Skip to content

Frank's Movie Log

My life at the movies.

Prison

(Fängelse)
1949 | Sweden | 79 min | More...
A still from Prison (1949)
D+: 2 stars (out of 5)
on Mon Feb 01, 2021

Bergman’s first feature from his own screenplay. An ambitious movie-within-a-movie following a writer, played by Malmsten, who falls for a prostitute, played by Svedlund. Bergman proffers a dark—bordering on nihilistic—point of view throughout and flexes his formal muscles in an extended dream sequence. The result didn’t resonate—the dream sequence felt pretentious—but I appreciated the uncompromising vision. The scene where Malmsten and Svedlund laugh at a silent film’s inanity to escape their own misery proved a standout.

Viewing History

    Watched on
    Mon Feb 01, 2021 via DVD