Persona is a 1966 Swedish avant-garde psychological drama film written, directed, and produced by Ingmar Bergman and starring Bibi Andersson and Liv Ullmann. The story revolves around a young nurse named Alma (Andersson) and her patient, well-known stage actress Elisabet Vogler (Ullmann), who has suddenly stopped speaking. They move to a cottage, where Alma cares for Elisabet, confides in her, and begins having trouble distinguishing herself from her patient. The film explores themes of duality, insanity, and personal identity, and has been interpreted as reflecting the Jungian theory of persona and dealing with issues related to filmmaking, vampirism, homosexuality, motherhood, abortion, and other subjects.
Persona has been widely acclaimed for Bergman's direction, screenplay, and narrative, Nykvist's cinematography, and Andersson's and Ullmann's performance. Many critics consider Persona one of the greatest films ever made, Bergman's magnum opus, and a work of art of experimental cinema, and Andersson's and Ullmann's performances two of the best female performances in movie history.
The film has been restored and released on Blu-ray by The Criterion Collection, which includes special features such as a new visual essay on the film's prologue by Ingmar Bergman scholar Peter Cowie, new interviews with actor Liv Ullmann and filmmaker Paul Schrader, excerpted archival interviews with Bergman, Ullmann, and actor Bibi Andersson, on-set footage, and a feature documentary directed by Dheeraj Akolkar.
Trailer
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Cast
- Bibi Andersson as Alma
- Liv Ullmann as Elisabet Vogler
- Margaretha Krook as The Doctor
- Gunnar Björnstrand as Mr. Vogler
- Jörgen Lindström as Elisabet's son
- Sven Nykvist as Elisabet's husband
- Evald Andersson as Elisabet's doctor
In addition to the main cast, there were also several uncredited actors who appeared in the film. The performances of Bibi Andersson and Liv Ullmann have been widely acclaimed as two of the best female performances in movie history.
Director: Ingmar Bergman
Writer: Ingmar Bergman
Box Office Gross: $90,556
Distributor: Video Yesteryear, United Artists, MGM/UA Home Entertainment Inc., Reel Media International [us], Lopert Pictures Corp.
Genre: Drama
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 6, 1967
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 11, 2017