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Through a Glass Darkly

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7.8/10 • 504

1961-10-161h 31m

Drama

Karin hopes to recover from her recent stay at a mental hospital by spending the summer at her family's cottage on a tiny island. Her husband, Martin, cares for her but is frustrated by her physical withdrawal. Her younger brother, Minus, is confused by Karin's vulnerability and his own budding sexuality. Their father, David, cannot overcome his haughty remoteness. Beset by visions, Karin descends further into madness.

Directors
Ingmar Bergman
Editors
Ulla Ryghe

Top Billed Cast

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  1. Harriet Andersson

    Harriet Andersson

    Karin

  2. Gunnar Björnstrand

    Gunnar Björnstrand

    David

  3. Max von Sydow

    Max von Sydow

    Martin

  4. Lars Passgård

    Lars Passgård

    Minus

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CinemaSerf Avatar

CinemaSerf

Jul 24, 2023

7/10

A family convene on a Swedish island following the return of the father "David" (Gunnar Björnstrand) from an extended period in Switzerland where has was ostensibly completing his novel. The family consist of his daughter "Karin" (Harriet Andersson) and her doctor husband "Martin" (Max von Sydow) and his seventeen year old son "Minus" (Lars Passgård). From the outset, it's clear that there are issues facing these relatives - they want to be the ideal, loving family but "Karin" has just returned from a psychiatric hospital and her younger brother has issues feeling valued and dealing with the opposite sex. The story is an angst-ridden introspective; each of the family members must look themselves in the mirror and question their attitudes to each other, and themselves. The most potent of these tasks falls to the young "Minus" who has a relationship with his sister that borders on the incestuous, and is further complicated when his sister discovers that her disease in incurable and she turns to him for comfort. Von Sydov and Björnstrand feature quite sparingly - this is really about the two youngsters and it sails very close to the wind in terms of 20th century ethics and morals - whilst also exposing some of the darker elements of human nature and mental illness. Not an easy watch, but it is remarkable.

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Status
Released
Original Language
Swedish
Budget
--
Revenue
$8,939.00
Keywords
daughterislandschizophreniaauthormental illnesselectroconvulsive therapycriterion