Summer Interlude

1951's Summer Interlude—the 10th feature from Ingmar Bergman (and in many ways his breakthrough work)—stars Maj-Britt Nilsson as Marie, a ballerina in a Stockholm dance company who recalls a teenage romance during a carefree summer vacation. Marie was Bergman's most complex female character to date and the first of many strong, assertive, dominating women in his movies. Summer Interlude was also his first film extensively shot on-location, and he makes beautiful use of the archipelago landscapes. In Marie's youth, this represents a lush, sunny paradise—a veritable playground for a young woman first exploring her independence and sexuality. When she returns as an older dancer, now emotionally wrapped in feelings of loss and regret, the setting is a cold, foggy copse of skeletal trees and barren ground. Lovingly shot by Gunnar Fischer, Bergman's first great cinematographer collaborator, the story is drawn from Bergman's own past (which included a summertime affair with a girl who later died of polio). Offering a philosophical rumination on love and loss—a theme that Bergman will expand upon in later productions—this is a film that is small in scope and ambition, but one also marked by delicate performances and full of lovely moments. Debuting on DVD and Blu-ray, extras include a booklet with an essay by film scholar Peter Cowie. Recommended. (S. Axmaker)