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      From the Life of the Marionettes

      R 1980 1h 43m Drama List
      64% Tomatometer 14 Reviews 77% Audience Score 500+ Ratings Peter (Robert Atzorn) and Katarina (Christine Buchegger) are at a marital crossroads, but, when he brutally kills a burlesque dancer, their domestic squabbles are rendered trivial by comparison. In the wake of the crime, the film backtracks, painting a portrait of the fraught union between Peter and Katarina. When does a marriage go bad? What causes a member of the German bourgeoisie to murder an innocent woman? These are the questions director Ingmar Bergman's movie tries to answer. Read More Read Less Watch on Fandango at Home Premiered Nov 20 Buy Now

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      Critics Reviews

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      Joe Pollack St. Louis Post-Dispatch It's a strong film, as Bergman films are, but it is not as good as some of his earlier works, mainly because of the rather repetitious feel of the story. Jun 16, 2022 Full Review Ela Bittencourt House Next Door It's in those fully imagined marital fights that the film sheds it straightjacket of alternating plot twists, and lets the richer, more mournful emotions creep in. Feb 21, 2013 Full Review Dave Kehr Chicago Reader The subject of this Ingmar Bergman film is repression, but everything is dismayingly on the surface. Jul 31, 2007 Full Review Michael Bronski Gay Community News (Boston) The trouble with From The Life Of The Marionettes is that we don’t care about any of the main characters: it might as well be a documentary about polar ice caps instead of people. Sep 19, 2022 Full Review Diego Galán El Pais (Spain) From the Life of the Marionettes is a splendid draft of the Swedish director's last work. [Full Review in Spanish] Sep 6, 2019 Full Review Peter Ackroyd The Spectator The film is very restrained, rather cool, and with an unabashed fluency of direction which prevents it from becoming enmired in the stickier reaches of the Scandinavian soul. Mar 27, 2018 Full Review Read all reviews

      Audience Reviews

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      Petros T The cinematography is really captivating, the back-and-forth, almost episodic structure gives the story a freshness and variety that elevates it, the acting is convincing, and the dialogues have some powerful moments. Ingmar Bergman knows how to convey a lot even through relatively small moments, and that's where "Aus dem Leben der Marionetten" excels the most. Moreover, the psychological themes of the script are intriguing even if they're occasionally tackled in a slightly heavy-handed manner. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 08/23/23 Full Review Dominique W A perfectly fine psychodrama that pales in comparison to Bergman's other work. Bergman's most accessible film is also his most crude and shallow. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/09/23 Full Review william k Intense and puzzling chamber play switching between black-and-white and color and with extensive dream sequences. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member Not unlike Hitchcockâ(TM)s Frenzy (1972), Bergman reconstructs a horrible sex murder and explores the events immediately before and after the âdisasterâ? (which is shown in shocking and vivid colour at the filmâ(TM)s start, while the rest is in clinical black and white, shot stunningly by Sven Nykvist). Of course, the result is very unlike Hitchcock (where the wrong man, our ambiguous hero, is suspected) â" although there is a chance that Bergman expects that some viewers could feel some identification with murderer Peter Egermann (Robert Atzorn) who feels increasingly antagonistic toward his wife of ten years, Katarina (Christine Buchegger) and confesses that he fantasizes about killing her to his psychiatrist (Martin Benrath). We see Katarina and Peterâ(TM)s life before the event, as he becomes increasingly despondent and even threatens suicide and she pulls away from him asserting her independence (while both are drinking a lot â" indeed the names of these characters are the same as the bitter alcoholic couple who are friends with Johan and Marianne in Scenes from a Marriage, 1973). Peterâ(TM)s mother and Katarinaâ(TM)s gay co-worker also provide their views, both in flashback and as statements to the police after the murder. The highpoint of the film is probably the co-worker Timâ(TM)s exploration (in a monologue, in front of a mirror) of matters of identity, both as a gay man and as an aging adult who still feels his younger self (even as a child) inside. One senses Bergman reflecting on his own mortality (he was 62) and the effects of time on a person as well as relationships. But, for all the dark self-analysis here, it is hard to grasp why Peter did it â" some final Freudian suggestion about latent homosexuality does not cut it. Instead, it may be better to see the film as another portrayal of the patriarchal environment that women are trapped in, suffering at the hands of men (again and again), particularly when they dare to assert themselves. Indeed, all three of the filmâ(TM)s female characters have been subjected to unfair control and domination by men; the title of the film itself implies that women are therefore the âmarionettesâ?. However, Bergman doesnâ(TM)t provide any solution to the problem, leaving it up to viewers to ponder whether he thinks that men too are marionettes who struggle and despair but cannot break free of the grip of patriarchy. Say it isnâ(TM)t so. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/04/23 Full Review Audience Member Interesting, but not great, Ingmar Bergman drama. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/27/23 Full Review s r The complexities of marriage/relationships and how wrong they can get. Well made film, just not uplifting. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Read all reviews Post a rating

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      Movie Info

      Synopsis Peter (Robert Atzorn) and Katarina (Christine Buchegger) are at a marital crossroads, but, when he brutally kills a burlesque dancer, their domestic squabbles are rendered trivial by comparison. In the wake of the crime, the film backtracks, painting a portrait of the fraught union between Peter and Katarina. When does a marriage go bad? What causes a member of the German bourgeoisie to murder an innocent woman? These are the questions director Ingmar Bergman's movie tries to answer.
      Director
      Ingmar Bergman
      Producer
      Lew Grade, Martin Starger
      Screenwriter
      Ingmar Bergman
      Production Co
      Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen (ZDF), Bavaria Film, Personafilm, Incorporated Television Company, Österreichischer Rundfunk (ORF) [at]
      Rating
      R
      Genre
      Drama
      Original Language
      German
      Release Date (Streaming)
      Nov 20, 2018
      Runtime
      1h 43m
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