The Seventh Seal - Black and White, Subtitles and Confusing

Title: The Seventh Seal - Black and White, Subtitles and Confusing

Name:  Heidi Lorenzen

Personal Response to Film:

The Seventh Seal by Ingmar Bergman was very interesting to me.  My first reaction is that it was difficult to follow as it was in another language so subtitles had to be read to understand what the actors were saying.  This made it difficult to watch the movie and truly watch how the actors were reacting and what they were doing.  Being difficult to understand, I definitely had to watch it for a second time in order to get a full grasp on the movie.  I really enjoyed the story of the movie, especially the chess game between Death and the Knight.  I'm not sure why I found this so intriguing but I think it is because it was simply a different idea to distract death for a man to fulfill one "last good act" for another before his time comes.  Getting more used to the black and white film genre, I found that I liked Bergman's use of film techniques that were accentuated with the use of black and white.  The juxtaposition between Death and characters such as Jof and Mia was made clear with Bergman's use of light and dark.  The details of Bergman's choices in film techniques add to the reasons that I enjoyed the film.

Summary of Critical Article:

In John C. Stubbs' article, The Seventh Seal, described Ingmar Bergman's ability to use visual components in his film that make his films very strong.  Stubbs gives background on Bergman such as he grew up near Stockholm and was raised in a strongly paternal family and his father was a minister.  Given his religious upbringing, Stubbs makes the connection that the film The Seventh Seal had much to do with Bergman's own struggle with his belief in God when he was a young adult; seeking proof that God does exist.  In this article the author breaks down the film, describing that the idea for the script was based on The Book of Revelations in which God's book of secrets is held closed with seven seals and the seventh is broken which occurs on Judgement Day.  Stubbs describes that the Knight is searching for proof that God does exist as he delays Death by playing him in a game of chess so that he can perform one meaningful deed for another person.  Stubbs compares Jof and Mia's family to the Holy family because of the film techniques Bergman uses with them.  The author states that, although the Knight does not find God,  he has found an "earthly equivalent" in Jof and Mia's ability to be kind and love. 

Response to Critical Article:

Stubbs' article was actually very helpful in understanding the film overall.  The way that the author described the movie and pointed out important themes such as Jof and Mia's family being like the Holy family and the connection between The Book of Revelation to the movie's script was aided in my understanding.  As I read this article after the first time I viewed the movie and before the second time, I was able to notice some of the important film techniques that Stubbs mentioned his article.  Most significantly, how Bergman used extremely bright light the scenes with Jof and Mia creating almost a "heavenly" or angelic feel to those characters.  

Consideration of Critic’s Use of Critical frameworks/concepts:
Throughout the article The Seventh Seal by John C. Stubbs, the author utilizes the historical framework to analyze the film by Ingman Bergman.  Stubbs describes some of Bergman's background, including information regarding Bergman growing up in a religious family with his father being a minister.  Stubbs also mentions a time in Bergman's adulthood in which he made a choice to "go against the church."  These facts analyzed by Stubbs are ones that he argues affected Bergman's choice to write this story and film it the way that he did.  Stubbs argued that he believes that Bermgan's upbringing influenced his writing and filmng of this story.

Film Analysis:
In the opening scene of the film, we are presented with the Knight and when Death appears to him.  At first, the director used long shots to view both characters.  The shots of these two characters are drastically different.  Death is standing, dressed in a whole body black cloak; the lighting is darker as he stands on some dark rocks with a very dark and cloudy sky in the background.  Also behind him is a large, very dark stone cliff which adds to the omnious feel of Death's presence.  The other long shots of the Knight, the lighting is much brighter and the stones that he is kneeling on seem to be much lighter in color because of the lighting.  The fact that the Knight is kneeling, gives the feel that Death has more power than he does and almost makes the Knight seem to be somewhat fearful of Death, especially as he attempts to evade him with the game of chess.  When the Knight stands up, Death then swings out his arm (and keeps it in this position), creating an even larger presence as his cloak extends out in the wind; as the Knight's presence got larger, Death's got larger as well to maintain his power.  Then, Death approaches the Knight and there is a tight, close-up shot of Death. During their conversation, the actor speaking is shown in an over-the-shoulder shot of the one listening, to give the viewer the sense of seeing what each actor is seeing in this situation.

References (APA): 
Stubbs, J. C. (1975). The Seventh Seal. The Journal of Aesthetic Education, 9(2), 62-76.