To adapt Ingmar Bergman is to be compared to Ingmar Bergman. That’s a tough spot to be in: Bergman, who died in 2007, was for many yearsthegiant of international cinema, an artist who sliced to the quick of human emotion and spiritual longing, who dared to peel back the layers of man and woman until only the rawest matter remained.
In taking on “Scenes From a Marriage” (1974), one of Bergman’s most iconic works, director Hagai Levi and HBO have shown uncommon bravery, and perhaps a little foolishness. The original “Scenes,” released as both a feature film and a Swedish TV series, drills to the heart of domestic dispute like no entertainment ever has. Liv Ullmann’s Marianne and Erland Josephson’s Johan cut each other deep, as only Bergman characters could. If a marriage is a living organism, they dissected with aplomb.
HBO’s adaptation, starring Jessica Chastain and Oscar Isaac and premiering Sunday, Sept. 12, is calmer, more studied. But it packs its own kind of punch, and if you haven’t seen the Bergman version, the update may still leave you reeling. (And if you haven’t seen Isaac and Chastain smoldering for the cameras at the Venice Film Festival, what are you waiting for?)
God bless the person who decided to slo-mo this video of Oscar Isaac and Jessica Chastain in Venice.
温柔的手臂中风,眉毛提高……他们投入ing us the red carpet chemistry that we didn’t even realise we neededpic.twitter.com/lFEu9mTc1B
— Nola Thee Journalist (@NolaMarianna)September 5, 2021
There’s no denying the level of performance here. Isaac plays Jonathan, an introverted philosophy professor married to Mira, a tech executive played by Chastain. They seem to have it all, including an adorable young daughter (Lily Jane) and an airy house just outside Boston. But we can tell from the start, when the couple is interviewed by a doctoral student researching gender roles, that a form of inertia has set in. As with many married couples, Jonathan and Mira’s passion has morphed into a peaceful, boring partnership. Director and stars capture this state with eerie, low-key intensity that will make some married viewers squirm.
Then, the hammer drops. Returning from a business trip one night, Mira tells Jonathan that she’s fallen in love, and that she’ll be accompanying her lover, an Israeli businessman, back to Tel Aviv for three months. How does one respond? How do the negotiations proceed? What’s even being negotiated? There are no good answers, which is why “Scenes” hits so hard. Unlike most movies and TV, the series plays like a slow-motion free fall, intent on exploring the indescribable in every small detail.
Isaac, with a thick salt-and-pepper beard and a shock of dark hair, performs with the enraged stillness of a man desperately trying to be heard. Chastain nails the role of a woman who’s had enough with her dissatisfaction. It’s interesting that the gender roles are flipped from the original, in which Johan delivers the unthinkable news and Marianne must adjust. It’s a bold gambit on Levi’s part, a move toward making the series his own. He also infuses his vision with darkness, which comes naturally in a part of the country where the sun disappears early in the winter. A chill runs throughout the bones of these “Scenes.”
“Scenes From a Marriage” luxuriates in its discord over five hours of give-and-take. Its realism is bracing, and rarely easy to watch. The truth rarely is. And if it doesn’t measure up to Bergman, what does? This new model will likely send contemporary viewers scrambling back to the original (the film version currently streaming on HBO Max), and perhaps to more of the master’s work. That’s a win for everyone.
M“Scenes From a Marriage”:Limited series. Starring Jessica Chastain, Oscar Isaac, Corey Stoll and Nicole Beharie. Directed by Hagai Levi. (Five episodes at approximately one hour each). Premieres 9 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 12, on HBO and HBO Max. Episodes released weekly through Oct. 10.