All language subtitles for Introduction by Ingmar Bergman (2003)_track3_[eng]-eng

Autumn Sonata was an encounter
between Sweden's two greatest Bergmans:

Ingmar Bergman and Ingrid Bergman.

How was it to work together?

Well, it happened
that at a film festival —

and I've ended up at a few.

There Ingrid and I met
for the first time.

My Ingrid was also there,
so there were two Ingrid Bergmans.

We had a pretty nice
evening together,

and then they wanted to photograph
the three of us together.

And then suddenly...

Ingrid Bergman the actress

secretly gave me a note.

I didn't have time to read it
until later in my room.

It said...

"When we met five years ago,
you promised me

we'd make a film together."

And I thought...

I should try to keep that promise.

This was during my exile.

I was away from Sweden,
staying in Munich at the time.

I was busy writing a script.

I had talked to Liv about it,
that she'd have a part in it.

We'd been very indecisive
as to who should play the mother,

this concert pianist.

There were a few names.

And suddenly it hit me:

Ingrid Bergman
is absolutely perfect for the part.

The tension that might arise
between Liv Ullmann and Ingrid Bergman,

these two incredibly strong
personalities —

mother and daughter —

That could really be something.

So we all sat down

at a table and read the script.

That's when I got a real shock.

Because Ingrid

had prepared herself
to the nth degree for this role.

She had read it and knew her lines
practically by heart.

She had probably stood
in front of a mirror

and rehearsed inflections
and gestures — all of it.

So she sat at the table
and practically performed the role

in a frightfully overacted manner.

I remember I got this headache,

and I don't know
where it came from.

It must have been a headache
from sheer fear.

What do you do

with this incredibly strong
and solid human being?

How can I get her to dismantle

this interpretation of the role
that she has already decided on?

The kind that's best played
on a stage in a theater

that only seats 2,000 people,

not in front of a camera.

The first few days of shooting
were a nightmare.

Ingrid simply wouldn't
take direction.

She did it her own way...

and it was terrible.

I thought,
"We have to have a talk."

At that point I learned...

that Ingrid suffered
from a severe form of cancer.

Her life was incredibly —

Her life had in fact become limited,

because her cancer
was so far advanced...

that it was impossible to operate.

She'd had one or two
operations already.

And so we talked about this,

and about this overacting of hers.

And I said,

"You're doing something
completely different

from what I had in mind.

Is there any way
we could meet halfway?

After all, you wanted
to work with me.

Couldn't we try it my way,
or use both ways?

Partly your way —"

Then she says —

She wasn't upset or anything.

She said,
"l want to see what I've done."

So she watched her takes...

and then she came into my office,

closed the door and said,

"You're completely right.

Completely right.

I'm going about this wrong.
We'll redo it."

And so we reshot those days...

and all of a sudden
she was very sensitive

and fantastic to work with.

She was amazing...

and great.

A real handful, but great.

These hardships and difficulties —

there was something fun in them.

There's also a substance
in this script that I like.

For Ingrid,
and for the substance of this script,

I think this movie
is definitely worth seeing.

Then let's!