rdiogotg If you don't adore this film, you should (finally) go on and try to read a book ( as small as it is) from its first word to its last

Ian (Flash Review)Dr. Borg has reached that point in life, at age 78, where he reflects upon and realizes he has dug many emotional voids. During a long car trip, along with his daughter in-law, to where he is to receive an honorary degree he reminisces about his past decisions. Through flash backs and dream scenes there is much symbolism to punctuate the choices made. The emotional journey the man takes involves soul searching and may lead to potential healing of past relationships he has soured. The film has a rather expected story arc and for me lacks striking cinematography or shot framing. There are many quiet symbolic moments that would be ideal to analyze in a film class as they aren't obviously apparent. Overall, I know this is a Bergman, but it didn't mesmerize me visually aside from the clever editing and the poetic storytelling was lessened by an unsurprising story arc.

grantss Dr. Isak Borg, 78, is a renowned physician and researcher. His life's experiences have left him cold, distant and uncaring. Now he is traveling to be awarded an honorary degree by a university, a reward for his life's work. Driving with his daughter-in-law Marianne, currently estranged from his son Ewald (whose personality seems to be following that of his father's), he finds himself reminiscing about his past, especially his 20s. He has also been having strange dreams, dreams that remind him of the person he has become, and potentially what lies ahead for him.Incredibly thought-provoking and emotional movie. A metaphor for life and what you make of it. As someone who could understand how Isak could get that way, and even endorse how he feels, this was an eye- opening, and potentially life-changing, movie.While many of Bergman's movies are sombre and depressing, this, having started that way, turns it all around, channeling the negativity to find something positive. A very nostalgic and uplifting movie. Also, not that predictable in its positivity. The upliftment sneaks up on you...Wonderful film.

Kyle Perez "Wild Strawberries", or Smultronstället (the original title), was one of two absolute gems Ingmar Bergman wrote in 1957, the other being The Seventh Seal. In both films, we witness the journey of a disillusioned man in pursuit of life satisfaction, an explanation to their existence. We are then introduced to a series of flashbacks, which will reveal a great deal about how they have been shaped into who they have become.The story is of aging professor Dr. Isak Borg and his feelings of remorse near the end of his life compelling him to seek out answers or at least some type of meaning. "I hate resentful people" he ironically mutters, though we are given the brief impression that it is all people he despises. As he travels to Lund with his disarmingly candid daughter-in-law, Marianne, to accept an honorary degree, he will encounter both people and places that will elicit memories, both the good and the bad, of his past, as we watch his feelings of melancholy gradually morph into the affirmation of life of which he was always searching for.So much of "Wild Strawberries" is, at its core, extraordinarily nuanced, with each new experience revealing another layer of our grouchy protagonist. "The place where wild strawberries grow", he gaily reminisces about at the film's beginning. I like to believe that, like 'Rosebud' in Citizen Kane, the wild strawberries serve as an emblem of the innocence in our youth, a memory that evokes hope and sheer joy, parts of life that many people will, as they grow older, seek to regain in some form or another.This film had me in a complete lost for words. It is able to connect with you on such an emotional, profoundly deep level beyond explanation. The cinematography is done with such care, with each detail almost emerging with a consciousness of its own. There is so much life in every frame, whether it being in the forest, the wild strawberry field. The acting and direction is subtle and true-to-life, as we feel that we are witnessing the telling of a genuine life story rather than observing a film. It is, in simplest terms, pure cinematic art.