Effect of too much restriction?

The Silence (Tystnaden, Swedish; 1963)

Written and Directed by Ingmar Bergman

Concluding Bergman's trilogy of faith is this movie about two sisters and a 10 year old boy. Again, this is another movie which would make you wonder the direction the film is taking, initially. Unlike its predecessors, this one does not question religious faith, but rather the faith on how we should lead our lives.

It starts with Ester, a sickly lady with paroxysms of cough and breathlessness, her sister Anna who is stylish but appears to be irritated with her sister. There is Anna's son, Johan, who seems to be in his own world looking and learning all the things around him. They seem to be travelling in a train in a foreign country.

At a hotel, Ester is still ill but she still refuses to see a doctor but instead buries her sorrows in vodka and cigarette. Anna is busy with self immersion, immersed in a bath and getting dressed for a piece of action in the new town. The town is in brinks of war with sounds of shell blasting being heard. Johan is happy absorbing things around him like a sponge. He makes acquaintance with a group of Spanish dwarfs who are staying in the same hotel. Then there is a old butler who takes a liking to Johan, even though they do not understand each other and do not speak each other's language.

On and off, Ester, does her work of translating documents. Anna goes on her walk about and makes contact with a waiter in a brasserie. Then, the stories starts making sense. Anna comes back to the room to boast to her sister on her sexual escapades!

The way I make of the story is that Ester who is the elder of the two had been taking care of Anna and had been set in her ways and how life should be lived. Anna, the rebel, had to follow unwillingly. She lived by Ester's rules which were as methodical as her line of work, a translator. Now that Ester is weak and powerless, it is her time of revenge. We start to wonder Anna's child is illegitimate.
Ester, I think, also has aversion to men.
After a big showdown between the sisters over a Anna's casual sexual contact, Anna and Johan leaves the hotel heading home, leaving Ester alone in the room.

What the story teller is trying to say is that we can only impart our values so much to the our wards. Everyone have their own values and eventually choose their place of comfort.

Comments

Gory historic details or gore fest?

Razakar: The Silent Genocide Of Hyderabad (Telegu, 2024) Director: Yata Satyanarayana In her last major speech before her disposition, Sheikh Hasina accused those who opposed her rule in Bangladesh of being Razakars. The opposition took offence to this term and soon widespread mob throughout the land. Of course, it is not that that single incident brought down an elected government but a culmination of joblessness and unjust reservations for a select population group. In the Bengali psyche, Razakar is a pejorative term meaning traitor or Judas. It was first used during the 1971 Pakistan Civil War. The paramilitary group who were against the then-East Pakistani leader, Majibur Rehman, were pro-West Pakistan. After establishing independence in Bangladesh, Razakars were disbanded, and many ran off to Pakistan. Around the time of Indian independence, turmoil brewed in the princely state of Hyderabad, which had been a province deputed by the Mughals from 1794. The rule of N...

The products of a romantic star of the yesteryear!

Now you see all the children of Gemini Ganesan (of four wives, at least) posing gleefully for the camera after coming from different corners of the world to see the ailing father on his deathbed. They seem to found peace with the contributor of their half of their 46 chromosomes. Sure, growing up must have been hell seeing their respective mothers shedding tears, indulgence in unhealthy activities with one of them falling prey to the curse of the black dog, hating the sight of each step sibling, their respective heartaches all because of the evil done by one man who could not put his raging testesterones under check! Perhaps,the flashing lights and his dizzying heights that his career took clouded his judgement. After all, he was only human... Gems of Gemini Ganesan L-R: Dr Revathi Swaminathan, Narayani Ganesan, Dr Kamala Selvaraj, Rekha, Vijaya Chamundeswari and Dr Jaya Shreedhar. ( Abs: Radha Usman Syed, Sathish Kumaar Ganesan) Seeing six of Ge...

Chicken's Invite? (Ajak-ajak ayam)

In the Malay lingo, the phrase 'ajak-ajak ayam' refers to an insincere invitation. Of course, many of us invite for courtesy's sake, but then the invitee may think that the invitation is for real! How does anyone know? Inviters and invitees must be smart enough to take the cue that one party may have gatecrashed with ulterior motives, or the other may not want him to join in the first place! Easily twenty years ago, my family was invited to a toddler's birthday party. As my children were toddlers, too, we were requested to come early so that my kids could run around and play in their big compound. And that the host said she would arrange a series of games for them to enjoy. So there we were in the early evening at a house that resembled very little of one immersed in joy and celebration. Instead, we were greeted by a house devoid of activities and no guests. The host was still out shopping her last-minute list, and her helper was knee-deep in her preparations to ...

RIFLE RANGE BOY

Search This Blog