Swedish filmmaker Ingmar Bergman strikes such a deep, tragic chord with movie-fans that he's impossible to dismiss, though not always easy to like. "Autumn Sonata" is admirable and emotional, and the characters aren't so far removed from most of us that we can't relate to them, but it's a lugubrious piece with heavy, thudding sequences. I recognized many of the tumultuous emotions in the two women at the heart of this story; one particular scene, where Liv Ullmann stares off into space as domineering mother Ingrid Bergman plays the piano, is shiveringly real. It's the director's gift to bring out the cold loneliness of living, and yet keep it structured in an intimate setting between lovers or family members. It isn't the tour-de-force many professional critics hailed it as, however the performances are terrific and the central relationship between mother and daughter is tremulous and fascinating. **1/2 from ****
Review of Autumn Sonata
