INGMAR BERGMAN'S SCENES FROM A MARRIAGE: FIRST
SCENE: INNOCENCE AND PANIC {DUBBED IN ENGLISH} (TV)
Summary
Part one of six in the first dubbed American broadcast
of this Swedish dramatic miniseries, written and
directed by Ingmar Bergman, which was originally
broadcast in Sweden in 1973. This cinŽma-vŽritŽ-style
mini-series explores the slow and painful dissolution of
a troubled marriage. This first installment, subtitled
"Innocence and Pain," opens with an introduction by
series star Liv Ullman, who discusses the deeply
personal connections she feels between her character in
the series and her own life. The actual narrative
begins as Ullman's character, Marianne, and her husband
Johan, sit for a photoshoot and interview session with a
writer for a popular women's magazine. Marianne and
Johan have been chosen to represent happy couples in an
article on marriage for the magazine, but it becomes
clear from Johan's megalomaniacal responses and
Marianne's muted discomfort that the two are far from
happy together. In a later scene, Johan reads the
published interview over dinner with another couple,
Katarina and Peter. Everyone has a good laugh over the
melodramatic content of the piece, but the discussion
turns sour when Katarina and Peter begin to argue very
loudly about their own marriage. When Katarina pleads
with Peter to tone the confrontation down, Peter scoffs.
"Why should I?," he demands. "It's good for them to have
a glimpse into the darkest regions of hell." Marianne
and Katarina talk privately, and Katarina confesses that
both she and her husband have flirted with infidelity
several times over the years. When Marianne and Johan
go home, Marianne reveals to Johan that she is pregnant.
Johan shrugs off the news, telling his wife, "It's your
decision," and Marianne becomes flustered and hurt. She
realizes that she will have to decide whether to keep
the baby or get an abortion herself. Simultaneously,
she seems to be coming to terms with the fact that this
pregnancy and its outcome will undoubtedly have a
permanent effect on her "perfect marriage" to Johan.
This episode concludes with a segment of an interview
with Bergman (extracted from Jorn Donner's documentary
film, "Three Scenes with Ingmar Bergman," and retitled
"The World of Ingmar Bergman" for U.S. television
broadcast), subtitled in English. It it, Bergman
discusses his childhood in Sweden, including his home
and school life, and examines the role of violence and
humiliation in his upbringing.
(For a subtitled version of this episode, see, T:36022.)
[PBS ran two versions of this miniseries concurrently
in March and April of 1977. This dubbed version debuted
on Wednesday, March 9, 1977, and ran for the next five
consecutive Wednesdays. A subtitled version premiered
on Saturday March 12, 1977 and ran for the next five
consecutive Saturdays. "The World of Ingmar Bergman"
segments, however, are subtitled in both versions.]
("Scenes from a Marriage" received the 1974 National
Society of Film Critics' Award for Best Picture, Best
Actress, and Best Screenplay.)
Cataloging of this program was made possible by The
Marc Haas and Helen Hotze Haas Foundations, 2000.
Details
- NETWORK: PBS
- DATE: March 9, 1977 9:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 0:59:42
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: T:09371
- GENRE: Drama
- SUBJECT HEADING: Abortion - Drama; Biography; Drama; Marriage - Drama
- SERIES RUN: PBS - TV series, 1977
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- For "Scenes from a Marriage":
- Lars-Owe Carlberg … Producer
- Ingmar Bergman … Director, Writer
- Liv Ullmann … Cast, Marianne
- Erland Josephson … Cast, Johan
- Bibi Andersson … Cast, Katerina
- Malmsjok, Jan (See also: Malmsjo, Jan) … Cast, Peter
- Anita Wall … Cast, the Interviewer
- For Introduction:
- Jon Merdin … Director
- Liv Ullmann … Prepared by, Speaker
- For PBS:
- David Griffiths … Series Producer
- Gunilla Luboff … Associate Producer
- Barbara Greenberg … Production (Misc.), Production Manager
- For "The World of Ingmar Bergman":
- Jorn Donner … Director, Film by
- Sonya Friedman … English titles by
- Ingmar Bergman