Customer Reviews

The Devil's Eye [VHS]

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This delightful, witty and mordacious comedy still remains among the most important tributes ever paid by any filmmaker to theater in the great tradition of Beaumarchais, Zorilla or the great adaptations a la Mozart' s Cossi fan tutte or Don Giovanni.

All begins when the astonishing woman's chastity gives the Devil a sty in his eye and his sweet and discrete revenge will be to send from Hell to Earth the legendary Don Juan. As you may expect, the smart dialogues, the insidious double sense proposals and the finest humor will be present all the way through until the last line of the play.

So, the plot combines gaiety through its inventiveness, suspicious and all the clever means Don Juan possesses in order to crown himself ; but he will not be alone; his loyal servant Pablo will join him and both of them will have the risky goal to seduce the wife and daughter of a good pastor. As you may suppose here you have a delirious, intelligent and irreverent comedy that will make you smile with fine irony.

One of the most celebrated comedies of this extraordinary director.

Ingmar Bergman is not known for comic film. Some have argued that The Devil's Eye demonstrates his frailty in comic direction, but I found it a sharply told wry little story. The film is told with elegant style and imagination, using minimal sets and actual locations to convey the difference between the world of the Devil and the world in which we live. I found the performances of the cast to be charming, particularly those gentleman portraying Don Juan and the pastor. This comedy is subtle, most often underplayed.

A very witty comedy playing with popular stereotypes of questionable morality but highly charged with prudish and dogmatic fervour. One of many great films by Bergman (typically in black-and-white).
Film presented in VHS format in excellent condition.
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The devil gets a painful sty in his eye because a beautiful young virgin is about to be married without first having been deflowered. The rest is comedy.

This film shows Bergman at his playful best. The dialog is clever, the plot is simple but amusing, and the direction and acting are suave and sophisticated. One is charmed, exactly as Bergman must have intended. Highly recommended.

*** 1960. THE DEVIL'S EYE, based on a play written by Oluf Bang, was written and directed by Ingmar Bergman. The Devil is affected with a sty in the eye because an 18 years old girl doesn't want to have sex before her wedding. Don Juan is sent to earth in order to seduce the young girl. This comedy is a minor effort of the Swedish master but could please the completist who sleeps in you. After the Death in The Seventh Seal - Criterion Collection, the Devil is the second religious figure appearing in a Bergman movie.

You can find zone 2 DVD's of THE DEVIL'S EYE at Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.fr.

It's comical and serious at the same time. Especially the scenes in hell. The whole thing is a satire, at times a stinging satire. Feminists must hate stuff like the instructions how to handle Scandinavian women, Bibi Andersson's creating her family nest and her relationship with her fiancé, Pablo and the parson's wife. Not the best of Bergman but good in its own right.

The devil is in agony with a sty in his eye - all caused by the fact that a 20-year-old virgin (played by Bibi Andersson) still walks the earth. To rectify this "problem" who better to seduce her than Don Juan? So on this "mission of mercy" come the Don (Jorle Kulle) and his lecherous sidekick Pablo (Sture Lagerwall) - and the fun begins. Pablo falls for Andersson's mother and wastes no time seducing her, and Don Juan gets down to "work" quickly too. But complications, of course, arise, and before he knows it, Don Juan is in love with Andersson and Pablo's finagling has only brought the mother closer to her husband. So the mission is a failure - until a little surprise occurs on Andersson's wedding night, allowing for a tiny victory for the devil and relief from the sty. Delightful is not a word that would readily come to mind in describing Bergman movies, but this one is exactly that. The movie is very stagey with an actor introducing each "act" script in hand. But the movie is playful and a lot of fun.

Bergman's adaptation on Oluf Bang's play "Don Juan Vender Tillbage" is suprisingly quite funny,considering this comes from the same director who's made such classics as "Wild Strawberries","Through A Glass Darkly",and "Persona". But Bergman's comedy does not rank up there with the films of Chaplin or other American filmmakers like Brooks or Allen. Wonderful performances by Jarl Kulle(Don Juan),and a Bergman regular,the very beautiful Bibi Andersson(Britt Marie)also I enjoyed the performance by Stig Jarrel(the devil). Wonderful inventive screenplay here about the devil who has a stye in his eye due to the chastity of Andersson. The Devil must send someone to seduce Andersson. But who in hell could he possible get? Don Juan of course! That's when things really start to take off. Now Don Juan must use all of his charm to impress Britt Marie who is about to get married. Can Don Juan and the Devil actually prevail? Watch and find it,not a movie one should start off their collection of Bergman films. Watch this after you've seen his more "major" films. Only watch this for some fun entertainment.

Bergman is an artist. This film shows his genius without trying

I don't quite agree with other reviews about this movie, namely its comical aspect. In my opinion this is an extremely serious movie about very important matters that was existantially substantial to our "beloved" bergman. It may have a comical glaze over it, but he's just being mischievous about his pain and suffering.