Fanny and Alexander
Original movie poster
Directed by	Ingmar Bergman
Produced by	Jörn Donner
Written by	Ingmar Bergman
Starring	Pernilla Allwin Bertil Guve Börje Ahlstedt
Distributed by	Sandrew
Release date(s)	December 17, 1982 17 June 1983
Running time	188 min. Ernst Ingmar Bergman ( pronounced) (14 July 1918 – 30 July 2007 was a nine-time Academy Award -nominated Swedish film, stage Jörn Johan Donner (born 5 February 1933 in Helsinki, Finland) is a Finnish writer film director actor producer politician Ernst Ingmar Bergman ( pronounced) (14 July 1918 – 30 July 2007 was a nine-time Academy Award -nominated Swedish film, stage Nils Börje Ahlstedt (born February 21, 1939) is a Swedish actor who has worked a lot with the world famous director Ingmar Bergman in films Sandrew Metronome is a Scandinavian Film distributor. It is one of the biggest distributor companies in the Nordic countries. Events 546 - Gothic War (535–554: The Ostrogoths of King Totila Year 1982 ( MCMLXXXII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar) Events 1462 - Vlad III the Impaler attempts to assassinate Mehmed II ( The Night Attack) forcing him to retreat Year 1983 ( MCMLXXXIII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1983 Gregorian calendar) 312 min. (TV version)
Language	Swedish German Yiddish English
Allmovie profile
IMDb profile

Fanny and Alexander (Swedish: Fanny och Alexander) is a 1982, Golden Globe and Academy Award-winning Swedish film written and directed by Ingmar Bergman. Swedish ( is a North Germanic language spoken by more than nine million people predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along the The German language (de ''Deutsch'') is a West Germanic language and one of the world's major languages. Yiddish (yi [[wiktייִדיש ייִדיש]] yidish or yi [[wiktאידיש אידיש]] idish, literally "Jewish" is a nonterritorial High English is a West Germanic language originating in England and is the First language for most people in the United Kingdom, the United States Swedish ( is a North Germanic language spoken by more than nine million people predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along the Year 1982 ( MCMLXXXII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar) The Golden Globe Awards are American awards for motion pictures and Television programs given out each year during a formal dinner "The Oscar" redirects here for the film see The Oscar (film. "Sverige" redirects here For other uses see Sweden (disambiguation and Sverige (disambiguation. A film director, or filmmaker, is a person who directs the making of a Film. Ernst Ingmar Bergman ( pronounced) (14 July 1918 – 30 July 2007 was a nine-time Academy Award -nominated Swedish film, stage It was originally conceived as a four part TV movie which spanned 312 minutes. A version lasting only 188 minutes was created later for cinematic release.

Along with The Seventh Seal and Wild Strawberries, Fanny and Alexander is considered by many to be one of Bergman's best films. For the Biblical concept see Seven seals. For the Rakim album see The Seventh Seal (Rakim album. Wild Strawberries is a 1957 Film written and directed by Ingmar Bergman, about an old man recalling his past He intended the film to be his last feature, although he wrote several screenplays afterward and directed a number of TV specials.

Plot

The story is set in the early twentieth century in Sweden and deals with a young boy named Alexander, his sister Fanny, and their well-to-do family the Ekdahls. "Sverige" redirects here For other uses see Sweden (disambiguation and Sverige (disambiguation. Fanny and Alexander's mother and father are both involved in theater and are happily married until the father's sudden death. Theatre (or theater, see spelling differences) is the branch of the Performing arts defined by Bernard Beckerman as what "occurs when one Shortly thereafter, the mother, Emilie, finds a new suitor in the local bishop, a handsome widower, and accepts his proposal of marriage, moving into his ascetic home and putting the children under his stern and unforgiving rule. A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight He is particularly hard on Alexander, trying to break his will by every means. The children and their mother live as virtual prisoners in the bishop's house until finally the Ekdahl family intervenes. With help from an old friend, a Jewish antiques dealer, as well as some magic, the children are smuggled out of the house, but the Ekdahls' attempts to bribe or threaten the bishop into divorce fail. Emilie, by now pregnant, slips her husband a sedative and flees as he sleeps, after which a fire breaks out and the bishop is burnt to death. In the meantime, Alexander has met the Jewish merchant's mysterious son and fantasized about his stepfather's death – it is as if Alexander's fantasy comes true as he dreams it. The story ends on a mainly happy, life-affirming note, with the christening of Emilie's and the late bishop's daughter and the illegitimate daughter of one of the Ekdahl men, but Alexander encounters the bishop's ghost, signalling that he will never be completely free of him.

In addition to its themes of Christianity, repentance, submission to authority, and the questioning of God's existence, the film deals with love, estrangement, ghosts, and the paranormal, as well as the more common Bergman theme of existentialism. Christianity ( Greek Χριστιανισμός from the word Xριστός ( Christ)is a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings Repentance is a change of thought and action to correct a wrong and gain Forgiveness from the one wronged Love is any of a number of Emotions and experiences related to a sense of strong Affection. A ghost is said to be the apparition of a Deceased person frequently similar in appearance to that person and usually encountered in places she or he frequented Paranormal is an Umbrella term used to describe unusual Phenomena or experiences that lack an obvious Scientific explanation Existentialism is a philosophical doctrine which posits that individuals create the meaning and essence of their lives and that this essence follows from their existence Bergman also borrows some of the film's symbolism from his earlier film Through A Glass Darkly. Through a Glass Darkly ( Swedish: Såsom i en spegel (" As in a mirror " is a 1961 Swedish film written Scene's such as Alexander's late night encounter with Aron Retzinsky echo and even in ways mock the film's climax, only this time drawing attention God's symbolism as a puppet. When the children's father suffers his fatal heart attack, he is playing the ghost of the dead King in Hamlet; the figure of the Bishop, and what happens to him, are reminiscent of Claudius' usurpation and the young Prince's final revenge. King Hamlet is a character from William Shakespeare 's play Hamlet, also known as The Tragedy of Hamlet Prince of Denmark. Hamlet is a Tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601 King Claudius is a Fictional character from William Shakespeare 's play Hamlet.

Cast (main)

• Ewa Fröling - Emelie Ekdahl
• Bertil Guve - Alexander Ekdahl
• Pernilla Allwin - Fanny Ekdahl
• Jan Malmsjö - Bishop Edvard Vergerus
• Gunn Wållgren - The grandmother; Helena Ekdahl
• Allan Edwall - Oscar Ekdahl
• Jarl Kulle - Gustav Adolf Ekdahl
• Mona Malm - Alma Ekdahl
• Erland Josephson - Isak Jacobi
• Börje Ahlstedt - Carl Ekdahl
• Christina Schollin - Lydia Ekdahl
• Pernilla August - Maj
• Kerstin Tidelius - Henrietta Vergerus
• Harriet Andersson - Justina
• Marianne Aminoff - Blenda Vergérus
• Stina Ekblad - Ismael Retzinsky
• Mats Bergman - Aron Retzinsky

Awards

The film was released in the United States in 1983 and won four Academy Awards:

• Best Foreign Film (producer Jörn Donner)
• Best Cinematography (Sven Nykvist)
• Best Art Direction (Anna Asp, Susanne Lingheim)
• Costume Design (Marik Vos-Lundh)

Bergman was nominated for both Directing and Writing Original Screenplay but was not awarded, thus ending his last chance of ever receiving a personal Oscar for a film. Ewa Fröling, Eva Marie Fröling, (born August 9, 1952) is a Swedish Actress. Jan Malmsjö, born May 29 1932 in Lund, Sweden, is a highly acclaimed Swedish stage actor musical star and singer Gunn Wållgren, born Gunnel ('gɵnəl Margaret Haraldsdotter Wållgren ('vɔlgreːn ( November 16, 1913 &ndash June 4, 1983 Johan Allan Edwall ( 25 August 1924, Rödön, Sweden– 7 February 1997, Stockholm, Sweden was a Swedish actor director Jarl Kulle ( 27 February, 1927 &ndash 3 October, 1997) was a Swedish film actor and director Mona Malm ( 24 January, 1935 &ndash) is a Swedish film actor She was born in Stockholm, Sweden. Erland Josephson (Swedish ˈæːɭand ˈʝuːsɛfsɔn (born June 15, 1923, in Stockholm, Sweden) is a Swedish Actor and Author Nils Börje Ahlstedt (born February 21, 1939) is a Swedish actor who has worked a lot with the world famous director Ingmar Bergman in films Pernilla August (born Mia Pernilla Wallgren; 13 February 1958 is a Swedish actress Kerstin Tidelius, Kerstin Martha Tidelius, (born October 14, 1934) is a Swedish Actress. Harriet Andersson (born 14 January 1932 in Stockholm) is a Swedish actress best known for being one of Ingmar Bergman 's regular Marianne Aminoff ( 21 September, 1916 &ndash 14 April, 1984) was a Swedish film actor Stine Ekblad (born 26 February 1954) is a Finland-Swedish actress Mats Bergman, (born May 5, 1948 in Gothenburg, Sweden) is a Swedish actor Year 1983 ( MCMLXXXIII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1983 Gregorian calendar) "The Oscar" redirects here for the film see The Oscar (film. The Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film is one of the Academy Awards of Merit, popularly known as the Oscars handed out annually by the U Jörn Johan Donner (born 5 February 1933 in Helsinki, Finland) is a Finnish writer film director actor producer politician The Academy Award for Best Cinematography is an Academy Award awarded each year to a Cinematographer for work in one particular Motion picture. Sven Vilhem Nykvist ( 3 December 1922 &ndash 20 September 2006) was a two-time Academy Award winning Swedish The Academy Awards are the oldest awards ceremony for achievements in motion pictures. Anna Asp is a Production designer and Art director born in 1946. This Academy Award was first given for movies made in 1948 when separate awards were given for black-and-white and color movies Marik Vos-Lundh ( 1923 - July 13, 1994) was a Swedish Costume designer and Production designer who won the Academy The Academy Award for Achievement in Directing (Best Director is one of the Awards of Merit presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS to The Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay is the Academy Award for the best script not based upon previously published material "The Oscar" redirects here for the film see The Oscar (film.

The film also received the Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Film. The Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film is one of the awards presented at the Golden Globes, an American film awards ceremony

DVD releases

Cover of the Criterion Collection 5-Disc DVD release of Fanny and Alexander

The uncut TV version of the film is available in DVD editions released by Artificial Eye (in Region 2) and The Criterion Collection (in Region 1). DVD video discs may be encoded with a region code restricting the area of the world in which they can be played The Criterion Collection is a Privately held company that distributes "authoritative" consumer versions of "important classic and contemporary films" DVD video discs may be encoded with a region code restricting the area of the world in which they can be played The Criterion Collection edition is anamorphically enhanced and is released as three separate sets: the theatrical version, the television version , and a behind-the scenes film, The Making of Fanny and Alexander; these discs are also available as a 5-disc box set. Anamorphic widescreen is a videographic technique utilising rectangular (wide pixels to store a Widescreen image to standard 43 aspect ratio. The Criterion release marked the first time the television version of Fanny and Alexander had been available in North America.

External links

• Fanny and Alexander at the Internet Movie Database
• Criterion Collection essay by Stig Bjorkman on the television version
• Criterion Collection essay by Rick Moody on the theatrical version
• DVD review of film at Alternative Film Guide