Smiles Of A Summer Night (1955)
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100% of critics liked it
(13 reviews) -
88% of users liked it
(5,730 ratings)
Bergman's comic masterpiece opens with middle-aged lawyer Frederik Egerman (Gunnar Bjornstrand) again failing to consummate his marriage with the much younger Anne (Ulla Jacobsson). While visiting a former lover, actress Desiree Armfeldt (Eva Dahlbeck), he crosses swords with her current lover,… More Bergman's comic masterpiece opens with middle-aged lawyer Frederik Egerman (Gunnar Bjornstrand) again failing to consummate his marriage with the much younger Anne (Ulla Jacobsson). While visiting a former lover, actress Desiree Armfeldt (Eva Dahlbeck), he crosses swords with her current lover, Count Malcolm (Jarl Kulle), after both men learn that Frederik is the father of her illegitimate child. At Desiree's behest, her mother invites Egerman, the Count, and their wives along with Egerman's grown son, Henrik (Björn Bjelvenstam) to her manor house for the weekend. Before their departure, divinity student Henrik wards off the eager advances of the housemaid by reading from the Bible aloud, but it seems clear that he and Anne are quite taken with one another. After arriving at the Ryarp estate the guests are served a dinner spiked with a love potion which provokes swift reactions. The bewildered Frederik becomes aware of the increasingly intense bond between Henrik and Anne, and the Countess (Margit Carlquist) makes a public bet with her husband that she can seduce Frederik. Shocked by the dinner-table conversation, the strait-laced Henrik retires to his room to commit suicide. In the course of his bumbling attempt, he has the good fortune to learn why so many prefer sex to death. ~ Michael Costello, Rovi
- Directed By
- Ingmar Bergman
- Written By
- Ingmar Bergman
- Genres
- Drama, Art House & International, Classics, Comedy
- In Theaters
- Jan 1, 1955 Limited
- Studio
- Criterion Collection
Critic Reviews
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Bosley Crowther, New York Times
Who would have thought that august Sweden would be sending us a film comedy as witty and cheerfully candid about the complexities of love as any recent French essay on l'amour?
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Fernando F. Croce, CinePassion
An impeccable choreography of vows broken, shuffled and reaffirmed
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Eric Melin, Scene-Stealers.com
Bergman's classic sparkles with wit and innuendo in a way that most modern romantic comedies can't even come close to.
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Jeffrey M. Anderson, Combustible Celluloid
Smiles of a Summer Night is as delightful a romantic roundelay as has ever been made in world cinema; even the title is wonderful.
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Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
There's some magic it has in the shimmering summer tone it sets.
See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)
Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)
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Cast
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Eva Dahlbeck
as Desirée Armfeldt, Desirée Armfeldt, Des...
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Ulla Jacobsson
as Anne Egerman
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Harriet Andersson
as Petra the maid
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Margit Carlquist
as Charlotte Malcolm
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Gunnar Bjornstrand
as Fredrik Egerman
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Jarl Kulle
as Count Carl-Magnus Malcolm
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??ke Fridell
as Frid the groom
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Bibi Andersson
as Actress
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Björn Bjelvenstam
as Henrik Egerman
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Svea Holst
as Dresser
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Ulf Johansson
as Legal agency clerk
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Julian Kindahl
as The Cook
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Arne Lindblad
as Actor
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Mona Malm
as Maid
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Gull Natorp
as Malla
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Gunnar Nielsen
as Niklas
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Yngve Nordwall
as Ferdinand
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Gosta Prnzelius
as Footman
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Hans Str__t
as Almgen the Photographer
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Birgitta Valberg
as Actress
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Naima Wifstrand
as Madame Armfeldt
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Anders Wulff
as Desirée's Son, Desirée's Son, Desire's...
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Mille Schmidt
as Servant
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Sten Gester
as Servant
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Sigge Fuerst
as Policeman
- John Melin
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Boerje Mellvig
as Clerk
- Lena Soderblom
- Margit Carlqvist
- Åke Fridell
- Bjorn Bjelfvenstam