.

 

– THE PASSION OF ANNA (En Passion) (1969) once again brings together Ullmann and von Sydow on screen. March 9th.

 

– CRIES AND WHISPERS* (Viskningar och rop) (1972) is a profound examination of the human soul featuring outstanding performances. March 13th.

 

– SCENES FROM A MARRIAGE** (Scener ur ett äktenskap) (1974) is a piercing portrait of a disintegrating marriage, featuring Liv Ullmann and Erland Josephson, shown here in its feature-length version. March 15th.

 

– FACE TO FACE (Ansikte mot ansikte) (1976), in which Ullmann’s raw and harrowing performance earned her widespread acclaim and an Academy Award nomination, shown here in its feature-length version. March 16th. 

 

– AUTUMN SONATA** (Höstsonaten) (1978), the only collaboration between the two great Swedish Bergmans: Ingrid and Ingmar. Exquisite acting from all concerned makes for riveting viewing. March 19th. 

 

Screenings finish on March 29th with his late masterpiece FANNY AND ALEXANDER* (1982), shown in its feature-length version, and an elegiac, magical film in which all of Bergman’s old ghosts are laid to rest.

 

* Indicates titles that will be available on IFI@Home.

**Indicates titles that are available to stream exclusively on IFI@Home.

 

IFI@Home titles will be available from Saturday, February 1st throughout the Republic of Ireland via www.ifihome.ie/. Additionally, Jane Magnusson’s documentary BERGMAN: A YEAR IN A LIFE (Bergman – ett år, ett liv) (2018) will be available with the IFI@Home season to provide the online audience with crucial insight into the director’s life and work.

 

All 22 works will be screened only once in cinema. The full schedule of dates and times can be found at ifi.ie/ingmar-bergman/.  

 

BOOKING INFO & IFI@HOME PRICING

 

Book now for cinema screenings via ifi.ie/ingmar-bergman/ or via box office in person or over the phone via 01 679 3477. 

 

The IFI season cinema pricing scheme is as follows:

	Member Price
3 Film Pass	€30.00
5 Film Pass	€50.00
10 Film Pass	€100.00
Full Season Pass	€220.00

 

***Season membership fee of €5.00 applicable to all bundles for Non-Members
****22 & Under cardholders will be able to avail of €5.00 tickets

Tickets for the IFI Talk on Saturday, March will be €5.00 and will not be covered by any of the passes.

 

IFI@Home is free to browse and join in the Republic of Ireland, to get started you’ll need to create an account. Films will be available on IFI@Home for €4.99 per film, with pre-orders available from this week and films available to view from Saturday, February 1st. A full online season bundle, allowing you to watch all 19 online titles, will be available for €80.00. Once you have rented your film, it will remain active in your Library for 72 hours. Once you click play, you will have 48 hours to finish watching. Some of our films may only be available for a shorter time period, due to licensing restrictions. Please read the film description carefully before purchasing.

 

The IFI acknowledges the support of our primary funder the Arts Council.