Scenes from a Marriage

scenes from a marriage is raw, near 6 hour long powerful and a minimalistic take on a dying marriage (not love). There is zero glamourisation or actiony moments -- it's just pure unbridled character study of husband and wife. Johan is truly an awful human being -- abandoned his wife and children for a 20 year old, overly cruel and spiteful towards Marianne, infidelity for months, deep seated misogyny and need for pampering and the list goes on. He's a physically and mentally abusive piece of shit. It's hard to see redeeming qualities in him, yet through all this he still loves her in a twisted, almost possessive way. He will never be happy, he's incapable of it. He's incredibly complex and I'm doing the entire film / miniseries a disservice by not delving deeper. Through all this they are somehow constantly gravitated towards one another. Liv Ullman (Marianne) is a true powerhouse of an actor. Marianne is kind, nurturing, compassionate, understanding but still engages in infidelity down the line -- in comparison, a far better person. I love Liv Ullman, she is such an incredible actor especially in Autumn Sonata. These characters are as deep as it gets. She begins desperate to stay in their tainted relationship, but later finds assurance and confidence within herself. She deserved far better. The ending is rather beautiful and humanising, finding solace in those moments few and far between. I truly appreciated this. Minor issues was either my attention span during the first two chapters / it being made in an era where binging wasn't a thing. that's on me. Ingmar Bergman, throughout every thing I've seen has displayed a clear and knowledgeable demonstration of his utter talent in directing, character creation and hard hitting dialogue. Weaving every layer of human essence together perfectly. Masterful. "I've taken your feelings into account far too often. Being considerate killed our love." "We're pitiful, self-indulgent cowards that can't connect with reality and are ashamed of ourselves." "Sometimes it grieves me that I have never loved anyone. I don't think I've ever been loved either. It really distresses me."