Yeah, that's a leap, the gulf between Bergman's film and John Ford's. But I'd love to hear what people have to say about the similarities in the two films' endings, both of which can (but do not necessarily have to) be interpreted as suggesting that continuing to serve the tradition is more important than acknowledging personal doubts.
I have little doubt I'm the first to connect these two films. And probably the last.
This may come as quite a shock but I think you make an excellent point. I love both the films and one of many reasons is their respective endings which I think you are correct in suggesting are quite similar. I just watched Winter Light again today and will pop in my copy of Fort Apache next. Thanks for giving me even more to think about.
shareBy sheer coincidence I happen to have seen Fort Apache about a week ago, and Winter Light last night. How about that...
Ford's film I think was very much of his overall approach, with points and themes that are quite thought provoking, even provocative for the time, while still presented in what appears on the surface to be a conventional tale. As such, however, it is perhaps inevitable that the ending of Fort Apache implies something more... permanent than Winter Light.
''Yeah, that's a leap, the gulf between Bergman's film and John Ford's. But I'd love to hear what people have to say about the similarities in the two films' endings, both of which can (but do not necessarily have to) be interpreted as suggesting that continuing to serve the tradition is more important than acknowledging personal doubts.
I have little doubt I'm the first to connect these two films. And probably the last.''
Mr. Beaver, it is not so ridiculous to suggest similarities. As with Kurosawa and countless other auteurs, Ingmar Bergman was inspired by and acknowledged his dept to John Ford, who is probably the most important Hollywood director of all time when we think of all the people he has influenced. He is probably more influential than Hitchcock even - who actually stated that "A John Ford film was a visual gratification". Bergman actually declared that John Ford was "the best director in the world" and other directors such as Satyajit Ray, Jean Renoir, the aforementioned Kurosawa, Orson Welles and Frank Capra made similar comments.
Formerly KingAngantyr
I must have missed the part where I claimed noting similarities between the two films was "ridiculous." I suggest it was probably not common in this case, but certainly not ridiculous, as the subsequent thread bears out. :-)
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