“Why do you want to play chess with me?”

This is it. The motherland of pretentious, self-indulgent art-house. Or so you would think. Beyond all the praise and parody, Ingmar Bergman’s melancholic tale of death during the Crusades is a damn good movie. And because it’ll be screening in its native 35mm, now’s the perfect time to experience a treasure of world cinema. When a medieval knight, Antonius Block (Max von Sydow), returns to his native Sweden, he finds his homeland overrun with plague and despair. As the disenchanted Block plays a game of chess by himself on the seashore, Death itself (Bengt Ekerot) appears as a pale man covered in a black cape, claiming that Block’s time has come. Block instead challenges the Grim Reaper to a game, hoping to live long enough to complete “one meaningful deed” before the inevitable end. Easier said than done when all around you is humanity at its worst. Despite the downer setting and subject matter, THE SEVENTH SEAL lifts the morbidity with surprising humor, excellent acting, and stark imagery. But you may be too enraptured by the universal themes and existential story the movie portrays with impeccable artistry to notice. Either way, come watch a filmic genius show what he can do at the height of his talent.

—Pablo Torroella

THE SEVENTH SEAL
1957
dir. Ingmar Bergman
96 min
Ingmar Bergman’s Fifties