BERGMAN 100!

Secrets of Women at The Cinematheque

Early evidence of Bergman’s skill at comedy is found in the anthology-like Secrets of Women, a project designed to showcase some of Sweden's best actresses. While four women wait for their husbands to join them at a summer house, three relate stories about crucial events in their marriages. Episode one has Rakel (Anita Björk) recalling an encounter with an old flame. In episode two, an experiment in visual storytelling with minimal dialogue, Marta (Maj-Britt Nilsson) remembers an affair in Paris. The celebrated third segment — inspired, Bergman said, by Hitchcock’s use of confined spaces — has an uncommunicative couple (Eva Dahlbeck and Gunnar Björnstrand) trapped in an elevator. “It may well be the most amusing 20 minutes in the whole Bergman canon” (Trevor Johnston, Time Out). “Essential early Bergman ... This film announced Bergman internationally as a director with a unique understanding of women” (Bergman Foundation).

Run Time: 107 Minutes