''After the Rehearsal'' ( sv, Efter repetitionen) is a

television film A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

, written and directed by Ingmar Bergman in 1984. The script contains numerous quotes from

Strindberg Johan August Strindberg (, ; 22 January 184914 May 1912) was a Swedish playwright, novelist, poet, essayist and painter.Lane (1998), 1040. A prolific writer who often drew directly on his personal experience, Strindberg wrote more than sixty p ...

's ''

A Dream Play ''A Dream Play'' ( sv, Ett drömspel) is a fantasy play in 14 scenes written in 1901 by the Swedish playwright August Strindberg. It was published in Swedish in 1902 and first performed in Stockholm on 17 April 1907. It remains one of Strindberg ...

''. The film was screened out of competition at the

1984 Cannes Film Festival The 37th Cannes Film Festival was held from 11 to 23 May 1984. The Palme d'Or went to the '' Paris, Texas'' by Wim Wenders. The festival opened with '' Fort Saganne'', directed by Alain Corneau and closed with '' The Bounty'', directed by Roger ...

Plot summary

Rational, exacting, and self-controlled theater director, Henrik Vogler, often stays after rehearsal to think and plan. On this day, Anna comes back, ostensibly looking for a bracelet. She is the lead in his new production of Strindberg's ''

''. She talks of her hatred for her mother (now dead), an alcoholic actress who was Vogler's star and lover. Vogler falls into a reverie, remembering a day Anna's mother, Rakel, late in life, came after rehearsal to beg him to come to her apartment. He awakes and Anna reveals the reason she has returned: she jolts him into an emotional response, rare for him, and the feelings of a young woman and an older man play out.

Cast

Erland Josephson Erland Josephson (; 15 June 1923 – 25 February 2012) was a Swedish actor and author. He was best known by international audiences for his work in films directed by Ingmar Bergman, Andrei Tarkovsky and Theodoros Angelopoulos. Life and career ...

– Henrik Vogler (older) *

Ingrid Thulin Ingrid Lilian Thulin (; 27 January 1926 – 7 January 2004) was a Swedish actress and director who collaborated with filmmaker Ingmar Bergman. She was often cast as harrowing and desperate characters, and earned acclaim from both Swedish ...

– Rakel Egerman *

Lena Olin Lena Maria Jonna Olin (; born 22 March 1955) is a Swedish actress. She has received nominations for an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a BAFTA Award, and a Primetime Emmy Award. Mentored by filmmaker Ingmar Bergman, she made her screen de ...

– Anna Egerman (older) *Nadja Palmstjerna-Weiss – Anna Egerman (younger) *Bertil Guve – Henrik Vogler (younger) ''(Tartan DVD release of this film erroneously lists "Liv Ullmann" as one of the three main stars. Ullmann is not in this film)''

Reception

''After the Rehearsal'' received strongly positive reviews from critics, garnering a 91% approval rating on

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

Vincent Canby Vincent Canby (July 27, 1924 – October 15, 2000) was an American film and theatre critic who served as the chief film critic for ''The New York Times'' from 1969 until the early 1990s, then its chief theatre critic from 1994 until his death in ...

wrote that it "may well be another Bergman classic." Roger Ebert gave it a full four stars and argued that the work "consists of unadorned surfaces concealing fathomless depths." The film ranked 4th on Cahiers du Cinéma's Top 10 Films of the Year List in 1985.

References

External links

* *
"After the Rehearsal": an interpretation
at th
Cinemaven blog
{{DEFAULTSORT:After The Rehearsal 1984 films Films directed by Ingmar Bergman Films with screenplays by Ingmar Bergman 1980s Swedish-language films 1984 drama films Films shot in Sweden Swedish drama films 1980s Swedish films