Sven Nykvist Memorial - Day 2: Persona

I've seen Persona 3 or 4 times, and it always has an amazing effect on me; every time, it feels completely new, as if I'm seeing it for the very first time. The most avant-garde of Bergman's films, Persona both defies and begs for explanation and analysis. From the opening frames, it calls attention to itself and announces that it won't play on the level, and it won't conform to any of the ideas about cinema that we've come to know and expect. Call it a dream, call it a hallucination, call it stylized, call it an allegory, call it art. One thing's for sure; this is not reality- this is pure film.

Persona is both Bergman and Nykvist at the heights of their creativity. This is one of the few films where Nykvist's camera calls attention to itself, but that's because it's completely necessary in the film. Everything here is stylized and like nothing we've ever seen before, or since. All throughout it, there's an uneasy feeling that attacks your senses and ensures that your mind and soul spend 83 minutes in completely uncharted territory.

Sven Nykvist Memorial - Day 1: What's Eating Gilbert Grape

Between this, Chocolat and My Life as a Dog, Lasse Hallstrom has proved himself to be the master of the modern "intimate touching story where seemingly nothing happens, at least not to the casual viewer"-style story. Hallstrom captures the wistful feel of a small town that never was and never will be anything special to passers-by. Gilbert has two closest friends; one's ultimate ambition is to get a job at the new Burger Barn opening, the other works as a mortician and drives a hearse everywhere he goes. What we're seeing here is a prototype for just about every quirky indie-comedy being made today. Unlike most of them, though, What's Eating Gilbert Grape is excellent and genuinely touching.

The film wouldn't have nearly the same amount of power if it weren't for Sven Nykvist's cinematography. What I see here is exemplary of Nykvist's entire career; he elevates a film to emotional and spiritual heights beyond its creators' wildest dreams, while at the same time, almost never calling attention to itself.