Blind Spot ’14 : Wild Strawberries (1957)

In December 2013, I decided to join Blind Spot blogathon. Now, I am starting the list with Wild Strawberries (1957) or Smultronstället directed by Ingmar BergmanAbout Schmidt (2002)Wild Strawberries

Honestly, the beginning of the movie was enough to make me challenged (read : almost turned off the movie) because of the heavy, formal and rigid atmosphere. But that’s who Isak (Victor Sjöström) is, a cold and selfish doctor who is about to receive an honorary award for his 50 years of dedication. Isak often have odd dreams, often the dreams take him to the past, recalling big mistakes he didn’t realize he have done to some of his closest people. The dreams keep happening on his way in the road which he took for coming to the university where the ceremony will be held. The road himself he took suddenly after having a weird dream, even though his son, Evald (Gunnar Björnstrand) and his maid, Agda (Jullan Kindahl) have organized a decent plane ride. With Marianne (Ingrid Thulin), his daughter in-law, Isak travels with his car.

On their way, they meet three exciting young people; the cheerful and adorable Sara (Bibi Andersson), Anders (Folke Sundquist) and Viktor (Björn Bjelfvenstam). The two guys often argue about science and existence of God, but both are in love with Sara. Sara seem to picked Anders, though still flirts with Viktor. Isak also takes time to visit his mother, which Marianne sees as a cold woman and relates to Isak and Evald.

  On their trip, they almost crashed with a car, driven by married couple. Even though Isak and his travel mates eventually helped the couple, but they extrude them eventually because of their unpleasant fights. The couple actually reminded Isak to his own marriage and Marianne afraid that she and Evald eventually will be them. Marianne reveal her problems with Evald to Isak, which makes Isak again recalls his way of life. Finally, in one of his naps, Isak sees his wife in the past frustrated with his pride and coldness.

Maybe it is wrong to hope Wild Strawberries to be a film with a lot of tears and emotional, because that is not Isak at all. He even described to be a icy, mannered and egoistic man, though what I see isn’t like that. Wild Strawberries felt dark and sometimes even horrifying, again maybe that’s what Isak sees the world to be. Sometimes the dreams felt bizarre and a little non sense, which what dreams are. The existence of the three young people was enough to give a more cheerful mood, since Marianne and Isak couldn’t bring. Both have their own problems and sees the world with their bitter view.

The story in Wild Strawberries showed the cause and effect of being locked in cold and selfish personality. Isak gets it from his mother and extended it to his son, Evald, which Marianne concluded. Enough to see from Isak’s life, that though we have a respectable job and wealthy life, it isn’t enough when people around us despises us. The movie isn’t exactly blurted out the message, but through Isak’s odd and horror dreams. I admire how it dared enough to be dark and bold, to unveil the bitter angle of an older man despite being on the very top of his career.

Road trips usually are full of self-reflections and its purpose is to find ourselves again, Wild Strawberries is like that but with its own dark color. I read that this movie is the most optimistic film by Bergman, but I do hope his other films aren’t as formal.

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