wilky61

Wow, I wish I could wrap my head around this film.

The way I see it, they're the same person, but divergent personalities. I think that's pretty straightforward, but the question is: Why? I think as a means of coping with guilt. The silent Elizabeth seems to feel guilty about the whole estranged son situation, does the young nurse feel guilty about the orgasm on the beach and the ensuing abortion? I think so, but does the line "It had never been that good before or since" refer to the fling on the beach or when the sex she had when she returned to her fiance? Do the Vietnam/Holocaust scenes have any psychological significance? I don't think so...

What happens at the end? First there's the double-dialogue sequence in which they wear the exact same costume followed by the melding of their faces. I think this just establishes that they're the same person. But then... we see the nurse tidying up preparing to leave, she brushes her hair in front of a mirror and there's a ghasty image of Elizabeth fondling her hair, then she walks outside and the camera focuses on this statue head (what is this?) and then there's a brief shot of Elizabeth performing Electra (why?).

These scenes, coupled with the scene where the husband recognizes the nurse, seem to indicate that she's the real one, no? She leaves and it's almost as if she's been cured of her internal struggle. What, then, of Elizabeth's character? I had always thought that the boy at the beginning/end of the movie was the estranged son, looking on longingly, but I don't know how to reconcile this if Elizabeth's not real. Perhaps they represent different stages in the same being's life?

I haven't seen this with commentary yet, perhaps that elucidates some of the movie's questions?

wendersfan

This is not a movie for which there are easy answers, but you're thinking along similar lines as a lot of people have in the past. Another explanation is that Liv Ullman's character has such a strong personality that she "takes over" the personality of Bibi Andersson's character.

Now I have to watch this again.

wilky61

Bump. I suppose my threads, just like Bergman films, require a second viewing.

naitram

The difference is Bergman's films weren't pretentious.

Persona has to have one of the most erotic scenes ever that's told merely through dialogue.

wilky61

Yeah, Bergman's use of WORDS to create IMAGES is remarkable in this picture. It's like he invented a new kind of filmmaking. (And the ironic thing is Bergman's wordy style usually turns me off...)

I also got a Hiroshima mon amour vibe from Persona, and I thought I saw hints of Godardian influence also (opening credits and repetition of dialogue are things Godard would do).

Mabuse

It's a very challenging film, I count it among my favorites and yet I can't answer any of your questions. I do feel that overall the film is about one personality taking over another personality. LITTERALLY! Like she steals her "Persona". Implicit lesbianism seems to be alluded to throughout the film as well. But in the end the lesbian seduction is more like a literal seduction of her being. Like a Dracula film.

The film has many, many layers and is a preeminent work of post-modernism, there is no complete explanation because it doesn’t truly have one. The value of the film is the sensation it gives you while watching it…and after.