Cheap Hour of the Wolf (Vargtimmen) (DVD) (Max von Sydow, Liv Ullmann) (Ingmar Bergman) Price

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Customer Reviews of Hour of the Wolf (Vargtimmen)

Bergman's only horror film and what a treat...
Johan Borg (Max von Sydow) seeks refuge with his wife Alma (Liv Ullman) on a remote island where Johan can get the solitude that he requires and where he can focus on his art. However, Johan is frequently interrupted by haunting demons both in the flesh and in the mind. These demons visit Johan in the hour of the wolf. This hour is when most babies are born and the most people die, it is also hour of the night when people wake up from their nightmares. Hour of the Wolf is a very unusual film for Ingmar Begrman as it is his only horror film and it begins with with Alma staring into the camera as she informs the audience that all the events pictured took place on the island and are all written down in her husbands diary. This beginning presents an atmosphere with an eerie hollowness full of questions and mysteries as to what information the diary holds. Bergman does this purposely as he crafts his story with canny imagination that haunts the audience visually as it is full of symbolism and suggestive themes. Nevertheless, it is the audience's imagination that creates the true horror in the story as Johan slowly steps toward his own doom. This leaves the audience with a significant cinematic experience of horror that will linger in the their minds as they will close their eyes before sleep.

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Woefully underrated
"Hour of the Wolf" is one of Bergman's finest films, but it is relatively little-known even among his fans. It is a dark, disturbing portrait of encroaching insanity that skillfully blurs the line between reality and increasingly deranged fantasies. The supporting cast is especially memorable, blending Gothic horror with black humor. The leader of the fantasy creatures bears a strong resemblance to Bela Lugosi, and it's hard to believe that the likeness is coincidental.

Some viewers have complained that this film lacks the meaningful symbolism of many other Bergman works. Though arguably true, this criticism doesn't seem relevant here. The images in "Hour of the Wolf" are chosen for their disquieting gut-level impact, not for grand symbolic reasons. People who enjoy surrealism, 1930s horror movies, and intimate character studies will find this film thoroughly rewarding.

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MGM keep ruining movies!!
Why, MGM!? After CORRECTING the aspect ratio from 1.66:1, they've made the same mistake with "Hour of the Wolf" and "Shame" as they did with "Persona"; they've presented the movies in aspect ratio 1.33:1 instead of the original aspect ratio 1.37:1!! 11.5% of the image of "Persona" is missing, so naturally that is the case with these films as well. These are great movies that should not be messed with in this unprofessional manner. MGM have no respect for this art. Incidentally, "Persona" is available in its original aspect ratio on "Tartan" (region-free DVD) through amazon.co.uk. These movies were not intended to be watched this way, but if you are curious about these fine Bergman classics, don't own a VCR, and have a lot of money to spare, go ahead and support MGM's economy.