All These Women

Amazing that this film is on DVD. I saw it in 1967 (in suburban Sacramento of all places) and have never seen a trace of it since.

It is a fairly terrible movie, but it does have its place in Bergman's movies. Swedish reviewers at this point in his career were among his severest critics, and this movie was his response. It should have been deft and ironic but, as I think we're all aware by now, Bergman is not exactly over-burdened with a sense of humor. I suppose he also thought color as something of a joke at that time, which might explain some of the very ugly effects.

I can't really recommend the movie but it does give some insight into Bergman, so I rank it a little higher than the other reviewers.

P.S. And I thank Anders, the foreign exchange student from Stockholm at my high school, for making me see this movie and who filled me in on the info about Bergman and the critics. He too thought it a lousy movie.

It's taken a few goes, but I have finally discovered that I can dislike a Bergman film. Perhaps Swedish humour shares some characteristics with Danish humour which tends to leave me cold and perplexed.

Several years on, I still cannot get the cheesy, syncopated version of "Yes, We Have No Bananas" out of my head.

The cast try their best but the material is beyond redemption. in fact, this cast does not include the best Bergman people anyhow.

This film simply is not at all funny nor is it interesting once you get 10 minutes in.

It is merely irritating.

This film is a lemon.

This comedy, most notable for being Bergman's first film in color, is often considered one of his worst. I went into it with very low expectations, glad that it was just 80 minutes long. Thankfully, it's not nearly as bad as its reputation. It's minor Bergman, for sure. It's main crime is that it thinks it's much funnier than it ever is. That can be annoying, but, really, the film isn't exactly unfunny. Personally, I think Bergman only did comedy right once, with Smiles of a Summer Night, and even that one I don't think is amongst his best work. Simply put, Bergman excels at tragedy, and his comedy can feel forced. This film revolves around an art critic (Jarl Kulle, Bergman's most mugging actor) who comes to write a biography of a famous cellist at his palatial estate. The cellist (whose face never appears on screen) is a philanderer, surrounding himself with women of various ages (including Bibi Andersson, Harriet Andersson and Eva Dahlbeck). Kulle starts a fling with Bibi Andersson, and soon discovers that one of the wives or mistresses is attempting to murder the cellist. The Bergman film this reminds me most of is The Devil's Eye, which also stars Kulle (if I recall correctly, that one is slightly less comic). The color cinematography is actually quite excellent. Bergman didn't film again in color until Cries and Whispers. This is available on Hulu Plus.

Felix is a very happy fellow, none more so when he's fiddling with his cello, of which he has a few, perpetually in a queue, makes Cornelius a little green, although he's yellow.

It's a bit of fun, but not funny and there's little pun, plus it hasn't aged well so move on, do not dwell.

Plenty of Bergman stalwarts, including the gorgeous Bibi Andersson, the engaging Harriet Andersson and the delightful Eva Dahlbeck however, even they can't save this, as the story's as daft as a brush and it soon becomes a bit of a chore, as the end seems to extend to a point where you stop caring, and start looking for the door.

I do say this with a heavy heart as I love and admire Ingmar Bergman and many of his films and thought I'd never see a film of his I didn't like. Until now. By all means it has its good points, the cinematography, settings and music are beautiful and the female cast(with three of Sweden's finest ever actresses) look splendid and really try their best. Unfortunately, Jarl Kulle does nothing to make his annoying character remotely likable. Cornelius isn't the only bad character here though, I didn't care for any of them and none are interesting, for a Bergman film that is unusual. Bergman I love as a director, but he too seems out of his depth with a lack of momentum. The writing seems forced and unfunny, while the story tries to do much but does so in a clumsy and stilted manner.

Overall, I really wanted to love All These Women considering the talent involved, but I found it a really disappointing miscalculation.

4/10 Bethany Cox