Ingmar Bergman's Cinema (Criterion) - Comments and Where to Get the Other Films?

First of all, I just got this yesterday. Wow, what a beautiful package, the Criterion folks have really outdone themselves here.

I know there is a mention of this on the Criterion Nov 2018 release thread but I believe this set needs its own thread anyway. I'd be interested to hear other folks' impressions and/or criticisms.

Now, I am by no means an expert on his films; in all honesty I've only seen a few (Virgin Spring, Seventh Sign, Wild Strawberries and Cries & Whispers) but I enjoyed these immensely and figured it was time to get with the program. I'm going to watch them in festival mode as suggested and will probably be speaking with a Swedish accent by Christmas.

Now, a question for the real experts, of which there are no shortage on this forum:

I know that this set is not the complete oeuvre, has anyone (yet) compiled a list of the best releases of the movies not included in the Criterion set? Region code is not an issue for me.

 

Really, only 'Prison' and 'Face To Face' are considered essential.

 

Check wikipedia. Other than theater tv movies you literally only need less than more or so. Unfortunately only one is on bluray outside of the set.

 

Thank you for the reply, but I can locate his filmography. I'm just wanting to know if the films not included here are available in decent quality somewhere else.

 

Sorry I wasn't trying to come off that way..but I find Wiki to be good at separating his actual films from theater work.

The qualityon the UK discs are really good for DVD and the one buray looks great that is distributed by Artificial eye.

 

This list comes from a posting I saw online awhile ago. Sorry, I don't know where it was.

It Rains on Our Love (1946) [Available in Classic Bergman Collection from Artificial Eye in the UK]
Music in Darkness (1948) [Only available on DVD in the Bergman Collection from Tartan in the UK]
Prison (1949) [Available in the aforementioned Tartan set, DVD only]
Face to Face (1976) [Available on DVD from Olive Films](177m miniseries--unreleased, 114-135 theatrical)
The Image Makers (2000) [TV movie, available on DVD from Tartan in the UK]

There's also the movie Torment, written but not directed by Bergman, in the Criterion Eclipse collection.

 

And it is still far from his complete tv movies, just features. I posted this list a while back and still had questions where one could get the rest.

By the way, The Image Makers is in a double feature with the Phantom Carriage from 1921.

Here was my former question.

There are some movies that I cannot locate, but I haven't done an exhaustive list of the world either. Any help is greatly appreciated.

Are there any official DVD/Bluray of the following:

Mr. Sleeman is Coming
Bakomfilm Smultronstallet
The Venetian
Rabies
Storm Weather
A Dream Play
Don Juan
The Misanthrope
Hutroskolan
Dom Jaun (different?)
The Blessed Ones
Backanterna
The Last Gasp
In the Presence of a Clown

I believe that this is the rest of his films using IMDB and wikipedia.

 

Best box set ever. The presentation is equal to the content. Love it.

Steadily working my way through the main features; I’ve watched ten so far. Not dived into any of the extras yet, save for a few of Bergman’s own introductions.

I can’t think what would top this for me. Maybe a complete Fassbinder collection of similar quality and heft.

 

Not to be disagreeable, but the box itself while very pretty and simply awesome in look...man just not practical.

I hope someone does some custom artwork that is really good. The book itself can go on another shelf, but I would much rather have the discs themselves all in a row in chronological order. It is so big, and so cumbersome. Hats off to Criterion for doing it, and I love that they are creative, but in the end, for any shelf with any director, they are all equal in their own way.

 

I’m struggling to find space for it myself, but that is my problem, not Criterion’s. Yes, it’s bloody heavy. Any set with this many discs is going to be large, no matter which way it’s designed (unless it’s a cheapo, minimalist affair, which I wouldn’t want in this case).

Some box sets have a lot of wasted space — Pink Floyd’s The Early Years 1965-1972 is a prime example — but I’m not seeing that with the Bergman set. YMMV, of course.

I’m also not bothered by the film festival programming. I’ll watch the discs in whatever order I choose.

Some dude on the Blu-ray.com forum made artwork for three 10-disc Amaray cases, if that stuff floats your bateau:

Blu-ray Forum - View Single Post - Ingmar Bergman's Cinema (1946-2003)

 

Nope it has to go further. 1 disc for every case to be pushed out on the shelf like a mausoleum. Saving space is not an option when you want to be surrounded in comfort like books. They keep me warm during the winter months and make keep me safe from ever seeing sunlight. Thanks for the heads up regardless.

And no it is Criterion's fault. They got weird package designs, and now I have to make special places for it...gah. Standards..must have standards!!

P.S. I am open to ultra slim cases, because then, it can still be in order...ala the decalog. Though I would rather have a book, then the craptastic ultra hated by me digipacks with hard plastic irreplaceable holders. I hate digipacks anyway, but those are even worse to me.

 

That's gonna be difficult when some discs have two films on 'em that are years apart.

 

Yeah I forgot about that. I do the best I can with that, giving priority to the earlier title.

 

Was really hoping to pick this up during the BN Criterion sale, but it seemed instantly gone everywhere. Supposedly a reprinting will be done early in the new year. I have every Bergman release Criterion has put out up to when this was announced (though mostly in DVD, so this is a nice upgrade!), adore Bergman's work, and can't wait to dive in to the few here I haven't seen. Only question is whether I jettison what I already have when I finally get the box. That shelf space would be nice amongst my crammed Criterion bookcase.

 

Update for anyone waiting for (or wanting) the Bergman box:
I pre-ordered my set at B/N's Criterion sale in the fall and I still didn't get first dibs. Eventually my sales e-mail said that it was out of stock the next shipment was going to be around 28th of February.
Well, they must have sped up the presses, because the beast arrived today, Jan. 12th, so keep your eyes peeled if you are on the waiting list...
C.

 

Mine arrived from B&N yesterday:

 

Just ordered this through Criterion's 24 hour flash sale.

 

Back to the original post, can anyone link me to the best version of Face to Face? There is one on Amazon that ships with prime but I'm not sure if it's the best/only version, it gets pretty harsh reviews. Anyone know why it wasn't included? Copyright issues presumably

 

Copyright issues indeed. That one that you mention looks like the only available DVD version. The image quality, when compared to the Criterion restorations, looks quite poor, but the film is excellent anyway. A pity the TV version is not available.

 

I have the Tartan DVD of Prison. It's Region 0, I believe, and looks/sounds good. And it's an exquisite film.

 

I have what must be the DVD version referred to here. Yes, it is below average quality. But Face to Face should be understood as a valuable addition to the collection of Bergman fans. Another of Liv Ullmann's lead performances, as usual of the highest quality. Erland Josephson is also present in what is a different role. The point being that the value of the film overcomes the quality issues in the available version. It would of course be better if a better version was available, and I don't know why one isn't. But I don't regret my obtaining this version.

 

Absolutely.

 

I also just picked it up from Criterion flash sale . . . $150.00 !

 

Received the three-BD Bergman: A Year in a Life documentary this afternoon (official release date is tomorrow), for the bargain price of £16.18, from Amazon U.K. Looking forward to digging in.

 

Just got this beautiful box set. Looking forward to dig in.