Review of Fanny and Alexander (1982) by Aaron M — 26 Feb 2009

Maybe I am biased, being an utterly dedicated Bergman fan, but I have watched this film three times and still it leaves me as jaw-dropped and emotionally-charged as the first time I watched it. For five hours I am completely stunned by the gorgeous cinematography and the magical semblance of characters to real-life.

Of course people will despise it for being "too long" and not having enough crass, manipulative story features to entrance impatient, formula-loving escapists. This will always be the case for the majority.

However, if you have the chance to watch this film alone in a quiet, dark and comfortable womb of space, and simply open your mind to the beautiful perplexities and subtle revelations of this harrowing drama, I think you will find there is a lot more to cinema than the guns, gore, tits, and melodrama that our habitual, fast-paced entertainment attests to.