Creating a Legacy: Ingmar Bergman and Svensk Filmindustri

Ingmar Bergman's film career spans back to 1946 with his directorial debut Kris. For the first six years, which brought about ten films, Bergman struggled to find both critical praise and an audience that would cement him as one of the world's best directors. Although regarded highly as a stage director he did not find the same success with film. Since 1952 when Sommaren med Monika and Kvinnors Väntan were released, Bergman's reputation began to grow. Along with Sommarlek it would be easy to single out these films as the turning point in Bergman's career when he began to create masterpieces of the cinema that have become classics over time. The most important factors that allowed the now famous director to make films on his own terms, however, were his homeland of Sweden and the production company Svensk Filmindustri. With the marginal success that Bergman received after his first ten films, directors in Hollywood would not have been able to make any more films, let alone films that they had any sort of control over. Especially with the art cinema that was so prevalent in Bergman's work, no one in Hollywood would fund his production. Even through financial crisis and marginal success, Svensk Filmindustri gave Ingmar Bergman the ability to creatively make movies when other companies would not.

There are many stories and examples of how Hollywood filmmakers were under fierce pressure during the 1940s and 50s to make economically successful movies. During this time period the amount of control that any one director had over a film depended greatly on previous economic accomplishments. It is said that "the Hollywood studio system [can be compared] to a factory, and it is useful to remember that studios were out to make money first and art second" (Voss). A great example of this would be Orson Welles. With the 1940 release of Citizen Kane (a movie that is now heralded as one of the greatest of all time) Welles' directing career was basically ruined, only being given limited control over his movies that followed. Fortunately for Ingmar Bergman, his "art cinema" style was accepted by Svensk Filmindustri, giving him the ability to try his own material under his own control.

It is easy to see that Bergman had control over basically all facets of production. He states in Peter Cowie's book that Sommarlek was his first "film in which I felt I was functioning independently, with a style of my own, making a film all my own, with a particular appearance of its own, which no one could ape" (Cowie, 85). A film like Sommarlek would have been almost impossible to make in the Hollywood system because of the strict production code. Sommarlek contains many scenes implying sexual acts by unmarried, young people which would not have garnered the "seal signifying that Sommarlek can be seen as a movie that shows "there is in fact mercy and meaning" within the story, a theme that has its "culmination in Smiles of a Summer Night" (Kalin xv). Svensk Filmindustri's leniency in such matters allowed Bergman free reign over his films and the ability to become the world renowned director that he has become.

The importance of Bergman to be set up outside of Hollywood can be seen further by comparing his movies of the early 50s to the typical American movies of that time period. A new demographic had arrived known as the "teen aged-youth market". The use of rock and roll music began to grow in films, along with a new phenomenon known as the "anti-hero". Stars like Marlon Brando, Paul Newman, and James Dean began to grow in popularity. It is not likely that any of these stars would be seen in a Bergman movie because they carried a tougher persona. A movie like A Streetcar Named Desire contains faint sexual situations that must be hinted at, but never explicitly spoken of seem tame to Bergman's movies of the same period. As Lucia Bozzola writes, "Battling the strict Production Code, Kazan and Williams made concessions concerning the 'perverse' sexual elements..." (Bozzola). Other popular Hollywood movies of that year include The African Queen, Strangers on a Train, The Day the Earth Stood Still, and A Christmas Carol. Even though these can be acknowledged as classics they do not come close in plot structure or philosophical implications that Bergman used.

A typical male character for Bergman was weaker and usually dominated by the woman, which was unheard of in Hollywood films. In Sommarlek, Smiles of a Summer Night, Wild Strawberries and countless other films, Bergman uses the women to dictate the plot and subdue (even if it is subtle) the men they are involved in. A character like Stanley Kowalski in Streetcar was dominant in all aspects of life. Physically, emotionally, and economically Stanley and almost every other American male lead character was the leader. The sensitive, weak character of Henrik in Sommarlek or any odd male character that was subjective to the woman's final authority played by Gunnar Björnstrand did not fit the mold in America. These characters did not reach out to a mass audience, but were more personal to Bergman and added to his status as an auteur. Jörn Donner writes that "It has been said that the characters in his films seem to live in faulty contact with 'the times' as a social and political field of action" (Donner 11). He adds that "A biographical light may of course be thrown on this", indicating that Bergman shows his creative talents throughout his career (Donner 11). Without a powerful studio system in Hollywood controlling his production, Bergman's artistic quality lies heavily on the faith that Svensk Filmindustri had in him.

The most important consideration that production companies think about when committing to a movie is the economical aspects. It is not hard to argue that directors who gain critical success are allowed a little longer to bring in the box-office money than others. Directors from Hollywood of the same period that Bergman emerged were no exception. Nicholas Ray received critical praise for two out of his first three films as a director in 1949. They Live by Night and Knock on Any Door may not have garnered huge profits, but they did showcase Ray's artistic qualities. It didn't hurt Ray's chances of making it as a director by working with Humphrey Bogart in his early films. What really allowed Ray to establish himself as an auteur was the box-office success of the war-drama Flying Leathernecks starring John Wayne. This success was only two years and 5 films into his career. Bergman's first few years were full of split critical response and little to no economic profit. He was not even making a steady income from his films and relied on the theatre for his well-being. Unfortunately for him he either quit or was fired from his job at the theatre in 1951, a good five years into his film career, leaving him without that steady income. How is it then that Bergman made and solely controlled over ten films during this period? The good fortune that Bergman had in Svensk Filmindustri was very important.

It was not until 1952's Secrets of Women "was a hit, the first in Bergman's career" that he finally had a decent economical profit from a film (Cowie 99). This film did not substantiate Bergman as a world-renowned director though. Instead, his career was questioned a few years later when Sawdust and Tinsel was released and "the response...was appalling" (Cowie 119). What are now usually seen as Bergman's artistic qualities "produced a feeling of revulsion among the Swedes" (Cowie 119). It is hard to imagine someone that was given so much, but produced so little profit. Another director of Bergman's generation that has become a major auteur is Elia Kazan. Right away, Kazan made critical and economical successes. His films Gentleman's Agreement, Pinky, and A Streetcar Named Desire were all made within the first six years of his career. For Kazan, it was easy to imagine that he would go on to be a great, well polished film director.

Bergman, however, was in his eighth year in film, with thirteen films in the can, and only one real success under his belt. Cowie writes that "In the wake of this failure, Bergman was anxious to strike out on a new tack. 'I really felt I had to make a commercial success very quickly. Everyone was saying, 'Bergman is finished.''" (Cowie 120). It's not hard to figure out why he felt this way. The Hollywood system would have chewed him up and spit him out by now, but it was different in Sweden. Carl Dymling, who worked at Svensk Filmindustri, is the one who Bergman collaborated his ideas with and made the budget and schedules (Cowie 120). "He trusted Bergman when the chips were down and at the time when Bergman was by no means accepted as a national institution" (Cowie 120). This relationship is the main ingredient that allowed Bergman to gain a career as one of the most influential filmmakers in history.

The films immediately following Secrets of Women were A Lesson in Love, Dreams, and Smiles of a Summer Night. The first two were more of the same from the director. Dreams was critically and economically the least impressive. Cowie writes that "the films was too somber to succeed with the general public and insufficiently exotic to attract foreign interest" (Cowie 124). This brings us back to the story of Orson Welles who made one critically mixed, audience unappreciated film and was thus stopped from creating his artistic ideas. Most directors of this era were products of the studio system, manufacturing the ideas of producers in an assembly line fashion. Bergman was given tremendous leeway compared to the Hollywood directors. One important fact is that Smiles was a critical success with good box-office returns. It was at this point that his career began to take off. The next two films that came out of the Svensk Filmindustri/Bergman combination would command the respect of critics and audiences alike.

The year 1957 brought about both Wild Strawberries and The Seventh Seal and marked the first successful string in Bergman's filmography. Artistically these two films do not differ much from his previous work. It can be argued that they even add more artistic qualities than his previous works. Why then do these films reach a mass audience? One reason would be the Berlin International Film Festival giving Wild Strawberries its Golden Bear and The Seventh Seal winning a Special Jury Prize at Cannes. While these proved that Bergman found a wide range of international critical praise, it did not account for the average audience member watching the films. Richard Gilliam argues that "Bergman makes his film accessible to the ordinary viewer", summing up the most important aspect of these two accomplishments (Gilliam). While still personal, these films do not only address Bergman's inner most philosophical dilemmas. Instead, they have a somewhat accessible plot structure with existential questions that most people encounter. Svensk Filmindustri's commitment to Ingmar Bergman finally began to show signs of genius instead of blind courage.

After about sixty years of making films Ingmar Bergman has created a legacy that cannot be taken away from him. He has been regarded as one of the greatest filmmakers to ever live; one who made the movies that he wanted to make whether it was accepted well or not. Early on the struggles were greater than the accomplishments, but somehow Bergman was able to continue making the "art cinema" that he is now praised for. Making films in Sweden really helped him to create his own identity worldwide, without being pressured by the Hollywood system. The most important reason for his success was Svensk Filmindustri's ability to continue financing and releasing all of the director's material. Through economic crisis and poor critical response, Svensk Filmindustri proved to know more about Bergman's talents than were ever thought possible. And we all thank them for that.
Bibliography

Cowie, Peter. Ingmar Bergman. 1st ed. New York: Limelight Editions, 1992.

Donner, Jörn . The Personal Vision of Ingmar Bergman. 1st ed. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1964.

Kalin, Jesse. The Films of Ingmar Bergman. 1st ed. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003.

Voss, Karen. "Sessions 1-4." Classical Hollywood Cinema. Fathom/American Film Institute. 9 Oct. 2005 .

Bozzola, Lucia . "A Streetcar Named Desire Review." All Movie Guide. All Movie Guide. 9 Oct. 2005 .

Gilliam, Richard. "Wild Strawberries Review." All Movie Guide. All Movie Guide. 9 Oct. 2005 .