4/5 Scrooge-Like Plot
  by Cary B. Barad (Baltimore, MD)
A strange film with a certain weirdnes that cycles between periods of heightened fascination and introspective periods of observation where nothing much happens. Keep in mind that this movie is filmed in black and white with subtitles. The photography itself is quite interesting, as is the myriad of odd/lovable characters that populate the plot. In essence, a Swedish "Scrooge-like" story where an elderly man reminisces and feels deep regret as he contemplates his past. Worth seeing.

5/5 Warm and wonderful
  by One-Line Film Reviews (Easton, MD)
The Bottom Line:

A sweet and interesting movie about an archaic curmudgeon who starts to reevaluate his life as it approaches its twilight, Wild Strawberries is a wonderful film from Bergman that zips through its short running time and develops a distinct and likable protagonist who we enjoy spending time with; neither as long as Fanny and Alexander, as cold as Cries and Whispers or as depressing as his "silence of God" trilogy, Wild Strawberries is a perfect gateway to Ingmar Bergman and a very appealing film.

4/4

4/5 Finally figured out I was watching this the wrong way.
  by Robert P. Beveridge (Cleveland, OH)
Wild Strawberries (Ingmar Bergman, 1957)

As with a number of Bergman films (the notable exception being Persona), when I first watched Wild Strawberries, I wasn't actually all that impressed with it, save of course for the phenomenal acting. It took me months to fully digest it, to really understand what it is about this movie that makes so many people who know about these things (as well as the general public; as I write this, it is #130 on the IMDB Top 250 list) consider it one of the hundred (in many cases, ten or twenty) best films ever made. The key, when it came right down to it, was the kind of stupid oversight I make all the time; despite my love for Persona, I continue to think of Bergman as a realist instead of a magical realist. Once I threw the idea of realism out the window, Wild Strawberries suddenly made sense.

Isak Borg (the great Victor Sjöstrom, as accomplished a director as he was an actor) is a professor travelling across Sweden to accept an award for distinguished service. With him is his estranged daughter-in-law, Marianne (Bergman regular Ingrid Thulin). As the journey progresses, Borg has encounters both in the world around him (including Bibi Andersson as a pretty hitchhiker) and inside his head, forcing him to look back and re-examine the coldness of his life. Eventually the line between reality and hallucination blurs to the point where we wonder if anything we have seen from the first frame is real.

It's a classic quest scenario done Bergman-style, which guarantees top-notch acting, camerwork, script, and everything else. All you have to do is sit back and enjoy the ride. **** ½


5/5 Artistic expressions captured in simple reflection...
  by Andrew Ellington (Mulholland Drive)
Drawing comparisons to (and probably serving as the inspiration for) Woody Allen's masterful `Deconstructing Harry', and personally reminding me of the shockingly haunting `Eraserhead', Ingmar Bergman's 1957 classic `Smultronstallet' (translated `Wild Strawberries') is truly an unforgettable film. The definition of a reflection piece, `Smultronstallet' gives us a look into the life nearly complete and all the lessons learned from deep and meaningful pondering of that said life.

Isak Borg has been a doctor for fifty years. He is being honored for this great achievement and so decides to take a road trip with his daughter-in-law to receive his award. Upon setting off, Isak is plagued by memories that expose parts of his life that weighed the heaviest on him and that molded him into the cold and selfish man he is today. This reflection helps Isak to see the meaning of his life and what he needs to do in order to truly feel accomplished.

A lot of people have spent time laying out the emotional progression of this film, and normally I would also, but I don't feel the need to just repeat everyone else.

I will mention that the wonderful thing about `Smultronstallet' is that its focus is on self reflection, and while that comes in the primary form of Dr. Isak Borg it is not exclusively contained in him. Everyone around him is affected by his personal reflection and thus are all given the opportunity to expose themselves and work towards change. We are also given modern day glimpses into Isak's past (with the surfacing of three young hitchhikers as well as a bickering married couple) that give Isak, as well as his daughter-in-law Marianne, reason to examine their own situation. Their initial coldness is worn down as they realize they have more in common with one another than they expected.

The film is propelled by some very strong performances, especially from Victor Sjostrom and Ingrid Thulin. Sjostrom, who was eighty when he did this film, is fully realized as Isak, capturing the man's emotional fragmentation as he picks apart his own existence. Thulin is possibly even more effective as Marianne, for it is within her complete transformation (and stunning confession) that the true signs of change are seen. The rest of the supporting cast is also very effective, especially Bibi Anderson (who covers two very important roles) as well as Bjorn Bjelfevstam and Naima Wifstrand; and Gertrud Fridh has a very strong cameo as Karin, Isak's wife.

The film is almost frighteningly realistic in its unveiling of our own humanity, and it is definitely a film that will leave you with much to ponder about your own life. With some outstanding performances and Bergman's brilliantly restrained touch, `Smultronstallet' is a classic example at superior filmmaking.

4/5 Entertaining and even downright touching, but rather lesser among the late '50s Bergman
  by Christopher Culver
Of the three films of the late '50s with which Ingmar Bergman established his reputation as one of the foremost auteurs of the age, 1957's SMULTRONSTAELLET (Wild Strawberries) may be the weakest. Like DET SJUNDE INSEGLET (The Seventh Seal) and JUNGFRUKAELLAN (The Virgin Spring), it treats issues of religious faith and fear of death, but in a much less coherent way. Yet, SMULTRONSTAELLET may be the most charming and endearing of the trilogy, as we watch a crusty old man examine his past and decide to treat those around him better.

The Scrooge-like figure is Isak Borg (Viktor Sjostrom), a retired professor of medicine now in his 78th year. Invited from his Stockholm home to receive an honourary degree at Lund University, he decides to travel the distance by car. Accompanying him on this outing is his daughter-in-law Marianne (Ingrid Thulin), who is experiencing marital troubles with his son Evald (Gunnar Bjornstrand). Along the way, Borg stops at some old stomping grounds, such as the summer house he spent his childhood at, and the area where he first practiced medicine. As Borg drifts into reveries of old memories, we discover how he became so bitter and hostile, but Marianne's incisive comments push him towards rediscovering his humanity.

Of course death is an ever-present spectre when Borg is pushing 80. But the strong religious element comes when Borg and Marianne pick up three hitchhikers, a young lady (Bibi Andersson) with her boyfriend and a family-appointed chaperone. One of these lads wants to be a priest and has strong faith, while the other is hoping to become a doctor and doubts the existence of a god. They quarrel, but somehow this entire matter seems unrelated to the main arc of the film. Similarly baffling is Evald's babblings about how he doesn't want a child because he himself does not want to exist, in which the writing almost seems parody Bergman.

The acting, however, is superb. Sjostrom really brings his character to life with his initial bah-humbug mannerisms and his later senile puzzlement that he cannot win everyone back to him right away. It's amusing to see Bibi Andersson playing a ditzy teenager, a role light years away from her intense turn in Bergman's PERSONA almost a decade later.

The most economic way to see SMULTRONSTAELLET is in the Criterion Collection set of four Bergman films from the 1950s.