Fanny and Alexander (The Theatrical Version) - Criterion Collection

Rating:
Summary: The best version of the best film
Review: Ingmar Bergman's "Fanny and Alexander" is considered his finest work and one of the best films of all time for a reason. Criterion's 5-disc set is beautifully done and incredibly generous; you get the five-hour version as well as the three-hour (with a very informative commentary track by a Bergman scholar), on top of which you get "Dokument Fanny och Alexander" along with several other features, all of which are very interesting. Also, the dvd transfer of the film is gorgeous; every shot looks like a painting. The subtitles are better translated than they were with the VHS version, and they make more sense if you were familiar with it. The packaging is beautifully done too. You could tell that Criterion really respects this film, and I could not think of a better way to introduce new fans to it. The three hour version is a masterpiece, but the expanded version adds so much more onto it that I can't understand why someone would not get it instead.

Rating:
Summary: Widescreen television enhanced.
Review: It says on the package that the DVD has been enhanced for widescreen TVs. Such enhancement usually means that a film is masked att top and bottom to make it look more like wide theater format. So part of the picture is actually removed.

Does anyone have an earlier edition to compare with?

Rating:
Summary: Wondering
Review: My comments apply not only to F&A but countless other "reviews" found on Amazon, Why do viewers think they are reviewing a film by only summarizing the plot????? To the point on occasion of giving away what might otherwise be a nice surprise to the new viewer, I think it may be a simple case of seeking the spotlight, of basking in borrowed limelight,(in their minds) for the requisite Warhol 15 min of fame,, nearly enough said,,,except I have learned to rapidly pan down a wordy wordy wordy review in order to stay unscathed,,sorry if I offend,,,but only slightly

Rating:
Summary: Powerful
Review: This ORIGINALLY THREE HOUR LONG film was extended for Swedish Television a couple of years after its release. I've seen both versions and must say that the story makes much more sense in the five hour version, and I hope that's the one we eventually will get. However, some stuff (15 to 20 minutes or so) could have been left out in the extended version without having affected the story line, but all shots are nevertheless enchantingly beautiful. Bergman has said that this film (apparently his last for cinema) sums up all his work as a director, and I have no doubt that his career in film couldn't have ended on a higher note. The movie is flawless and powerful, plus on DVD we'll be able to watch it in the widescreen format!

Rating:
Summary: Bergman's Powerful Farewell
Review: Though I give Fanny and Alexander only 4 stars, I can totally understand reviewers who give it 5 stars. I did so only because I prefer more "artsy" or "ambiguous" Bergman such as Persona or Cries and Whispers. But Fanny and Alexander is by far the best mainstream film I've ever seen, and this is Bergman's most accessible. I can't believe how thoughtful and thought-provoking this film and others like it are, in comparison to average Hollywood fodder. Even young Bertil Guve and Pernilla Allwin give stunning performances as the title characters, portraying emotion and expression as genuinely as any of the adult characters. I won't even begin to analyze the plot, the film being over 3 hrs. long; see it for yourself. I will just say that Fanny and Alexander is among filmdom's best. Kudos to the master for going out in style!

Rating:
Summary: one of the best things ever put on film
Review: Well, I gotta say it. This is Bergman's greatest work. It's quite a shock watching the complete miniseries and comparing it to the theatrical release; I can't imagine how they decided what to cut and why. The "new" parts only add to the film's depth and beauty, and I could have easily sat through all of it in a movie theater. Well, okay, maybe with a bathroom break in the middle.

I'm going to lend the miniseries to my friends and tell them to skip the theatrical release altogether, which is still great in its own right, but is, in retrospect, a bit more choppy and uneven somehow. The miniseries is wonderful, it moves smoothly and beautifully through some stunning scenes that just work so well on so many levels; it's really not so different than walking into a novel by Dickens or Garcia Marquez. My favorite "new" parts were the surreal dream sequence towards the end, the funny yet sad fight between Carl and his German wife at the summer house, and also Fanny and Alexander's father's death scene, which is a bit longer than in the theatrical release and very moving.

Even if you're not such a fan of such philosophical and weighty movies, which this is in the most unpretentious and creative ways possible, the powerful emotions and events of Fanny and Alexander may still well turn you into a Bergman fan. Enjoy it and watch it over and over again, it seems there's always more there. Spend a weekend with it, it's truly a great work of art.