MovieChat Forums > Det sjunde inseglet (1958) Discussion > A possible anti-war film?

A possible anti-war film?

posted 16 years ago by Miura88
4 replies | jump to latest

Antonious sacrifices his life in order to save the artists Jof and Mia. Jons returns from the Crusades unhappy with the fact that he participated in it. The war destroyed their faith in God, and while Jons did not seem intent on asking the more serious questions about the existence of God, Antonious could not stop asking these questions.
I think that Jof and Mia were made out to be virginal-like (Jof admits that he didn't touch any alcohol at the inn, and if I remember they are wearing white on more than one occasion). Therefore they did not sin, and had a very strong faith.
So I think that Bergman was saying that wars do not help humanity, they only make us kill innocent people. But art (and artists) can inspire even the most conflicted people to do right (Antonious being inspired to save Jof and Mia and the baby) and help humanity.

I hope that makes sense

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[–] ObservationBlogger 12 years ago

Great post. I hadn't thought of thought of the anti war message (subliminal perhaps). Agree totally.

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[–] JackBluegrass 12 years ago

No, it is more pro-"religion" than it is anti-war.

The knight crusader who has seen his share of war still understands that saving Jof, Mia, and their son from Death is one more duty of charity his knighthood obliges him to perform. Even though Antonious realizes that he himself will die as a result.

[–] Miss_Kitty89 12 years ago

It's a reaction to World War II and the devestation of the Atomic bomb. What is the meaning of Life and Death if humankind can be so easily destructive?

I find that much of the film deals with transition and borders. The opening scene is on a beach, he encounters death after crossing onto holy ground, the forrest deals with mankind crossing his borders of humanity, and Bergman uses tons of scene transitions (the merging of two images).

At the time the film was made, the world was experiencing a transition into an unknown future. The war had ended, but the Cold War was beginning. Would man be able to learn and avoid more destruction? Did such battles over ideaologies really matter? (The Crusades were about ideaology but ultimately the Black Plague destroyed everything religion had seemingly fought for)

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[–] faulknerfan123 12 years ago

I wouldn't so much call it pro-religion as pro-morality. I don't really think that he is supposed to find God at the end, and since Bergman's later works like Winter Light seem to be devoid of God, I would say that this movie speaks more to basic human morality and how even after a terrible war and a plague, it is still important to be kind and try to help humanity.