Haroon Paul’s review published on Letterboxd:
It is one of those films in the vast portfolio of Bergman that you might not have heard about a lot but when you get to it, you realize how magnificent yet under-apperciated it really is. As usual, Sydow leads with Ingrid Thulin and a couple of other familiar faces are there as well.
Bergman brings a dark yet very funny look at what illusion, belief and truth can be. Magic and science collide. From start to end, he is playing with the idea of deception - how even the smartest people in the room can be fooled whether it is in the name of love, fear or revenge.
Surely, there are hidden meanings in a lot of things here, one being Bergman using magic as a parallel to filmmaking. But whatever meanings there are, it is always a pleasure to watch a maestro playing with the ideas that have troubled human minds for ages. In the end, whether it is life or magic, everything relies on believing especially when you are in doubt.
Ingmar Bergman Ranked
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