'Persona' is one of the most enigmatic movies in the history of cinema. Those who read the chronicles written right after the 1966 release of the film or the articles dedicated to it in the books of cinema history will encounter as many interpretations as authors. The same happens if we read the opinions written by film lovers on sites like IMDB, or we discuss the film between us. Ingmar Bergman had the inspiration not only of not talking a lot about this film (even less than about his other films) but he also avoided sharing too much of his personal thoughts or ideas even with the actresses or the other members of the production team. The result is an enigma. Each of us who sees or sees again this movie has his own Persona'.

The ambitions are clear from the way the film is 'packaged' using the classic projection room effects. Short sequences from classical films emphasize the effect of declaring 'here we have a work of cinema'. The prelude sets up an atmosphere that could be defined as a dream, we are clearly in a world that resembles the real world but which exists only in the eyes and souls of the spectators, built with materials put together by the creator of the film from his own thoughts and dreams about the world. The 'story' could be told in few words, even if it is not a banal story. This is where the interpretations begin. What do we actually see on the screen? An ambiguous relationship between two women, evolving from a patient-care relationship to an attraction that starts to look as a melding of one into the other? Are the two characters the symbols of the two facets of the human personality - the soul and the character - as interpreted by some experts in the psychoanalysis theories? Is there a hint (or more) to a lesbian relationship? Maybe there is an element of class struggle, between the actress active on the intellectual level and the country girl whose strongest emotions are on the erotic plane? Are we dealing with a horror story, a thriller in which there is a physical threat and a struggle between the two women to gain control one over the other? Why did the actress stop talking - personal traumas, maternity failure? What is the connection between the horrors of the outside world (wars, the Holocaust) and the inner storms concealed by the Scandinavian calm? These are just a few of the questions that can be asked and of the possible interpretations.

Comprehensive and ambitious cinematographic constructions involve risks. More than 50 years after the film, the Vietnam War is no longer actuality but history, closer to the Holocaust which is also quoted by the famous photograph of the terrorized little boy in the Warsaw ghetto. The black and white image also gains aesthetic significance, not necessarily obvious and intentional at the time the film was made. Acting is gorgeous, Bergman's two preferred actresses (and lovers), Bibi Andersson and Liv Ullmann are building on the screen two versions of femininity that at some point merge one into the other, two variants of the director's fascination with women for which he created the most generous roles in his films. Seen for the first time or seen again today, 'Persona' is a cinematic art concentrate and an intellectual challenge that continues to attract and fascinate through its open character and enigmas.

To quote Colin Mochrie of Whose Line is it Anyway, "it's CRAP"!!! To put this into perspective, I love foreign films--and I'd rather see them than most Hollywood films. I have seen perhaps as many as two thousand foreign films--and most of the "must see" films of directors such as Bergman, Truffaut, De Sica, Kurasawa, Fellini, Bunuel, etc. So, my strong opinion is not without some experience--I am not just some jerk who knocks Bergman's films because they don't have explosions or toga parties!!!! My contention is that SOME of this wonderful directors (or at least some of their films) are incredibly overrated, and are seemingly above criticism. Well, not from me--I love to stir the pot of controversy and call it like I see it. Check out some of my other reviews--I had ADORED some foreign films (such as The Umbrellas of Cherbourg) or directors (Akira Kurasawa) yet been unimpressed by other films (Such as several of Fellini's films--Satyricon and Juliet of the Spirits).

So, on to Bergman. My favorite film he made is The Seventh Seal. It wasn't exactly my favorite when I first watched it, but found that the more I thought about it (with its originality and intense performances), the more I was impressed. Scenes from a Marriage, Through a Glass Darkly, Fanny and Alexander and other movies of his were excellent, but not great films, as they had flaws which prevented them getting higher ratings.

Persona is the only Bergman film which I gave a really BAD rating. It is hopelessly bleak, choppy (when it purports to be artsy by including repellent seemingly random images in portions of the movie) and silly. The mentally ill central character (Liv Ullmann) does not talk throughout the movie but the dialog is spoken by her nurse (Bibi Andersson)--who increasingly becomes irritated with Ullmann for her silence. I felt much the same way about half way through the film. All this excitement(?) is set in a seaside vacation home. I guess many found it shocking or sophisticated--all I felt was bored and amazed with how unimpressive the film was.

So, maybe you should see it for yourself and make your own decision. Maybe all the critics are right and I am just a hopeless crank! My wife would tend to agree (that I am a bit of a crank, that is)!!

Actress Elisabet Vogler (Liv Ullmann) has lost the ability to talk. The doctor can find no medical reason for it. Sister Alma (Bibi Andersson) is a nurse put in charge of Elisabet. Alma talks to Elisabet and eventually starts revealing intimate details of her life. Alma becomes more volatile but Elisabet is still unable to talk.

This is truly a film rather than a movie. The visual style is stark black and white. There are snippets of surreal imagery. There are iconic Bergman blocking. It is so iconic that some even mock it in satires. The central idea of the duo personality is poetic. Of course, I'm not smart enough to decipher it without help. Essentially, this is mostly one long monologue from Alma to Elisabet. The narrative gets tiring. This may be an iconic film but it's not for me.