I referenced a quote from director Ingmar Bergman talking about Persona recently from an interview included on Criterion’s latest Blu-ray release of Bergman’s The Magician. In the interview he said:
If I’ve really managed to make a film that has sparked a debate it would be very tactless of me to barge in on that debate and talk about what I really meant by the film.
It would be tactless toward the audience, because I’m sure they all have their own interpretations, and tactless towards those commenting on it in the media, who might feel hurt if they found they’d misinterpreted the film.
Therefore I prefer not to say anything at all.
I played my part in this debate when I made the film.
Roger Ebert lists Persona has one of his greatest movies writing, “Persona (1966) is a film we return to over the years, for the beauty of its images and because we hope to understand its mysteries.” Mysteries indeed. Ebert continues on this track writing, “Everything that happens is perfectly clear,” but it’s what is going on underneath that clarity that makes it so intriguing. Ebert refers to the unknown aspects of the film as “buried truths” and in writing about Persona in 2001 he seems to believe he’s come as far as he can in understanding those buried truths.
For me, with this being my first viewing, I still have a long way to go. Ebert wrote that “Great Movies” piece in 2001 after first seeing Persona in 1967. So perhaps by 2045 my understanding of this haunting film will match his.
If you haven’t yet seen it, it’s available on NetFlix Instant Play. I will mention it again briefly in my What I Watched column this Sunday so if you would like to add to the conversation give it a watch before then. That said, here are a few more images from the film as well as a clip that may or may not be safe for work depending on who is reading subtitles over your shoulder.
