Through a Glass Darkly (1961)

The first film in what later became known as Bergman's chamber-trilogy on the silence of God. Through a Glass Darkly begins somewhat misleadingly with four people - Karin (Harriet Andersson), her husband Martin (Max Von Sydow), her father David (Gunnar Bjonstrand) and her teenage brother Minus (Lars Passgard) - emerging from the sea, as if out of nowhere, in pearls of laughter suggestive of happiness and a sense of togetherness. They are on holiday and as the sun sets the mood is one of relaxed enjoyment. Only gradually do we learn of the despair, doubts, and divisions within the family, as the film advances inexoribly toward its dark conclusion, exactly one day later.

In that time, Karin will learn that the mental illness she believed she was getting over has been found to be incurable; Martin will discover that all he feels for her cannot prevent her hallucinations; David will confess that he has tended to put his work before his family, and that for all his efforts he cannot change; Minus, already in teenage trumoil, will be sucked in by Karin's spiraling madness; and she, hoping God will show himself and help them in their need, breaks down with He reveals his cold, stony face as that of a spider. This terrifying scene (we don't see hte spider, only her distraught reaction to His imagine visitation) constitutes both the dramatic climax and the logical thematic conclusion of immaculately wrought drama virtually unmatched even by Bergman's other films for its sheer intensity.

Through a Glass Darkly, with its handful of characters, isolated setting, brief time span, and uncluttered visuals, allows nothing to dillute the force of its emotional and philosophical thrust. No wonder Bergman saw it as the first if his films that paved the way to his masterpiece, Persona (1966).
Quote of the Day - Karin - "It is horrible to see your own confusion and understand it."

Tomorrow: Shame (1968)