This epic of magical realism feels like the film Ingmar Bergman had been working towards his whole career. Having come to his works as a student in college, I thought his early works were the last word in sophistication; films that you could impress people with during a dinner conversation. I avoided “Fanny and Alexander” since it was labeled as his “accessible” film. Over the years I drifted to other foreign directors and neglected Bergman. Then about ten years ago near Christmas I discovered the full length version of this film (5 hours plus) and it gave me such pleasure and surprise in watching it. It is (I guess) his most “accessible” film, but Bergman has lost none of his intellectual heft. It is also his most balanced filmed. Lofty musings on life’s meaning, on religion and death, Bergmans favorite topics, abound to be sure, but so do quiet and elegiac scenes of nostalgia, tradition, childhood, innocence, and family. Bergman wove a magical (and at times, dark) Christmas tale with more heart than any cheesy modern holiday film , a film that examines childhood and family more deeply than any Spielberg-esque saga and with an epic sweep David Lean would approve of …and yet it is as intimate and plain spoken as a short story by Willa Cather. Ingmar Bergmans filmography may have been front loaded with masterpieces but this late film is as close to perfection as a mortal can get.

Muito bom o filme, me surpreendeu demais, um ótimo texto, digno de um poema lírico, a obra é simplesmente fantástica, surrealista e fantasiosa, é tão boa que apesar de ser longa, o tempo passa bem rápido. O cinema bergmaniano é para ser assistido em estado de graça, toda a minha ode a este grande diretor de cinema .

As a native Swede, nothing shows the eeriness of Swedishness as much as this movie. Watch it. Learn to not like Sweden.

One of Ingmar Bergman's best films

This film is long but never boring, both joyous and quite sad, harsh but also exuberant. It's lushly filmed and the performances are solid, especially Alexander. I quite liked it and I understand why it's considered one of the greats.

What is Ingmar Bergman's best film? Persona? The Seventh Seal? Cries and Whispers? Or could it be Fanny and Alexander, Bergman's semi-autobiographical story of growing up in early 20th-century Sweden? The first act of the film is a joyous celebration of what it is to be young as young Alexander (Bertil Guve) rollicks through life with the expansive Ekdahl family, a bourgeois group who embrace the joys of music, food and theater. However, when his father dies and his mother marries a stern bishop, he finds himself at the mercy of the cruel whims of his rigid stepfather. It is a visually stunning film, shot by Bergman's regular cinematographer Sven Nykvist, the first half filled with vibrant colors, the second half with drab tones, clearly representing the contrasts in Alexander's early life and punctuating the significant impacts of the adult influences in our formative years.

Criterion have put out a fantastic 3-disk set on blu-ray that includes both the 188 minutes theatrical version and 5 hour and 20 minute television version, and in addition to many other supplements including a thick booklet we are also treated to Bergman's self directed documentary The Making of Fanny and Alexander! For the most complete version of Bergman's vision, you must watch the television version as the theatrical has been trimmed almost in half. While the film is extremely long, it is never boring or wasting time with unneeded elements. Fanny and Alexander may start off a little slow as it introduces characters and stories, it is so wonderful to watch the stunning cinematography and poetic dialogue that runs throughout Bergman's whole film and for that matter filmography! With both likable and villainous characters and a phenomenal script you can't take your eyes away even for a second. Hearing the dialogue and watching the beautifully filmed settings, you know this is something special. This isn't just a masterpiece but a visual representation that captures Bergman, the believes and ideals and is such, a piece of him preserved in film history forever! While it is indeed long, its a film that needs the time and attention of the viewer and justly rewards those that are willing to do this!

I can't break down what I just watched. Melding the metaphysical with the real life brutality and love of family life is clever but impenetrable. I liked how they showcased the promiscuous husband as a loved family man and the sheer sinister nature of the bishop. Some amazing characters here.

this is an excellent movie

This film came on TCM in the middle of the night. It kept me awake. I couldn't stop watching BUT I did dose off here and there. Perhaps I was just too tired. It was difficult to read all the colored-white subtitles on a 32" 온라인카지노추천!! The ONLY real ridiculous part of the story for me was how the close-knit and caring mom could dramatically "turn off", suddenly wed that conservative Bishop AND permit that turd to dominate her kids' lives. Even in very early 20th century Sweden, I don't believe a loving mom from an educated and artistic, close-knit family would do that. I can suspend disbelief for all the other absurd happenings in this film but not the mom's sudden submissiveness toward that bully at the expense of her children.

Fanny and Alexander is a stark and haunting picture of the ocean of difference between religion and freedom. "…ye shall not afflict any widow, or fatherless child. If thou afflict them in any wise, and they cry at all unto me, I will surely hear their cry; and my wrath shall wax hot, and I will kill you with the sword..."

It's a 3 hour far-reaching drama and coming of age story for Alexander. The first hour drags a little in setting the landscape for the entire film, but the narrative is strong and relatable. The mean minister is exceptionally evil and a love to hate kind of character.

Bergman may trade in some of the most blatant elements of potency evident in some of his earlier works for a more personal narrative, but the lack of subtlety doesn't detract from the impact. The poignant construction of the Bishop, and, by extension, the Church as a whole, is always compelling: the villain convinced of his righteousness who justifies any number of misdeeds as holy work strikes a particular nerve. But what stands above all else is a traditional Bergman talent, the ability to interweave the mystical with reality in order to comment on the human condition. (4/5)

Absolute masterpiece in every way.

My first delve into the archives of Swedish director Ingmar Bergman. Apparently this film at 3 hours is one of two versions with a 5 hour version in existence! What I will say is it is slow, be patient. Have an intermission. It is not a two hour Hollywood blockbuster. Once you get over that first thirty minutes of slow pace it is actually a good story. It basically is set in turn of the century Sweden and follows the family life of a young brother and sister over a year or so. Apparently part autobiographical from Bergman it shows what millions of kids have to tolerate each year, a remarriage and all the repercussions of that. The film does have some fantasy elements. I'm thinking of ghostly appearances of a dead dad etc. but despite the length it keeps the viewer on side. From a technical perspective the film seems high spec for a foreign language, non-Hollywood production. The set design, cinematography, screenplay and lighting are all top quality. Three hours of a good film I can cope with but I would not be able to do five!

This is epic! Heartbreaking story of one big Swedish family.

Fanny & Alexander is the only 3+-hour film which upon finishing I immediately said, "I want to see that again." Part ghost story, part family drama, the film draws you in early and doesn't let go. Bergman's films are all so different from one another, it is hard to choose a best, but Fanny & Alexander is perhaps my favorite.

Visually extraordinarily beautiful, great plot, many characters and all are dutifully explored, with either exagerations and their subtle nuances. There is also a theatre play (which I saw) and an abbreviated film version (which I did not see); the play gives much less understanding of the place of each character and above all those remain rather superficially overseen (although the great troop of the Comedie Française did an excellent job with it). I was taken by the differing insights into the Ekdahl family, as they travel from their collective (but not individual) happiness to distress then relief. This is an exceptional masterwork.

Too long for modern movies.

Fanny and Alexander is a great movie because of how much care Bergman puts into ensuring that all of his characters are developed, how precise his shots are, and how emotionally affecting his epic, sprawling story is.