Criterion To Release Autumn Sonata (1978) This September
The Criterion Collection has announced the addition of the musical drama Autumn Sonata to their upcoming slate of Blu-ray releases. The film was written and directed by Ingmar Bergman and stars Ingrid Bergman, Liv Ullmann, Lena Nyman, Halvar Björk, and Marianne Aminoff. Autumn Sonata is currently available for pre-order online and will be available in stores everywhere beginning on September 17th.
Autumn Sonata was released in 1978 and was the only collaboration between cinema’s two great Bergmans—Ingmar, the iconic director of The Seventh Seal, and Ingrid, the monumental star of Casablanca. The grand dame, playing an icy concert pianist, is matched beat for beat in ferocity by the filmmaker’s recurring lead Ullmann as her eldest daughter. Over the course of a long, painful night that the two spend together after an extended separation, they finally confront the bitter discord of their relationship. This cathartic pas de deux, evocatively shot in burnished harvest colors by the great Sven Nykvist, ranks among Ingmar Bergman’s major dramatic works. The film was nominated for two Academy Awards, Best Actress (Ingrid Bergman) and Best Screenplay – Written Directly For The Screen (Ingmar Bergman)
Special Features:
- New 2K digital film restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray edition
- Introduction by director Ingmar Bergman from 2003
- Audio commentary featuring Bergman expert Peter Cowie
- The Making of “Autumn Sonata,” a three-and-a-half-hour program examining every aspect of the production
- New interview with actor Liv Ullmann
- A 1981 conversation between actor Ingrid Bergman and critic John Russell Taylor at the National Film Theatre in London
- Trailer
- English-dubbed track
- New English subtitle translation
- PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by critic Farran Smith Nehme