Ryan Akler-Bishop: Well then, I'M going to say THIS right here and now. I hate this movie. It's simply a horrible film. It's overrated, pretentious, artsy-fartsy garbage. However (?) Ingmar Bergman showed two different people (one of whom was twenty years his junior, (Liv Ullmann), he divorced his wife over, and fathered a child with). It's quite an awful experience. It's like watching one of his home movies with a bad impromptu script. With this next point, I don't need to look to Roger Ebert, (who also called this mess "frustrating"), or any pseudo-intellectual film scholars whatsoever. I speak for myself. The key to comprehending this atrocious piece of crap is simple. Money. Prestige. And two beautiful Scandinavian women Bergman got to play with in the name of 'art'. Add a burning Buddhist monk, and drive a nail through a hand for shock value. Utter nonsense.

What I remember about 'Persona' is that it's a challenging yet masterful piece of art. I saw it in the early '90s and felt it was semi-mindblowing. It IS pretentious. But in the context of when it was made, I can overlook that for the extremely powerful imagery and message (which many people never get).

jayne_I Well then, I'm going to say this right here and now. I love this movie. It's simply a surrealist film. It's not intended to make perfect sense. However Ingmar Bergman showed to different people blending into one. It's quite a frightening experience. With this next point I strongly agree with Roger Ebert. The Key to comprehending this fabulous work of art is the title. Persona. Singular.

It's been 25 years since I last saw it, and I might not attempt an explanation anyways. But if you're interested in Bergman, try Sawdust and Tinsel, Smiles of a Summer Night, or Fanny and Alexander, all in the library. These are much more accessible and considered to be among his best films. The library also has his Scenes from a Marriage -- originally a five-hour series on Swedish t.v. It's amazing. The streets of Stockholm were empty every night it was on. Then watch one of his last films, Saraband, which shows the same married couple 30 years later. Very intense.

One of the worst movie I have ever seen! Even the 2 actresses did not understand it. If somebody understands it, please explain it.