Product: Elvira Madigan [VHS]
Rating: 4.0
A lush, lyrical folie à deux
I'd wanted to see this acclaimed film for a long time, after missing it when it first appeared some 4 decades ago -- but I wondered how those intervening 4 decades would affect my experience of watching it. Well, it was a remarkable experience!It's true that some of the film's power has been diluted by the use of its iconic imagery in countless commercials. We've seen the gorgeous look so many times that we can't come to it with fresh eyes any longer. Even so, the exquisite cinematography remains so lush & enveloping that you can practically feel it caressing your senses like fine, brilliant, perfumed silk.The story is simple, following the impossibly romantic passion between two lovers striving to escape from the world. And of course it invariably descends into romantic tragedy, languidly beautiful to the bitter end. The two leads convincingly capture the irresistible pull of youth & beauty & gloriously naive romance. Who among us hasn't wanted to live in a perfect, golden bubble with his or her beloved at some point? Yet a darker thread begins to appear as their idyll collides with cold reality.What's especially interesting to me is how a period film such as this reflects two periods: the historical one in which it's set, and the one in which it was made. The same story filmed in the 1950s, or in the 1990s, would look & feel very different! This film is clearly as much about the 1960s as it is about late 19th century Sweden. And as such, it provides a fascinating glimpse into a way of seeing & experiencing the world that must seem strange & foreign to many younger viewers -- stranger, perhaps, than the 19th century in which it's set.It's not a film for those seeking a strong narrative, or probing psychological insight. Better to look on it as an exquisite tone poem ... perhaps a little too rich for some tastes, I'm sure. You can't watch too many films like this at once, any more than you could make a dinner out of dessert. But every once in awhile, it's good to simply indulge yourself. For those times, this film is highly recommended!