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SMILES OF A SUMMER NIGHT
Review by Michael Jacobson
Stars:
Ulla Jacobsson, Eva Dahlbeck, Harriet Andersson, Margi Carlqvist, Gunnar
Bjornstrand, Jarl Kulle, Ake Fridell, Bjorn Bjelvenstam, Naima Wifstrand
Director: Ingmar Bergman
Audio: Dolby Digital Mono
Video: Full Frame 1.33:1
Studio: Criterion
Features: See Review
Length: 108 Minutes
Release Date: May 25, 2004
“How
could a woman ever love a man?”
“A
woman’s view is seldom based on aesthetics.
And one can always turn out the light.”
1955
didn’t begin as a banner year for Ingmar Bergman. His marriage was ending, his career was in jeopardy after
making two box office disappointments in a row, and his health was troubling him
(he had psychosomatic stomach pains and had lost a lot of weight).
It was hardly the ideal scenario from which to pen a comedy.
But
if you believe the Mel Brooks’ line that comedy is born from pain, perhaps it
isn’t too big a stretch to accept that Bergman wrote and directed Smiles of
a Summer Night, an absolutely charming and whimsical romantic comedy that
not only won the hearts of audiences everywhere, it provided a happy ending to
his own personal drama with its big win at the Cannes Film Festival, which
allowed Bergman his first foray into international success and acclaim.
It was a comfortable place for him, because he never really left it
again.
This
was a film that showcased an entirely different side of Bergman:
his humor. It may have been
apparent here and there throughout his career, but for modern audiences, it
might be a bit of culture shock to consider a picture like this from the man who
gave us the brooding existentialism of The Seventh Seal, the somber
treatises of faith in his religious themed trilogy, or the introspection of Wild
Strawberries. The craftsmanship
was still apparent, but the tone was disarmingly light, as his script hearkened
to the best of Oscar Wilde and Moliere, but still managed to sound distinctly
Bergman.
Call
it a chamber comedy or a bedroom farce, if you will…it’s the story of four
men and four women who are mismatched in their romantic pursuits.
Bergman pairs them off in terrific enlightening scenes that clearly
demonstrate who should be with who, then brings them all together in a clever
and possibly magical way so that they can discover this for themselves.
Fredrik
Egerman (the always reliable Bjornstrand) is a lawyer and a widower, who took
the extremely young Anne (Jacobsson) for a second bride, but perhaps sooner than
he was ready to…they never even consummated their marriage.
He has a young son Henrik (Bjelvenstram), a melancholy lad unsure of his
own heart. Though he’s preparing
to enter the clergy, it seems as though he’d be a better match for Anne than
his father.
For
Fredrik still carries a flame for his old lover, actress Desiree Armfeldt (Dahlbeck).
They seem like a good couple who never really solidified owing to
circumstances. He visits her in the
middle of the night, but ends up in an awkward situation when her current beau
Carl-Magnus Malcolm (Kulle) also arrives. How
Fredrik ends up leaving the situation in Malcolm’s nightshirt I’ll leave for
you to discover.
The
characters are all plagued by misplaced affections and insecurities…but hey,
this is a comedy, remember? When
Desiree’s mother (Wifstrand) invites all to her house for a stay, it becomes
the perfect situation for all the right people to end up together, including
Malcolm rediscovering love with his wife Charlotte (Carlqvist), and even a
couple of domestics getting in on the romantic action with an all night romp in
the hay.
This
is the kind of simple, sunny comedy that just makes you smile from start to
finish. It finds pleasures in
simple words and actions, but while Bergman charms you with his wit, he also
warms you with his delightfully cynical take on human nature. We can see ourselves in these people, and that’s why their
trials, tribulations, and ultimate triumphs are so satisfying.
Comedy
wouldn’t always be a mainstay in Bergman’s career, but this 1955 gem
survives as a testimony to the fact that there was more than one side to the
auteur, and that one of cinema’s most prolific creative minds had a wonderful
sense of humor as well.
Video
**1/2
This
is a mostly solid offering from Criterion…the picture can’t help but show a
bit of aging artifacts here and there, but they are mostly few and far
between…a speck here, a spot there. Darker
scenes show a bit of residue on the print and a little more grain and murkiness,
but lighter scenes come across with cleaner and crisper senses of contrast, and
a fuller range of black and white tones.
Audio
**
Like
most mono soundtracks, this one is satisfactory if not exemplary.
Music and dialogue seem clear throughout, with minimal dynamic range, but
the track is decidedly light of noise for an older picture.
Features
**
Ingmar
Bergman himself offers a few thoughts on the movie by way of introduction…nice
touch! There is also an interesting
conversation on the film between historian Peter Cowie and Bergman collaborator
Jorn Donner. Rounding out is the
original Swedish trailer and a booklet containing essays by Pauline Kael and
John Simon.
Summary:
