the screen

Cries and Whispers. Describing a tissue of lies surrounding human relations, Ingmar Bergman moulds an emotional, womb-like turn-of-the-century world where two sisters and a servant attend the third sister just before her death. The whispers which make up life and the cries which punctuate it lead nowhere; the daying woman finds joy before her death because her family is near, but this lyrical glimmer is not a way out for those still alive. Bergman's most recent film, in color, with brilliant cinematography by Sven Nykvist. 1972. The Naked Night. During a single day's action, we see the owner of an impoverished travelling circus and his mistress, the bare-back rider, each trying to betray the other. The film (whose original Swedish title means "The Clown's Evening") is Bergman's first masterpiece. Many people interpret it as being totally pessimistic, but its ending (the pair walking in silence alongside the caravan) and the memories of the clown, Frost (in the flashback near the beginning and when Frost relates a dream at the end) point to the life-giving power of resignation and companionship. 1955.

The Big Sleep. Director Howard Hawks and his writers (including William Faulkner) claimed they couldn't follow the plot of Raymond Chandler's detective novel. In any case, they turned Detective Phillip Marlowe into Humphrey Bogart yet still managed to retain large chunks of snappy Chandler dialogue. Watch this movie for mood and style, not plot, and you'll find it one of Bogart and Bacall's very best. 1946.

The Man who Knew Too Much. Because Hitchcock also directed a Technicolor remake of this classic (in Hollywood in 1955), the original is too seldom shown. This marvelous suspense tale, starring Peter Lorre, will be shown at the Welles, Sat. and Sun. at 2:00 only. 1934.

Lola Montes. Famous for its tracking shots, this extravagantly baroque film by Max Ophuls (Marcel's father), was one of the most colossal financial failures in the history of the cinema, but its 1969 re-release led to much critical approval. The film stare Martine Carols and Peter Ustinov and hurtles madly through Lola's scandals and romances with Lizst, the King of Bavaria, etc., through exciting circus scenes, even through a loose version of the 1848 revolutions. 1955.