Persona and Shame: The Screenplays of Ingmar Bergman

by Ingmar Bergman, Keith Bradfield (Translator)

Ingmar Bergman is still the doyen of cinema. He is known for masterpieces of controlled human emotion, exploring every facet of the personality in relentless detail. He "I had the possibility of corresponding with the world around me in a language that is literally spoken from soul to soul." These two screenplays, liberally illustrated with production stills featuring actors, including his favourite actress, ex wife, Liv Ullman, are classics of the screen. They will be sought after by film students, and lovers of his films, New interest in Bergman is being generated by the recent release of Faithless, Liv Ullman's 2001 masterpiece, with a screenplay by Bergman. Born in Sweden in 1918, Ingmar Bergman is still contributing to his canon of work.

Genres: Film, Fiction, Plays

191 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 2002

About the author

Ernst Ingmar Bergman was a nine-time Academy Award-nominated Swedish film, stage, and opera director. He depicted bleakness and despair as well as comedy and hope in his explorations of the human condition. He is recognized as one of the greatest and most influential filmmakers in cinematic history.

He directed 62 films, most of which he wrote, and directed over 170 plays. Some of his internationally known favorite actors were Liv Ullmann, Bibi Andersson, and Max von Sydow. Most of his films were set in the stark landscape of his native Sweden, and major themes were often bleak, dealing with death, illness, betrayal, and insanity.

Bergman was active for more than 60 years, but his career was seriously threatened in 1976 when he suspended a number of pending productions, closed his studios, and went into self-imposed exile in Germany for eight years following a botched criminal investigation for alleged income tax evasion.

Reviews

[Manny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well, come on, tell me what this movie's about! It must be about something. And you're the central character, or so we're assured. But how can the central character not say anything? How are we supposed to know what you're like?

Don't just look at me with those big eyes. Give me a hint. You mean that words are an inadequate way to communicate what we think and feel? That if we stopped talking for a minute and really listened, then we'd be able to hear the things that mattered? That most of the time we talk mainly for effect, or to fill the silence, or because we're afraid of thinking about the important things?

No, that's not it. I wondered for a moment, when you smiled... but I guess your smile meant something else. Maybe you mean that not talking says more than talking. That when we don't talk to people, we say more than when we do. That I should think about the people I'm not talking to, and the ones who aren't talking to me?

You could at least nod or shake your head. Help me see if I'm on the right track. But you don't. Why not? Damn it, this is pretty annoying. I've watched your movie five times now, and I still haven't figured it out. I'm pretty smart. It's your fault. You shouldn't be so obscure. Just explain it in normal terms. That would be a whole lot simpler.

Okay, if you're going to be like that then I won't watch you any more. See if I care. I am now officially telling the world that I will not watch Persona again. Maybe that'll get a reaction. Oh, and the opening sequence. It sucks. Bigtime.

Damn it, you smiled. I didn't mean it. I will watch you again. Maybe I'll get it sixth time round.

Aaargh!!

[Meredith is a hot mess · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm reading a few psychological thrillers and many of them have themes & premises that remind me in some way of Persona. It had been awhile since I watched an Ingmar Bergman film and I thought I'd take a look at his screenplay and rewatch the movie.

I'm hesitant to write a review, because there are people who are better qualified. I'm not a cinephile. I'm simply interested in Ingmar Bergman and love his movies. I was able to take a course on film in college, and I had to choose an auteur to write a paper about. I went through a list of auteurs online and watched a few of their films. I connected to Ingmar Bergman's films the most. His trademark themes of isolation and existentialism combined with the visually stunning cinematography of Sven Nykvist made his films irresistible to me.

All of Ingmar Bergman's films are deeply personal to him, and a reflection of himself. While reading the screenplay I could see Ingmar Bergman through the women. Persona seems to be the most meta out of all his films as one layer is about the making of movies, and Bergman's own language through film. There are psychological and philosophical layers. It's erotic, sensual, and also surreal. There's a dream-like aspect.

The first time I watched Persona I was utterly confused by the relationship between the two women. Were they lovers? Bibi Andersson said in the documentary Persona: A Poem in Images that she and Liv Ullmann thought not. She said the relationship between them was close and sensual, but more about the melding of the two women's identities than romantic love. It's not clear the most sensual scenes are reality. They could be a dream.

Now that I've accepted the film is layered and not to be fully understood the film is less baffling. Ingmar Bergman said himself about the film: “On many points I am unsure, and in one instance, at least, I know nothing.” I think Bergman was being cheeky with that answer. He certainly had a clear vision for the film, although I believe he meant it to be multifaceted. I think he knew if he kept mum about the meaning it would leave the door open for critics and viewers to make their own analysis.

Persona is not my favorite by Bergman, but it's a masterpiece that has continued to influence directors decades after its release. Mulholland Drive is my favorite movie that takes after Persona, but it's influence can be seen in other movies like Black Swan, Fight Club, Apocalypse Now, Vertigo, and many more.

Some of my favorite movie stills from Persona:

[notgettingenough]

Wherein I revisit Persona, a regrettable decision.

According to the man, since he won the Grand Prix at Cannes with Smiles of a Summer Night in 1956, his fame meant no-one would give him honest criticism, he said.
"There hasn't been anyone with whom I can discuss my scripts," he said.
"Even when the film is done, there is no-one I can show it to who gives his sincere opinion. There is silence."

Mr Bergman, step this way.

HONESTLY?

I’m really fucking irritated, Mr Bergman that I had to listen to a stream of complete drivel from girl one in this movie, whilst girl two says nothing at all. I tried to look on the bright side of this. Maybe if she did speak she’d be even worse.

I follow the idea that you can’t stand people, but nonetheless, women come off badly in a way that now, long time later, is simply oldfashionedly sexist. When they aren’t talking drivel they are being hysterical. Or withholding, that’s another one, thinking of that comedy which has the guy involved with two women, the wife who does’t give out at all and the ex-lover who makes her living out of the opposite, the ex-lover whose mother made her fortune by having secrets to tell too. I guess since you got to fuck any female you wanted to, whilst behaving, by all accounts like a complete pig, you had little cause to respect them, is that it? I sort of get that. They can’t have had much respect for themselves, I guess. There is even the most hilarious (unintentionally, I think) male fantasy of getting to fuck somebody other than his wife, certain it is his wife – even though his wife is watching. I mean, right there watching, not hiding behind the curtain watching. If it WERE true, that girl one was being taken over by the persona of girl two, why didn’t her acting step up? I mean, the other girl was an actor!!! Get with the plot, man. Plot. Well, you know. Not plot obviously. That would be not in keeping with being on the cutting edge of experimentalism.

I understand, further, that you’d just had a disaster, a comedy in which I vaguely recall you got all your shags to star, perhaps that is just a recipe that isn’t likely to work, and yes, the French were experimenting…but. Did you have to?

I’m ploughing my way through your movies again, and with the exception of The Seventh Seal, I am sorely disappointed to date. Maybe I’m on an unlucky run and it’ll get better.

It’s nothing personal, the French are disappointing me too. I’m hoping that the Italians don’t let me down when I get to them.

Please don’t tell me what a masterpiece everybody thinks this movie is. As the man said, nobody is willing to tell him the truth. That’s my take, anyway.

It all serves me right for revisiting my childhood, when I was raised on this stuff and couldn’t get enough of it. Isn’t it splendid, the uncritical nature of childhood?

[Li-Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of the most erotic scenes I've read. Bergman is such a complex writer and I like the fact that there are so many interpretations to what's really happening to these two women. Layers. So many layers. For me, that's very much like real life. There are so many layers to what's happening at any given point, between what someone's actually saying, and all the other layers of subtext that's really happening underneath.

(Of course I'm currently working on this scene in my acting class so I can't really talk about it too much).

[soulAdmitted · Rating 5 out of 5]

Persona ottenebra e abbaglia in un'unica mossa. Bergman tra l'altro non ti insegna a uscirne indenne. Nemmeno se lo supplichi con sussurri e grida.
Aggiogante.

[Доберман Сатэ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Being a Bergman’s fan, this book was a great experience. I got this book as a gift from one of the teachers from the High school I also teach. This was a great and unexpected gift.

I love the characters and the gloomy/depressing feeling they provide. I enjoyed this book/script a lot.

[Ion · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ingmar Bergman has long been one of my favourite film-makers and I have always considered "Persona" his greatest work of art. In this book, we have the screenplays for the latter, as well as "Shame" and a short essay "The Snakeskin", all by the same author.

Many say that artists should never justify their work, and to a degree Bergman barely succeeded in expressing his raison d'être into art in "The Snakeskin". Here he likened the artist to any animal, their existence being defined purely by the act of being themselves, and yet this idea does not fully translate in his work.

The main event of the book is, of course, "Persona". This elusive play about two women, who find themselves as both healers and patients, reads less like a screenplay, and more like a novel. This allows the author to get to the core of what is the art of being. The conclusion is not one that can easily be expressed in words, but rather one that is understood by our psyche through emotion and rationality. The effect is simply spellbinding! Had Bergman not directed his own film, it is rather difficult to see how any other artist could have translated this stunning, yet complicated, script into a film.

"Shame" has a much darker tone. Caught in the middle of a civil war, the central couple of musicians disintegrate (almost literally) into nothingness. Their morals, beliefs, behaviour, even love, changes to the point that we see little humanity left. This is a powerful anti-war work, and given its sheer nihilism, it is easy to see why it captured a smaller audience in time. Yet again, we find Bergman writing like a novelist, allowing us not only to trace the dialog and actions or actors, but also to dive deep inside their souls.

Overall, this is a must read!

[Sheryl · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was not the scripts that moved me to rate this with five stars, it was the "introduction" Snakeskin. Brilliant. I will never forget his words about art.

[Adelyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ingmar Bergman will always be the greatest filmmaker for me. His movies are incredibly poetic (everything. ranging from cinematography to screenplay) and everytime i finish a Bergman film i just feel this sense of emotion i don’t get from other films. When you’re watching a Bergman film, it feels as if you’re in a dream-like state. I always feel a sense of loneliness, confusion and satisfaction because i love complex films with deep meanings in them. And his films sure are packed with them.

What i also love about bergman is that he touches on topics that are realistic and are not “hollywoodesque” if that makes sense (cliche). He doesn’t sugar-coat things. He bears everything in it’s true state, it doesn’t matter how unpleasant they are.

Persona is about an actress (Elisabeth Vogler) suffering from a midlife crisis. During one of her performances she faints due to an emotional breakdown. She awakens in a hospital where she refuses to speak a single word. Elisabeth then decides to go to a beach house, accompanied by her nurse (Alma). Here everything unravels. Based on what i’ve read, it seems as if Elisabeth is projecting Anna as her persona.. or the other way around. Elisabeth hates her life, and she envies Alma’s freedom (Elisabeth is both a mother and a wife). Alma has had quite a wild life (like being involved in orgies), where Elisabeth is trapped in with a family she doesn’t love. She also wishes to have a normal life, like Alma (Elisabeth works as an actress, where she’s always below the spotlight). She also possibly decides to remain mute to contain her fears in life (she’s clearly dealing with a lot of things, which overwhelmes her). Therefore she unleashes her persona (Alma) to take her place.

Shame is set in period where war is taking place. It follows a married couple, Jan and Eva. They’re both suffering from a rough patch in their relationship, and to make things worse they’re unable to escape from the war that has invaded their area. What I love about this movie is that you can feel the pain they’re going through. Every second a new problem comes up, it seems like they’re trapped in an endless loop of torment. The themes this film explores are gruesome (self loathing, moral decline, violence and shame). You don’t see these kinds of themes being mentioned in movies these days. This is another reason why I adore him, he dares to incorporate risque idealogies into his films. In Persona, Bergman explores duality, loneliness, insanity and representation.

I love reading this script, being a huge Bergman fan it’s a true privilege to be able to read what he wrote on his own.

[Maa jed · Rating 4 out of 5]

برگمان زخمهای قدیمی روح ما که روی آنها را خون خشکیده گرفته ، ابتدا لمس می‌کند و سپس اینقدر با آنها ور میرود که گوشه ای از آن خون خشکیده از پوست جدا شود. وقتی خارش زخم و حس کندن خون خشکیده ی روی آن بی تابت کرد ، تو را با زخمت به حال خود رها می‌کند که هرچه خواستی با آن بکنی ....

[Hosein Ghezelbash · Rating 2 out of 5]

زیاد جالب نبودن ... دوتا داستان سر درگم و بدون هیچ کششی ... واقعا فیلم‌های قدیمی مصیبتی بودن

[زمین · Rating 3 out of 5]

انگار بعضی وقت ها همه چیز مثل یک رویای عجیب و طولانی بنظر می رسه.این رویای من نیست.رویای کس دیگه ای که من مجبور شدم نقشی در اون داشته باشم.هیچ چیز دقیقا واقعی نیست.همه چیز سرهم بندی شده.فکر میکنی وقتی اون آدمی که این رویا رو می بینه از خواب بیدار بشه و از رویای خودش شرمگین بشه،چه اتفاقی بیفته؟

[Jamie Grefe · Rating 5 out of 5]

More soulful and haunting this time around the bend. The horror of non-self, of dissolving into the fissures of the abyss.

[BUDWHOLE]

Crawl, crawl, crawl, crawl, crawl . . .

[Eli Vannata]

Read on Fårö, Sweden. Felt so poetic. Like sat on the beach, where Persona was shot, with toes in the freezing water reading this.

[Daniel Granville · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellently structured scripts. Modernist.

[reivant · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5
Prefiero la película, pero estuvo interesante

[Joni · Rating 3 out of 5]

perused solely for academic purposes. writing alternately bad and very bad. surprise surprise

[Ian Robinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Two screenplays that each focus on two characters, but which show vastly different approaches to the human psyche, as well as to screen writing and the films that were resultant. I found them both utterly absorbing, as texts. That I cannot speak or understand Swedish means it is something of a new experience, to be able to read the dialogue at my own time and as easily as i want to. As a film maker, I was not only enjoying the stories, but learning from Bergman's craft. It is also worth noting where the scripts differ from the finished films, and how the words on paper were interpreted and created into live filmed drama by Bergman and his actors.

[Ali · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m not crazy about Bergman, I’ve never been. But I like him in some way. He in some way broke the bariers to talk about ”myself”, my background, and even about ”my sickness”. With Bergman, Shame as a framed moral, changed to a discoursive way of behaviour …

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a movie first -with beautiful actresses- and then a book. And still the book is better than the movie.

[Ava · Rating 4 out of 5]

فیلم اش رو دیدم.