Ingmar Bergman had always been a blind spot in my film knowledge. To be honest, I was compelled to finally watch more of his work due to an A24 podcast conversation between Ari Aster and Robert Eggers where they talked at length about his influence on their work in horror. That and the availability of Bergman’s films on the Kanopy streaming service. In this time of great anxiety and uncertainty, why not watch Bergman’s contribution to the horror genre, Hour of the Wolf (1968; Vargtimmen). While his dramas have horrifying scenes of psychological turmoil and stark emotions, here there are more traditional horror signifiers – a castle, a group of sinister wealthy people, surreal imagery, and even one character resembling Bela Lugosi in costuming and lighting. Yet the film is also so clearly influential on future directors like Kubrick, Lynch, Cronenberg, Von Trier etc for its slow burn descent into madness. A painter (Max Von Sydow) and his pregnant wife (Liv Ullmann) live on a small island, isolated in their house. Yet the painter has terrible nightmares and can’t sleep, and suddenly strange visitors appear including the owner of the island who lives in a castle, says he is a fan of the painter and invites the couple to dinner. Then there’s an anxious dinner party of grotesques, sudden physical or emotional violence, and an explanation of the title at the dead of night – 3am when most deaths and births occur, the painter explains. Once again, atmospheric and moody cinematography by Sven Nykvist, and a building industrial score by Lars Johan Werle. It is art house horror with a capital A, and I really liked its exorcism of what seemed like personal nightmares and anxieties from the director into an under 90 minutes purge. Even though it might be a cliche of what Bergman represents (I’m thinking of that SCTV sketch where Count Floyd introduces a Bergman film on his horror show), Hour Of The Wolf still feels modern in touches like breaking the fourth wall with the sound of the crew filming a scene over the opening titles or the way the film’s title is held back until halfway through the movie when it appears. Sydow and Ullman especially are great. Recommended.
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