In Skammen, Liv Ullman and Max von Sydow play former musicians. They live on an island (the film was filmed on Fårö, of course). They argue, make love and go into town to buy a bottle of wine. A war is hovering somewhere in the country. It is clear that the lovers do not want to think about it. von Sydow’s character break into weeping spells, and is somewhat sullenly comforted by his girlfriend. Suddenly, they find themselves dragged into the war. Bombs are crashing nearby. A band of soldiers arrive at their yard and force them to make false confessions. The lovers are no longer innocent bystanders. Later, another party in the war seems to have gotten the upper hand in the country. As many others, the lovers are interrogated as to their allegiances. A colonel (Gunnar Björnstrand!) visits them now and again. What does he want? And how do they respond?
Skammen is not a traditional film about war. In fact, we see very little of the war, except for some forceful scenes toward the end. Instead, Bergman evokes a form of loss of reality, which is somehow both shattered and strengthened by the violent occurrences the couple go experience. As Ullman puts it at some point: I live in a dream - somebody else’s dream. They have many difficulties with each other, but seem to be united in their desire to flee the world. In the middle of the film, when the reality of war has finally broken into their lives, they ract differently. Bergman never overstates this difficulty.
A sombre movie in which all forms of excess are avoided, Skammen is one of Bergman’s best movies. The dialogue is sometimes idling, especially in the beginning of the film, but that remains a minor flaw.
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