Themes: Out For Revenge, Death of a Child, Obsessive Quests
Main Cast: Max von Sydow, Birgitta Valberg, Brigitta Pettersson, Birgitta Pettersson, Gunnel Lindblom, Axel Duberg
Release Year: 1959
Country: SE
Run Time: 88 minutes
Plot
Inspired by a medieval Swedish ballad, Ingmar Bergman's The Virgin Spring (Jungfrukallan) begins with a scene of unspeakable brutality and ends with an image of uncommon beauty. 15-year-old Birgitta Peterson, on her way to church to light candles for the Virgin Mary, is raped and murdered by two older men. The men look for shelter at the home of Birgitta's father (Max Von Sydow), who murders the bestial killers in cold blood. When the deed is done, Von Sydow, a deeply religious man, begins to question the efficacy of a God that would allow his daughter's death, then permit so bloody a retribution. Then, a fresh, virgin spring bubbles from the ground where his daughter had been lying a few moments before. Taking this natural phenonenon as a sign from above, Von Sydow vows to erect a church on the spot where Birgitta met her doom. The winner of the "best foreign picture" Academy Award, The Virgin Spring currently exists in several versions of varying lengths; the longest, and most graphic, is the original Swedish cut. Believe it or not, this hauntingly beautiful film served as the basis of The Last House on the Left (1972). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Review
One of Bergman's simplest yet most powerful films, it fuses medieval Christianity with paganism in its enactment of rituals sacred and profane. Eschewing all but the most basic of symbols, the director roots his tale of death and transfiguration in the natural world, implying the unruly force of both instinctive human drives and the primitive beliefs that held sway long before the arrival of the Christian faith embraced by the family of Max Von Sydow's farmer. Bergman sketches the small joys and petty jealousies of the family with a bold economy, including some nasty foreshadowing in the prank played by spiteful servant Ingeri (Gunnel Lindblom) on the slightly spoiled daughter, Karin (Birgitta Pettersson). The director orchestrates the confrontation of her innocence and the shepherds' brutality with the utmost care and deliberateness, in fashioning a scene of sexual assault all the more disturbing for its naturalism. In the film's most indelible moment, Karin's mother leans back in frozen horror as one of the rapists unwittingly offers her the girl's bloodstained garment. But Von Sydow is the focal point here, a man of deep faith and strict self-discipline, he's shocked both by a God who would allow such a tragedy to befall him and by his own transgression, in savagely dispatching his daughter's murderers. In a denouement that restores the farmer's belief, Bergman pays tribute to the simple faith of the medieval world. While the flawless acting of the director's stock company and the outstanding work of Sven Nykvist is almost too familiar to require mention, the film's fortress-like set is particularly noteworthy in its evocation of an entirely foreign world. ~ Michael Costello, All Movie Guide
The Virgin Spring tells the story, set in medieval Sweden, of a prosperous Christian whose daughter, Karin (Birgitta Pettersson) is appointed to bring candles to the church. Karin is accompanied by her pregnant foster sister, Ingeri (Gunnel Lindblom), who secretly worships the Norse deityOdin. Along their way through the forest on horseback, the two part, and Karin sets out on her own.
Ingeri encounters a one-eyed man at a stream-side mill, converses briefly with him, and then flees in terror. Karin meets three herdsmen (two men and a boy), and invites them to eat her lunch with her. Eventually, the two older men rape and murder Karin (while her sister Ingeri watches from a hidden distance). The trio then leave the scene with Karin's clothing.
The herders then, unknowingly, seek shelter at the home of the murdered girl. Her parents, played by Max von Sydow and Birgitta Valberg, discover that the goat herders murdered their missing daughter when the goat herders offer to sell Karin's clothes to her mother. In a rage, the father locks the trio in the chamber and kills them.
The next day, the parents set out to find their daughter's body, with the help of Ingeri. Her father vows that, although he cannot understand God, he will build a church at the site of his daughter's death. As her parents lift her head from the ground, a spring begins to flow from where she was lying. Her sister Ingeri then begins to wash herself with the water, and Karin's parents clean her muddied face.
The Virgin Spring contains a variety of themes (many of them focusing on the religious aspects of the film), including Christianity, Paganism, vengeance, the occult, questioning of religious faith, sexual innocence, justice, and the nature of evil. The film poses many moral questions to its audience, primarily concerning the revenge enacted by the parents of Karin, and whether or not it was justified, or plain, savage murder. Threads of nihilism also run within the film, primarily displayed in the lack of human sympathy that is found in the herdsmen, and their unashamed rape, abuse, and ultimate murder of an innocent young girl. The story of The Three Living and the Three Dead, to which the film is indebted, was very common in the Middle Ages, and formed the basis for many texts and images, including the Dance of Death, and Geoffrey Chaucer's 'Pardoner's Tale'.
The ending of the film focuses on redemption within the story, in which Karin's father, Töre, pleads to God for forgiveness for his vengeful actions, subsequently proclaiming he will build a church on the site of his daughter's murder. He also remarks his confusion toward God for the events that have unfolded over the past day, and asks why God would allow such horrendous things to happen to His people.
Controversy
Fort Worth, Texas, banned showings of the movie because of the rape scene, Janus Films v. City of Fort Worth, 354 S.W.2d 597 (1962), and the Texas Supreme Court upheld that ban, 358 S.W.2d 589 (Tex. 1962).
The Virgin Spring was released in the Criterion Collection on January 26, 2006, and was the 321st entry into the Criterion series. The film was completely re-mastered with a high definition transfer that was approved by director Ingmar Bergman. Bonus materials included:
an audio commentary with Ingmar Bergman scholar Birgitta Steene
Falconer, a Swedish power metal band, performs a song 'Per Tyrssons Döttrar I Vänge' which is based on the old ballad which forms the basis of The Virgin Spring.
