''Thirst'' () is a 1949 Swedish

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

directed by

Ingmar Bergman Ernst Ingmar Bergman (14 July 1918 – 30 July 2007) was a Swedish film and theatre director and screenwriter. Widely considered one of the greatest and most influential film directors of all time, his films have been described as "profoun ...

. It was released as ''Three Strange Loves'' in the United Kingdom.

Plot

Rut and her husband Bertil travel home by train after a holiday in

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

. Their marriage is unhappy due to Rut's changing moods and heavy drinking. While passing through the ruins of

post-war A post-war or postwar period is the interval immediately following the end of a war. The term usually refers to a varying period of time after World War II, which ended in 1945. A post-war period can become an interwar period or interbellum, ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, Rut recalls an earlier affair with married military officer Raoul. Raoul forced her to abort their child, which resulted in complications, mainly Rut's infertility and her inability to continue her career as a dancer. Her friend and co-dancer Valborg, disgusted by men, turned to other women. Bertil too is haunted by an earlier affair, with widow Viola. While Rut and Bertil travel home, the film shows Viola's escape from a sadistic psychiatrist, her encounter with Valborg, who openly tries to seduce her, and her final suicide. Meanwhile, tension between Rut and Bertil escalates, and Bertil seemingly kills Rut after a fight. Bertil awakens and realises that he imagined Rut's death. The couple decide to give their marriage another chance.

Cast

Eva Henning Eva Henning (born Eva Wetlesen; 10 May 1920 – 18 April 2016) was a Swedish stage and movie actress. Career Born in Newark, New York, US, Henning was trained at the Royal Dramatic Theatre's acting school (1938–40) in Sweden and made her f ...

as Rut *

Birger Malmsten Birger Malmsten (23 December 1920 – 15 February 1991) was a Swedish actor. He had many roles in Ingmar Bergman's films. Selected filmography * '' South of the Highway'' (1936) – Student (uncredited) * ' (1940) – Staff Member (uncredite ...

as Bertil *

Birgit Tengroth Birgit Tengroth (13 July 1915 – 21 September 1983) was a Swedish film actress. She appeared in more than 40 films between 1926 and 1950. She was married briefly to Danish politician Jens Otto Krag in 1950. Biography Birgit Tengroth was bo ...

as Viola *

Hasse Ekman Hasse Ekman (born Hans Gösta Ekman; 10September 191515February 2004) was a Swedish director, actor, writer and producer for film, stage and television. Biography Hasse Ekman is probably Sweden's most successful and critically acclaimed film ...

as Dr. Rosengren * Mimi Nelson as Valborg *

Bengt Eklund Bengt Gunnar Eklund (18 January 1925 – 19 January 1998) was a Swedish actor. He is well known as Nisse Granqvist in the 1964 TV series '' Vi på Saltkråkan''. Eklund worked for many years at the Royal Dramatic Theatre in Stockholm, but also ...

as Raoul *

Gaby Stenberg Ida Gabriella Stenberg (9 January 1923 – 20 September 2011)Gaby Stenberg har avlidit
in ...

as Astrid * Naima Wifstrand as Miss Henriksson * Verner Arpe as German ticket collector * Calle Flygare as Priest *

Sven-Eric Gamble Sven-Eric Gamble (10 August 1924 – 10 May 1976) was a Swedish film actor. Selected filmography References External links * * 1924 births 1976 deaths Male actors from Stockholm 20th-century Swedish male actors {{Sweden-fi ...

as Glass worker *

Helge Hagerman Helge Hagerman (19 May 1910 – 25 November 1995) was a Swedish actor and film producer. He appeared in more than 40 films between 1933 and 1989. Selected filmography * ''His Life's Match'' (1932) * '' Raggen'' (1936) * '' The Quartet That ...

as Priest * Else-Merete Heiberg as Norwegian lady * Estrid Hesse as Patient * Gunnar Nielsen as Assistant doctor *

Sif Ruud Sif Einarsdotter Ruud Fallde born Sif Einarsdotter Ruud (6 May 1916 – 15 August 2011), best known as Sif Ruud, was a Swedish film actress. Born in Stockholm to Einar Ruud and Inez Engström, she began her career in 1938, and appeared in 14 ...

as Widow

Production

After the financial failure of ''

Prison A prison, also known as a jail, gaol, penitentiary, detention center, correction center, correctional facility, or remand center, is a facility where Prisoner, people are Imprisonment, imprisoned under the authority of the State (polity), state ...

'', the collaboration between Terrafilm and Bergman had ended.

Svensk Filmindustri SF Studios is Sweden’s largest film studio. It is involved in production, distribution, and movie theater market chains (both Swedish and international, including American) with headquarters in Stockholm and local offices in Oslo, Copenhagen ...

offered Bergman to produce his next film. ''Thirst'' was based on a short story collection published by

in 1948; Herbert Grevenius, who had already worked with Bergman on ''

It Rains on Our Love ''It Rains on Our Love'' () is a 1946 Swedish drama film directed by Ingmar Bergman from the screenplay he co-wrote with Herbert Grevenius, based on the Norwegian play ''Bra Mennesker'' (''Good People'') by Oskar Braaten. ''It Rains on Our Lov ...

'', wrote the screenplay. Bergman asked Tengroth to star in his film, who helped him in finding the right tone in the lesbian scene between Viola and Valborg. Shooting took place between 15 March and 5 July 1949.
Thirst – Sources of inspiration
' on Ingmarbergman.se, retrieved 9 June 2012.Hauke Lange-Fuchs: ''Ingmar Bergman: Seine Filme – sein Leben,'' (German language), Heyne, Munich 1988, . ''Thirst'' premiered on 17 October 1949 in Sweden and on 30 August 1956 in the US.. Finnish Critic

Jörn Donner Jörn Johan Donner (5 February 1933 – 30 January 2020) was a cinema of Finland, Finnish writer, film director, actor, film producer, producer, politician and founder of Finnish Film Archive. He produced Ingmar Bergman's film ''Fanny and Alexan ...

later called ''Thirst'' "a commercial version of ''Prison''".

François Truffaut François Roland Truffaut ( , ; ; 6 February 1932 – 21 October 1984) was a French filmmaker, actor, and critic. He is widely regarded as one of the founders of the French New Wave. He came under the tutelage of film critic Andre Bazin as a ...

saw similarities between Bergman's film and

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English film director. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featu ...

's '' Suspicion'' and '' Rich and Strange''.

Literature

''Bergman on Bergman'', Touchstone/Simon & Schuster, New York 1973.

References

External links

* * {{Ingmar Bergman 1949 films 1949 drama films 1940s LGBTQ-related films Films directed by Ingmar Bergman Swedish black-and-white films 1940s Swedish-language films Swedish LGBTQ-related films Films about adultery Films set on trains Films about abortion Films about ballet Swedish drama films LGBTQ-related drama films