Excerpts from 'The Seduction of Ingmar Bergman'

I am Ingmar Bergman You may or may not know my films You may or may not know anything about me as a person Still, the strange events following the warm and unexpected reception to my film Smiles Of A Summer Night Are something that no one has known about – until now Good, Evil, God, the Devil, Life, Death – these were my usual concerns. This film, though, was a comedy A comedy! How far from a comedy the events to follow would be Have you ever felt compelled to do something against your will? I have. I have You see, I have a total disdain for escapist art, and yet why, on that cold May afternoon in Stockholm in 1956, did I feel the need to enter that movie theatre to see escapist art of the worst sort, a typical American action film Well, the title is not what is important. What is important is that I felt compelled to stay against my will, for 90 long minutes Why? Was it the urge to partake of something mindless? Was it the urge to indulge in something vacuous? Was it the urge to do something unlike Ingmar Bergman And, as lights finally came on I got up and walked out as quickly as I could and onto the street – but not the street I expected Mr. Bergman, how are you? Something we can get for you? Some Ramlösa, like some ice? My name’s Gerald Geoffrey Weiss We’ve got to turn him ‘round Not let him let us down We’ve got to turn him ‘round Not let him turn us down We’ve got to turn him ‘round Not let him turn us down How could he be so small to turn us down at all How could he be so small to turn us down at all He’s great, but not that great He thinks he has a choice in all this He thinks he has a choice in all this He thinks he has a choice in all this We’ve offered him the moon Rejected us like goons And all the while unfazed, his eyes were dull and glazed But all that’s in the past He really has some goal to turn us down at all He really has some goal to turn us down at all Is anyone that great? Let’s see how well he does without us He’ll see that he is lost without us He’ll never be that great without us Bergman, Bergman, Bergman, Bergman, Bergman, Bergman, Bergman, Bergman ... He’s home, he’s home, and we’re so glad He’s home, he’s home, and we’re so glad No fireworks, no marching band No fireworks, no marching band But old and young, rejoice and cheer But old and young, rejoice and cheer Without him here, we’re barely here Without him here, we’re barely here Ah, but Bergman well, he examines all And most of all himself Good night, that’s all Good night, that’s all