3. Persona; movie review

PERSONA
Cert 15
83 mins
BBFC advice: Contains moderate horror images and sexual references

According to the internationally recognised movie historian, Thomas Elsaesser, Persona "has been for film critics and scholars what Everest is for mountaineers: the ultimate professional challenge."
This sends a shiver down my spine, returning me to my days as a student trying to unravel English literature or philosophy.
Time and again we would be asked what an author or thinker had in mind when they wrote a book or pamphlet.
In later life, I mused on whether poor journalism students were asked to give similar views over my Friday newspaper columns. They would have been disappointed by the reality of my thoughts which would have been: "Ruddy hell, I have only got three hours to deadline and I haven't got a clue what to write."
I digress. I find such discussions pointless because the only interpretation worth merit is surely that of Bergman himself. After all, he wrote and directed Persona.
Of course, he died a decade ago, but I saw a 1970 interview in which he explained the premise for Persona came to him having endured six-hour surgery.
Having just been with my dad in intensive care, after a similarly serious operation, I can well imagine why he launched into the surreal.
It might just have had something to do with the drugs!
Nevertheless, Persona is still regarded by many critics as one of the greatest films of all time and there can be no doubt of the strength of the performances of Liv Ullmann and, in particular, Bibi Anderssson.
And, of course, Bergman uses myriad directorial techniques through use of light and close-ups which add to its power.
For the uninitiated, Ullmann plays an actress who suddenly refuses to speak without any medical reason.
Thus, she is given her own personal nurse (Andersson) and sent away to a seaside retreat to rediscover her mojo.
However, it transpires that the person who finds her voice in more ways than one is the nurse.
In my view, Persona is for art house movie fans or film students. It has a couple of arresting moments (the nurse's description of a sexual encounter is certainly memorable!) but it is trying too hard to please the connoisseurs.
And even after 4,000 everyfilm reviews, I don't count myself as one of those.
* Persona is being shown by the BFI as part its three-month celebration of Ingmar Bergman's centenary.

Reasons to watch: one of the classic Bergman movies
Reasons to avoid: far too surreal to be considered mainstream

Laughs: none
Jumps: none
Vomit: none
Nudity: I blinked and missed it
Overall rating: 6/10

Director Ingmar Bergman: I got pneumonia, […] I was allergic to penicillin, and I was ill about half a year. And I thought I will never return to filmmaking, but then I started slowly, very very slowly to write Persona. […] So, I think Persona saved my life.

The big question: Why does monochrome look more stylish than colour?

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