Embrace existential dread this Easter with triple bill of Ingmar Bergman films
Cinematheque will be playing 3 classic films to celebrate the Swedish master's 100th birthday
If you prefer ennui and insanity to chocolate and bunnies at Easter time, Vancouver's Cinematheque has got you covered.
The film institute is playing daily triple bills of classic Ingmar Bergman films through the holiday weekend — Winter Light, Through a Glass Darkly and The Silence — to celebrate the 100th birthday of the acclaimed Swedish filmmaker, who died in 2007.
"He certainly has that reputation of being a stark, sombre, Scandinavian master of existential angst and metaphysical torment," Jim Sinclair, Cinematheque artistic director told On The Coast host Gloria Macarenko.
"Is it fair? Absolutely."
But, Sinclair adds, that's not all there is to appreciate about Bergman, who is also famous for the classic film The Seventh Seal and its iconic scene of a knight playing chess against death.
That film, Sinclair says, will be shown at another Bergman event at Cinematheque in May.
Sinclair calls him the "quintessential 20th-century artist," tackling big, existential questions about faith, the meaning of life and what it means to be human in the aftermath of two world wars and the nuclear age.
His films still hold up, Sinclair says: they're visually beautiful, well written and feature excellent performances.
Tickets for the showings are available on Cinematheque's website.
Listen to the full interview:
With files from CBC Radio One's On The Coast