Max von Sydow

Bengt Ekerot

Gunnar Björnstrand

Nils Poppe

Bibi Andersson

Inga Landgré

Åke Fridell

Inga Gill

Maud Hansson

Gunnel Lindblom

Bertil Anderberg

Anders Ek

Gunnar Olsson

Erik Strandmark

Lars Lind

Benkt-Åke Benktsson

Tor Borong

Gudrun Brost

Harry Asklund

Ulf Johansson

Sten Ardenstam

Gordon Löwenadler

Karl Widh

Tommy Karlsson

Siv Aleros

Bengt Gillberg

Lars Granberg

Gunlög Hagberg

Gun Hammargren

Uno Larsson

Lennart Lilja

Monica Lindman

Helge Sjökvist

Georg Skarstedt

Ragnar Sörman

Lennart Tollén

Caya Wickström

Catherine Berg

Mona Malm

Tor Isedal

Josef Norman

Gösta Prüzelius

Fritjof Tall

Nils Whiten

Lena Bergman

Gunnar Fischer

Lennart Wallén

Erik Nordgren

P.A. Lundgren

Allan Ekelund

Ingmar Bergman

Manne Lindholm

Aaby Wedin

Lennart Wallin

Nils Nittel

Else Fisher

Sixten Ehrling

Evald Andersson

Lennart Olsson

Åke Nilsson

Katinka Faragó

Carl-Henry Cagarp

Fantasy

Drama

Det sjunde inseglet

SF Studios

Sweden

svenska

The Seventh Seal

witch

dying and death

blacksmith

chess

countryside

allegory

crusade

artist

juggler

witch burning

last judgment

symbolism

sense of life

matter of life and death

grim reaper

black and white

demon

belief in god

middle ages (476-1453)

meaning of life

virgin mary

black death

playing chess

death personified

death incarnate

life teacher

metaphysical

14th century

seeking a god

relaxed

metaphysical drama

metaphysics, mysticism, kabbalah, spiritism

the virgin mary

Andres Gomez

Interesting and iconic movie about faith and the meaning of life. A must seen.

Filipe Manuel Neto

**The universality and invincibility of Death, the fear of dying, the importance of faith and its use by the Church in a timeless film, but not suitable for everyone.**

The film, set in the late Middle Ages, begins with a knight returning to his homeland in Sweden after participating in the crusades. When he spots the figure of Death, who has come to get him, he decides to try to gain time by inviting her to play chess: if he wins the game, Death will not take him.

What follows is a huge film essay around the themes of death, beliefs, faith, religion and the role of spirituality in human experience. While the plague is raging and claiming victims, we see people increasingly scared, and blindly resorting to faith to protect themselves from what looks like the end of times. We see people's daily lives, with their mistakes, virtues, sins and difficulties. We see the knight himself, with a growing fear of dying and struggling with deeper and deeper doubts about faith, the existence of God. Furthermore, we also see how the Church exploited the fear of death to reinforce its power, influence and relevance within uneducated communities shaken by the epidemic. The ending is simple, but there is a deep meaning in it.

Swedish filmmaker Ingmar Bergman's masterpiece seems to have its origins in his own fear of death. Max von Sydow, who gave life to the knight, is the greatest actor present in the film and gives us a strong and impactful performance. The film has gained notoriety over the decades and has become one of the most timeless and culturally significant classics of European cinema. However, it is not a film for everyone. Its simplicity, the way it approaches very complicated and philosophical themes and the ending that is difficult to understand at first glance are more than enough reasons why many people do not like this film, and I have to admit that there is a reason. For me personally, it wasn't a success, it's not a movie you want to see regularly, but I recognize its value.

The Seventh Seal (1957) ORIGINAL TRAILER [HD 1080p]

Mark Kermode reviews The Seventh Seal | BFI Player

The Seventh Seal( 1957)

The story of a challenge to death

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A review by Andres Gomez

Written by Andres Gomez on Fri Jan 04 2013

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