Film

What's on at the cinema plus reviews of the latest movie and DVD releases

Get 2 for 1 cinema tickets with Orange Click Here

Search cinema listings

Browse cinemas A-Z

Search 20,000 reviews

 

The Serpent's Egg (1977)

Director: Ingmar Bergman

Average user rating
1 review

Movie review

From Time Out Film Guide

Whether stimulated by his brush with the Swedish tax-man or his brief self-imposed exile in West Germany, Bergman's paranoia runs dementedly and tediously out of control in this Grand Guignol recreation of 1923 Berlin as studio set for close encounters of the most portentous kind. Carradine is improbably cast in the central role of a Jewish trapeze artist called Abel Rosenberg, wandering innocently through a night-town world of bottles, brothels, and (inevitably) cabarets, and trying to ignore the violence, depravity and anti-semitism screeching at him from every street corner. The torments he endures, with a sadly miscast Ullmann (who's further afflicted with throwaway lines like 'I can't stand the guilt'), have indeed been devised by a foresighted mad scientist straight out of Dr Strangelove. This last-reel revelation comes too late to restore audience disbelief to its proper state of suspension.

Author: JD 0000-00-00 00:00:00

Time Out Film Guide


  • Print this page
  • Send to a friend
Get 2 for 1 cinema tickets with Orange Click Here

User reviews of this film

  • mr.mike said...
    Posted on Jul 16 2009 23:07 Both the film and Carradine's acting are all over the place. Only for Bergman completists.2.5 stars.
    Report as inappropriate

What do you think?
Post your review now

clear rating
Min 1 star. Zero stars will be treated as unrated.

*mandatory fields





Top Stories

Hippies who work for The Man

Hippies who work for The Man

To celebrate George Clooney comedy 'The Men who Stare at Goats', we look back at six memorable onscreen hippies who fought the system from within

Roland Emmerich's guide to disaster movies

Roland Emmerich's guide to disaster movies

Ahead of the release of '2012', Roland Emmerich offers his ten tips on creating the perfect global catastrophe

Grant Heslov: interview

Grant Heslov: interview

Grant Heslov, director of 'The Men who Stare at Goats' talks about his old pal George Clooney, his interest in the paranormal, and his fond memories of working on 'Happy Days'

The Coen brothers discuss 'A Serious Man'

The Coen brothers discuss 'A Serious Man'

Masters of contrary comedy, Joel and Ethan Coen have struck gold again with their latest, ‘A Serious Man’

Ten inspirations behind 'Avatar'?

Ten inspirations behind 'Avatar'?

Time Out ponders the influences behind James Cameron's anticipated space-opera on the basis of the trailer

Michael Jackson's This Is It: review

Michael Jackson's This Is It: review

Kenny Ortega's posthumous concert film is a rousing eulogy for one of pop's great enigmas

Michael Haneke: The man behind the menace

Michael Haneke: The man behind the menace

From Cannes to Munich to London, Dave Calhoun tours Michael Haneke's Palme d'Or winner, 'The White Ribbon'

Lone Scherfig talks 'An Education'

Lone Scherfig talks 'An Education'

Danish director Lone Scherfig was an unlikely choice for a very English affair like 'An Education'. Cath Clarke meets her

How Jane Campion brought John Keats back to life

How Jane Campion brought John Keats back to life

Time Out gets Romantic with the ‘difficult’ New Zealander about her new film, 'Bright Star'

Time Out's 50 greatest animated films with commentary by Terry Gilliam

Time Out's 50 greatest animated films with commentary by Terry Gilliam

In celebration of the release of Pixar's 'Up' and Wes Anderson's 'Fantastic Mr Fox', read our rundown of fifty classic feature length animations