Stars: Ulla Jacobsson, Gunnar Bjornstrand, Eva Dahlbeck, Margit Carlqvist, Jarl Kulle

Director: Ingmar Bergman

Summary: SMILES OF A SUMMER NIGHT is an enchanting comedy of manners with a satirical edge. Set on a country estate at the turn of the century, it features eight people, including an actress, a sophisticated aristocratic couple, a lawyer and his virginal wife, and a spirited young maid who, during the course of one evening, change partners several times and engage in multiple romantic trysts. Full of subtle eroticism and wit, Ingmar Bergman's romance proposes that falling in love (or lust) beyond the parameters of social convention is not only unavoidable at times but it might even be the key to personal happiness.

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The film which established its Swedish writer/director on the stage of world cinema, 1956's Smiles of a Summer Nightis what some people would consider a contradiction in terms--an Ingmar Bergman comedy. Set in the 19th century, Smilesfeatures Bergman stalwart Gunner Bjornstrand as Fredrik, a lawyer yet to consummate his marriage to his young wife Anne. He has hankerings after a former mistress, the voluptuous actress Desiree, who is now mistress to the bellicose Count Malcolm, whose own wife attempts to seduce Fredrik in order to make Malcolm jealous. Fredrik's wife, meanwhile, hankers after her own stepson, an austere young man confused by his repressed sexual longings. This web of romantic intrigue is eventually disentangled at a weekend party held by Desiree's mother, a formidably acerbic, fairy godmother-style figure.

Smiles of a Summer Nightis sparkling but mordant, stronger on absurdism than belly laughs and it is lent shade by the long shadows of existential angst. It conveys all of Bergman's core messages about human relationships but in a light, operatic bundle of cinematic joy.

On the DVD:Presented in the original academy ratio, the film is restored here to its original, silvery glory. There are extensive notes from Bergman's memoirs, in which he talks candidly about the near-suicidal depression he was in when he wrote this ironically light script, as well as additional notes from critic Derek Malcolm, who aptly compares the film to a Mozart opera and Jean Renoir's The Rules of the Game. --David Stubbs

Main Language:	Swedish
Region:	Region 0
Special Features:	Trailers - 1. Trailer Gallery - The Bergman Collection, Scene Access, Production Notes, Filmographies - 1. Ingmar Bergman - Director, 2. Cast
Year:	1955
Release Date:	September 24, 2001
Runtime:	104 minutes
Certification:
Catalogue Number:	T V D 3344
Keywords:	Swedish, Night, Summer, Subtitled, Comedy, General, Smiles, Sommarnattens, Leende
Genre:	Comedy