Review of Smiles of a Summer Night (1955) by Johannes S — 14 Jan 2009

I really enjoyed this one. There is something about the central theme of love being a game that is incredibly appealing to us as human beings. That's probably because love is one of the most exciting and unexpected games to find yourself in.

This film captures the anxiety, humor, and sometimes tragedy of being caught up in the oldest of games in a whimsical, yet eventually somber way. Maybe not Bergman's best work, but one that is definitely worth lots of revisits, and one of his most enjoyable and easy-to-watch works.