Face to Face (1976 film)
| Face to Face | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Written by | Ingmar Bergman |
| Directed by | Ingmar Bergman |
| Starring |
Liv Ullmann Erland Josephson Gunnar Björnstrand Aino Taube Kristina Adolphson |
| Country of origin | Sweden |
| Original language(s) | Swedish |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | Lars-Owe Carlberg |
| Running time | 114 minutes |
| Distributor | Paramount Pictures |
| Release | |
| Original release |
5 April 1976 (United States) 28 April 1976 (Sweden) |
Face to Face (Swedish: Ansikte mot ansikte) is a 1976 Swedish psychological drama film written and directed by Ingmar Bergman. It tells the story of a psychiatrist who is suffering from a mental illness. It stars Liv Ullmann and Erland Josephson.
It is also the film debut of Lena Olin.
Releases
The film was conceived and produced as a four-part mini-series on Swedish television with a running time of 177 minutes. The episodes were entitled:
- Uppbrottet (The Separation)
- Gränsen (The Border)
- Skymningslandet (The Twilight Land)
- Återkomsten (The Return)
It was edited down for theatrical releases for running times from 114 to 135 minutes. However, the theatrical version premiered first.[1] The film was later screened at the 1976 Cannes Film Festival held in May, but was not entered into the main competition.[2] The television version aired in Sweden over four weeks in May and June of that year, and has not been released for home media.
Plot
Dr. Jenny Isaksson (Liv Ullmann) is a psychiatrist married to another psychiatrist; both are successful in their jobs but slowly, agonizingly, Jenny succumbs to a breakdown. She is haunted by images and emotions from her past and eventually cannot function as a wife, doctor, or individual.
Cast
Principal cast (in credits order)
- Liv Ullmann – Dr. Jenny Isaksson
- Erland Josephson – Dr. Tomas Jacobi
- Aino Taube – The Grandmother
- Gunnar Björnstrand – The Grandfather
- Kristina Adolphson – Nurse Veronica
- Marianne Aminoff – Jenny's mother
- Gösta Ekman – Mikael Strömberg
- Helene Friberg – Anna, Jenny's daughter
- Ulf Johansson – Helmuth Wankel
- Sven Lindberg – Jenny's husband
- Jan-Erik Lindqvist (credited as Jan-Erik Lindqvist)
- Birger Malmsten – Rapist
- Sif Ruud – Elisabeth Wankel
- Göran Stangertz – Rapist
Rest of cast (in alphabetical order)
- Lena Olin – Shop assistant
- Rebecca Pawlo – Shop assistant
- Gösta Prüzelius – Jenny's father
- Tore Segelcke – The woman
- Kari Sylwan – Mari
Awards
It was nominated for Academy Awards for Best Actress (Ullmann) and Best Director (Bergman).
Ullmann was nominated by BAFTA in the Best Actress category.
She was also named Best Actress by the New York Film Critics Circle Awards, the National Board of Review and the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, with the film winning Best Foreign Language Film at the latter.
It also was named by the Golden Globes as their Best Foreign Language Film of the year, with Ullmann also being nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama.
References in popular culture
At the beginning of the Woody Allen film Annie Hall, Allen's character refuses to see Face to Face after arriving a few minutes late for a showing. He instead takes Annie (Diane Keaton) to a screening of The Sorrow and the Pity.
References
- ↑ "Face to Face (1976)". The Swedish Film Database. The Swedish Film Institute. Retrieved 20 March 2014.
- ↑ "Festival de Cannes: Face to Face". festival-cannes.com. Retrieved 10 May 2009.
External links
- Face to Face at the Internet Movie Database
- Face to Face at the Swedish Film Institute Database
- The Ingmar Bergman Foundation Face to Face