The Seventh Seal

Ingmar Bergman's The Seventh Seal (1957) is about a knight who wonders about life, death and the existence of God after he starts a chess match with the Death in order to save himself. Christianity is under attack when the man faces a crisis of faith, but it sadly leaves me disappointed. Maybe it's because I'm a theist, but in my opinion the film never digs deep enough into its subject. It remains on the surface level: a mere complaint about God not being there for us. However, that on its own is sufficiently explored.

Bergman's expressionistic take on the story is a bit peculiar. Sometimes the over-the-top symbolism is too comic for its own sake: Bergman can't handle the so-called "comedy" in this film. Luckily that is not the case for the entire film. There are moments when the expressionism works very well and left me a few images to remember.

The cinematography of the film is phenomenal, but otherwise the form is not as good as everyone seems to think. The editing works well, but it's not even great in its simplicity. The music gives a weird vibe for the film, but there are moments when it utterly fails because it's too dramatic.

Even though I'm a fan of the director and even though this was the second time I watched the film, I can't appreciate it. There are a few moments of brilliance, but they are hindered by the flaws.

Score: 7 out of 10