EVERY STUDENT ATTENDS for a different reason: some, for an obligatory class assignment; others settle next to a significant other for a romantic—and also free—date night; sometimes, students will attend simply to be entertained. However, no matter the reason for attending, we all stay at International Cinema for the same reason. As the projector clicks, lights dim, and voices hush, it is the full immersion of light and sound that captivates our attention and gives us the chance to identify with the rest of the world from an ordinary theater seat.
Although International Cinema screens several films each week, I was drawn to one in particular. Ingmar Bergman’s Seventh Seal (Sweden, 1958) is perhaps one of cinema’s most quintessential examples, and its visuals and characters have been cemented as high filmic art since its release. Out of curiosity, I attended a showing and found myself captivated. In a two-hour span, I watched as Death himself granted a final game of chess to a defeated man trying to redeem his own brief, shallow existence. I witnessed the happiness felt among a family, then the fear of losing a loved one. This same fear would push a man to attempt the impossible. Finally, I saw bitter hopelessness and resignation on the faces of those who accepted their untimely fates.
For a short time, I imagined my own mortality mirrored on the screen, witnessed the human capacity for redemption and the light and joy that can be found in an often bleak, too-familiar world. I saw Death personified and felt fear. I also suspended my disbelief in favor of an attempt at greater understanding of a force that is bound by nature to take the ones we love. I left the film feeling contemplative, which is what I value most about International Cinema. For an hour or two each week, a small lecture hall becomes a place to experience film in a way that is becoming increasingly rare. These theaters are not for cheap escapism but offer experiences that are tailored for full-hearted exploration.
—ERIC BAKER, BA COMMUNICATIONS ’18
Special thanks to Janus Films Criterion Collection for sharing stills from The Seventh Seal, in celebration of 100 years of Ingmar Bergman’s films. For more about Bergman, visit http://bit.ly/ingmarberg.