God and the Devil: The Life and Work of Ingmar Bergman

by Peter Cowie

Peter Cowie's book chronicles the life and the 60-year film and stage career of Bergman as he wrestles of themes of love, sex and betrayal as the figure of Death hovers overhead.'With his death in 2007, an entire age of cinema had come to an end.' Wim Wenders'Bergman's films stand alone as beacons in film history.' Wim Wenders

Genres: Film, Biography, Nonfiction, History

407 pages, Hardcover

Published April 9, 2024

About the author

Peter Cowie is a film historian and author of more than thirty books on film. In 1963 he was the founder/publisher and general editor of the annual International Film Guide, a survey of worldwide film production.

Reviews

[Mae Lender · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bergmani klanni(st) asju ma ikka loen. Raamatule suuremat ette heita ju pole, samas ei saaks öelda, et liiga palju midagi uut teada saab. Kena ülevaatlik kirjatükk.

[Joseph Kinsley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was definitely hoping for more from this, but Peter Cowie always has struck me as a bit of an intellectual lightweight. Some of the flaws that plague this book are ones that unfortunately apply to film criticism as a whole. There seem to be very few film critics that go below the surface, and Cowie is no exception.

His introduction to the book states that he is eschewing film analysis in this book, which he does for the most part, but why does he feel the need to include plot summaries of almost every film, especially considering most readers have probably seen most of them?

Cowie provides no real insights into Ingmar Bergman at all, either as a man or as an artist, and what few insights he does offer are often repeated throughout the book. Even from a strictly biographical standpoint, the book feels a little light on detail. I also found a lot instances of sloppy editing, with duplicated wording and some inaccurate chronology. Unfortunately, we're still waiting for a great book on Ingmar Bergman (at least in English).

[David Blakeslee · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you're looking for an easily accessible and briskly paced overview of Ingmar Bergman's entire career and life story, this is the best volume that I can recommend. Peter Cowie knew his subject personally, having conversed and interviewed him numerous times since they first met in the late 1960s. He's the consensus "go-to" film critic on Bergman's work and has been featured on many commentary tracks, supplemental features, and other documentary bits offering his well-informed insights on all things Bergman over the past several decades. Having already heard a lot of that material before I read the book, much of what I got here feels like an abridged version of the more extensive takes he has to offer. There's also a lot of new information that I hadn't encountered yet, mainly from the years before and after his creative prime, and it's great to have this account of Bergman's life contained in one volume.

That said, it felt very familiar and at times even kind of predictable. I would have welcomed some further excursions and greater depths of analysis on Cowie's part - sometimes his summaries of the relative significance and value of a particular work or play cuts off with just a statement or two when I know he had more that he could have said, though I can understand his (or his editor's) preference to keep the narrative moving with a manageable page count. I suppose that this volume will provide an excellent guided tour of the highlights of Bergman's impressive career and enough background information on his personal character, relationships, and philosophical journey to provide a thorough introduction for future readers. Those who enjoy what they find here and want to go deeper are encouraged to check out Cowie's more extended takes on Bergman's greatest films, most of which are available on Criterion Collection editions.

[Laurens · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best book on Bergman’s life and work i’ve read. His autobiography leaned more into theater work than his films and this has a beautiful balance that makes me actually want to see his theater work.
You can tell Peter Cowie is a fan of Bergman but he definitely doesn’t eschew from the showing uglier sides of my favorite artist of all time.
It’s a good mix between biography and analysis too, and you can tell Cowie knows so much about his films, not only how they were made and at which point in Bergman’s life they were made, but also offers some analysis himself, thus creating a wonderful blend of biography and ‘essay’ that shines light on the personal and the way it came alive on screen. Great stuff.
Moved me too. What an exceptionally long life.

[Craig · Rating 5 out of 5]

My first real dive into Bergman’s life, outside of the Criterion box set book, and his movies, most of which contain more of Bergman than I realised.

Well written, reads at a cracking pace, touching on all the important people and moments in his life. I can’t think of a better introduction, really. Bergman was incredibly repetitive in his themes, but incredibly creative in how he explored them. Once you know his fixations, there’s really no point in delving deeper into the stories. For me, that would destroy their magic.

This book does a marvellous job of rounding up all you need to know about Bergie from a professional pov, while also filling in the very personal aspects of his life. Keen to read Images next but after that I’ll stick to the movies and docs.

[Brodie Gron · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was slightly underwhelmed by this. I’m a huge fan of Bergman’s 50s and 60s work (of course, they are widely regarded by all serious cinephiles) and this book just didn’t get into the detail that it could have. Only 3 or 4 pages on Persona? GTFO.

Still, a good high level overview of the troubled but extraordinary life of the great artist.

[Willem Derks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Accessible and informative portrait of a flawed, yet brilliant filmmaker. I’ve enjoyed many of Ingmar Bergman’s films (Persona being one of my all-time favourites) and this biography has left me excited to watch more of them. It was fascinating to learn about the parallels between Bergman’s life and his films and how his work was influenced by his own experiences. Four stars out of five

[Adam Dalva · Rating 3 out of 5]

Feels a bit rushed, without nearly enough analysis, and it begins, strangely, to repeat itself nearly sentence by sentence in the last 50 pages. Given the promise of Cowie's level of access, a disappointment.

[iosephvs bibliothecarivs · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid biography from the English-language Bergman authority.

[Stev · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bergman - a talented, visionary auteur

- a difficult husband and a dreadful father.

[Tien P · Rating 3 out of 5]

I absorb Ingmar Bergman more through his movies than this book. But can’t complain. More like the BTS of each movie

[Ralph Burton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Surface level

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can see that Peter Cowie is a film aficionado. The analysis of Bergman's movies weigh more than the analysis of his life.

[Kati Mamo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ülimalt huvitav ja põhjalik raamat Ingmar Bergmanist.

[Anu · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kuivavõitu. Nagu kataloog, nimed, nimed, nimed. Paks ja tihe raamat aga eriti targemaks ei saanud!

[sarah ☆ · Rating 4 out of 5]

i'm so fuckdd upppppp bergmannnnn 😭😭😭😭😭😭