Features: DVD
About the Transfer:
Both versions of Fanny and Alexander are presented in their original aspect ratios of 1.66:1. On standard 4:3 televisions, the image will appear letterboxed. On standard and widescreen televisions, black bars may also be visible on the left and right to maintain the proper screen format. These new high-definition digital transfers were created on a Spirit Datacine from the original 35mm interpositives. Thousands of instances of dirt, debris, and scratches were removed using the MTI Digital Restoration System. The soundtracks were mastered at 24-bit from the 35mm magnetic audio tracks, and audio restoration tools were used to reduce clicks, pops, hiss, and crackle. The Dolby Digital 1.0 signals will be directed to the center channel on 5.1-channel sound systems, but some viewers may prefer to switch to two-channel playback for a wider dispersal of the mono sound.
"...challenges both the mind and the heart..." The Hollywood Reporter
"...colorful, sprawling entertainment..." Vanity Fair
Editor's Note
Director Ingmar Bergman had intended FANNY AND ALEXANDER to be his final theatrical film and a summing-up of sorts of his entire cinematic career. (It was followed by 1984's AFTER THE REHEARSAL, which was also made for Swedish television and subsequently released theatrically abroad.) FANNY AND ALEXANDER is the story of two children belonging to a wealthy, extensive theatrical family in provincial Sweden in the early years of the 20th century--10-year-old Alexander (Bertil Guve) and his younger sister, Fanny (Pernilla Alwin). When their father dies unexpectedly during a performance and their mother decides to remarry, the children are forced to relocate to the austere (and possibly haunted) home of their stern and rather coldhearted stepfather, Bishop Vergerus (Jan Malmsjö). A means of escape is eventually provided by Isak Jacobi (Erland Josephson), a longtime friend of the Ekdahl family's who seems to possess magical powers. In this somewhat autobiographical movie--which was filmed in the director's hometown of Uppsala--the gifted, precocious Alexander is a stand-in for Bergman himself, who had a problematic relationship with his own father, a strict clergyman. At once festive, spooky, and bawdy--and uncharacteristically life-affirming--FANNY AND ALEXANDER is one of Bergman's most universally appealing and accessible works.
Plot Summary
Christmastime, 1907. The Ekdahl family, a wealthy and boisterous clan, has assembled in Grandmother Helena's home for the holidays. Christmas for 8-year-old Fanny and 10-year-old Alexander is filled with magic, enchantment, and mystery. But for Grandma Helena, it's just another occasion to worry. When she's not spending time with her close friend Isak Jacob, she broods over her sons, Oscar, Carl, and Gustav. A theater manager, Oscar's a devoted husband to Emilie and a loving father to Fanny and Alexander. But when he dies, their mother marries a puritanical minister with antiquated views on child-rearing. Now it's up to Helena to assure that Fanny and Alexander aren't shut away in a nursery that's more like a prison than a playground.
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