Ingmar Bergman: Magician and Prophet

Rating:
Summary: Not Very Insightful
Review: Although this book has received high praises on Amazon.com, I cannot share this enthusiasm. The main problem with this book is that it is too superficial, and too cursory. Bergman's films are loaded with meaning, symbol, and depth. This book unfortunately, is lacking in depth. The author reviews each film, and then picks out one scene or theme of each movie and discusses it. He grossly simplifies each Bergman film, and thus fails to explicate the richness of his films. The author's analysis of a key scene from The Seventh Seal is trivial and added nothing to my understanding of Bergman as a dirctor. My advice: skip this book and listen to the audio commentaries on Bergman's DVD's. They are much more illuminating.

Rating:
Summary: Not Very Insightful
Review: Although this book has received high praises on Amazon.com, I cannot share this enthusiasm. The main problem with this book is that it is too superficial, and too cursory. Bergman's films are loaded with meaning, symbol, and depth. This book unfortunately, is lacking in depth. The author reviews each film, and then picks out one scene or theme of each movie and discusses it. He grossly simplifies each Bergman film, and thus fails to explicate the richness of his films. The author's analysis of a key scene from The Seventh Seal is trivial and added nothing to my understanding of Bergman as a dirctor. My advice: skip this book and listen to the audio commentaries on Bergman's DVD's. They are much more illuminating.

Rating:
Summary: A "must" for all Ingmar Bergman fans!
Review: Ingmar Bergman is a legendary film producer whose work had a seminal influence on an entire generation of filmmakers and whose films are still viewed today in film classes and speciality theaters throughout Europe and the United States. In Ingmar Bergman: Magician And Prophet, film scholar Marc Gervais explores how Bergman achieve his cinematic magic through his specific choices in the use of film language and the texturing and structuring of images, sounds, and rhythms. Gervais also shows how Bergman's work continues to resonate with new generations of viewers. Ingmar Bergman: Magician And Prophet is a "must" for all Bergman fans and students of the history of cinema.