movie the visit ingrid bergman

Not Available

Oh no! Turner Classic Movies isn't available in your region.

Welcome, DISH customer! Please note that we cannot save your viewing history due to an arrangement with DISH.

Watchlist and resume progress features have been disabled.

Log in or sign up for Rotten Tomatoes

Trouble logging in?

By continuing, you agree to the Privacy Policy and the Terms and Policies , and to receive email from the Fandango Media Brands .

By creating an account, you agree to the Privacy Policy and the Terms and Policies , and to receive email from Rotten Tomatoes and to receive email from the Fandango Media Brands .

By creating an account, you agree to the Privacy Policy and the Terms and Policies , and to receive email from Rotten Tomatoes.

Email not verified

Let's keep in touch.

Sign up for the Rotten Tomatoes newsletter to get weekly updates on:

• Upcoming Movies and TV shows
• Rotten Tomatoes Podcast
• Media News + More

By clicking "Sign Me Up," you are agreeing to receive occasional emails and communications from Fandango Media (Fandango, Vudu, and Rotten Tomatoes) and consenting to Fandango's Privacy Policy and Terms and Policies . Please allow 10 business days for your account to reflect your preferences.

OK, got it!

• About Rotten Tomatoes®
• Login/signup

Movies in theaters

• Opening This Week
• Top Box Office
• Coming Soon to Theaters
• Certified Fresh Movies

Movies at Home

• Fandango at Home
• Prime Video
• Most Popular Streaming Movies
• What to Watch New

Certified fresh picks

• 85% Speak No Evil Link to Speak No Evil
• 77% Beetlejuice Beetlejuice Link to Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
• 95% Rebel Ridge Link to Rebel Ridge

New TV Tonight

• -- Emmys: Season 76
• -- American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez: Season 1
• -- Agatha All Along: Season 1
• 93% The Penguin: Season 1
• -- Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story: Season 2
• -- Twilight of the Gods: Season 1
• -- Tulsa King: Season 2
• -- High Potential: Season 1
• -- Frasier: Season 2
• -- A Very Royal Scandal: Season 1

Most Popular TV on RT

• 61% The Perfect Couple: Season 1
• 85% The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: Season 2
• 74% Kaos: Season 1
• 63% The Old Man: Season 2
• 100% Slow Horses: Season 4
• 100% Dark Winds: Season 2
• -- Into the Fire: The Lost Daughter: Season 1
• 93% Bad Monkey: Season 1
• Best TV Shows
• Most Popular TV

Certified fresh pick

• 93% The Penguin: Season 1 Link to The Penguin: Season 1
• All-Time Lists
• Binge Guide
• Comics on TV
• Five Favorite Films
• Video Interviews
• Weekend Box Office
• Weekly Ketchup
• What to Watch

Box Office 2024: Top 10 Movies of the Year

Resident Evil Movies In Order: How To Watch The Series Chronologically

What to Watch: In Theaters and On Streaming

Awards Tour

2024 Emmy Winners: 76th Primetime & Creative Arts Emmy Winners (Updating Live)

Transformers One First Reviews: The Best Transformers Movie Yet

• Trending on RT
• Hispanic Heritage Month
• Emmy Predictions
• Toronto Film Festival
• Best New Horror Movies

Where to Watch

Rent The Visit on Fandango at Home, Prime Video, Apple TV, or buy it on Fandango at Home, Prime Video, Apple TV.

Audience Reviews

Cast & crew.

Bernhard Wicki

Ingrid Bergman

Karla Zachanassian

Anthony Quinn

Serge Miller

Irina Demick

Letterboxd — Your life in film

Forgotten username or password ?

• Start a new list…
• Add all films to a list…
• Add all films to watchlist

Add to your films…

Press Tab to complete, Enter to create

A moderator has locked this field.

Add to lists

Where to watch

Directed by Bernhard Wicki

Carla Zachanassian had a child by Serge Miller as a teenager. When Serge refused to marry her, she was driven out of town. By her own wit and cunning, she has returned as a multi-millionaire for a visit. The town lays out the red carpet expecting big things from Carla, only to learn that her sole purpose is to see Serge Miller killed...

Ingrid Bergman Anthony Quinn Irina Demick Paolo Stoppa Hans Christian Blech Romolo Valli Claude Dauphin Jacques Dufilho Richard Münch Ernst Schröder Leonard Steckel Valentina Cortese Eduardo Ciannelli Marco Guglielmi Giorgio Sciommer Roberto Bruno Dante Maggio Marcella Rovena Fausto Tozzi Gustavo De Nardo Vera Drudi Aristide Catoni

Director Director

Bernhard Wicki

Producers Producers

Julien Derode Darryl F. Zanuck Ingrid Bergman Anthony Quinn

Writers Writers

Ben Barzman Maurice Valency Friedrich Dürrenmatt

Original Writer Original Writer

Friedrich Dürrenmatt

Casting Casting

Paolo Rolli

Editors Editors

Françoise Diot Samuel E. Beetley

Cinematography Cinematography

Armando Nannuzzi

Camera Operator Camera Operator

Claudio Cirillo

Art Direction Art Direction

Léon Barsacq

Composers Composers

Hans-Martin Majewski Richard Arnell

Costume Design Costume Design

Nina Ricci René Hubert

Hairstyling Hairstyling

Giorgio Sciommer

Productions et Éditions Cinématographique Français Cinecittà Studios Les Films du Siècle Dear Film Deutsche Fox AG (Defa) 20th Century Fox

France Germany Italy USA

Primary Language

Spoken languages.

French Italian English

Releases by Date

06 may 1964, 17 sep 1964, 04 oct 1964, releases by country.

• Theatrical 16
• Theatrical PG

100 mins   More at IMDb TMDb Report this page

Popular reviews

Review by ༺ ⋅₊˚⋅ ୨ moon ୧ ‧˚₊⋅ ༻ ★★★★★

no serge, you're wrong! only our child is dead and buried.

i'll never forget this film, nor will i forget ingrid bergman's overwhelming performance. a transparent character, full of the pain she carries with her, as well as the corpse of the daughter who didn't last as long as the love between her and serge. her panther represents her inner ferocity, the desire for, not revenge, but justice, above all. her pain is visible in every look, in every smile.

Review by Zegan ★★★★½ 1

Yeah, Ingrid Bergman is truly a real queen of all queens

Review by **Cherry™** ★★★★½ 2

INGRID BERGMAN IS SUCH A BAD BITCH!!!!!!!!!

Review by Zoë 🐛 ★★★★½

An incredible psychological melodrama, walking the line between the unspoken but present lust of 50s melodrama with the outwardly sexual melodrama of the 60s, able to speak the unspeakable and even portray a scene of a charged tryst, but the real eroticism, sensuality and effectiveness comes from the emotions, specifically Ingrid Bergman's powerful performance as a woman consumed by conflicting extremes of hate and love and with the monetary power and capital to inflict her own pain on others in the most shocking way, singlehandedly ruining a town's economy, stability and trust for her own "satisfaction", though her revenge makes her no happier than before.

With the main story being a tragicomic melodrama, there is also some significant social commentary…

Review by Ana 🥀 ★★★½

if ingrid bergman came to my hometown and wanted me dead, i would just let her kill me

Review by teamgal ★★★★½

Very late into a career seemingly dedicated to enacting goodness, Ingrid Bergman here plays an unrepentant villain. And she does so with tremendous gusto. Although we're always on her side, she's never for a moment sympathetic; despite our wanting her to succeed in a plan for vengeance, her dedication to its extraction is chilling. And the European setting ensures that the ghosts of fascism haunt every shot.

1964, best of

Review by s ★★★★

ANOTHER REASON WHY INGRID BERGMAN WAS AND ALWAYS WILL BE A BAD FUCKING BITCH. WITH THE CRAZIEST SMIRK THAT EVER SMIRKED.

HER OUTFITS?? HER HAIR?? HER FACE GAME?? THIS MALICIOUS DIVAAAAAA. THIS WAS SO CRAZY!

Review by 12drue 🎞️ ★★★★

Nachdem ich in den letzten Wochen sowohl von der 2008er- als auch von der 1959er -Version von Der Besuch der alten Dame enttäuscht wurde, habe ich nun doch noch eine entdeckt, die dem Drama Dürrenmatts gerecht wird und trotzdem einen echten Kino-Film und kein abgefilmtes Theater bietet.

Auch hier wird einiges verändert: Die komödiantischen Anteile wurden weitgehend entfernt. Diesmal entsteht dadurch aber kein biederes Fernsehspiel wie 2008, sondern ein realistisches böses Drama über Schuld, Gerechtigkeit, aber auch Faschismus. Die gesamte Handlung wird aus der reichen Schweiz nach Osteuropa verlegt. Die Haupfiguren, gespielt von Anthony Quinn und der fantastischen Ingrid Bergmann, wurden deutlich verjüngt. Claire ist nicht mehr 63, sondern 37 (Bergmann selbst war witzigerweise während des Drehs allerdings schon 48) und…

Review by JJ Arias ★★★★ 1

Ingrid was a god damn QUEEN

Review by • mariana • ★★★★★

it was in this same music-loving community that they ran a pregnant seventeen year old girl out of town and branded her as a whore.

this one became one of my favorite old hollywood films since my first watch. i'm convinced if ingrid didn't have any lines she would be just as incredible with only her face. some of the most powerful moments of this consist of her staring at people.

Review by potlover ★★★★

THE VISIT IS OVER BITCHES

Review by Farouk ★★★★ 2

Watching an hour and a half of Ingrid Bergman taking a cold-blooded revenge sounds like the ultimate purpose of cinema.

Similar Films

Select your preferred backdrop

Select your preferred poster.

When you purchase through Movies Anywhere , we bring your favorite movies from your connected digital retailers together into one synced collection.   Join Now

The Visit | Full Movie | Movies Anywhere

• See Retailers

Additional Info

• Genre : Drama
• Release Date : May 13, 1964
• Languages : English
• Captions : English
• Audio Format : Stereo

You Might Also Like...

New Releases

• Movies & TV Shows
• Most Popular
• Leaving Soon
• Descriptive Audio
• Documentary
• Browse Channels

Featured Channels

• Always Funny
• History & Science
• Sci-Fi & Action
• Chills & Thrills
• Food & Home
• Black Entertainment
• Kids & Family
• Nature & Travel
• Anime & Gaming
• International
• There are no locations currently available for this title

Take Plex everywhere

The Visit (1964)

• User Reviews

Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews

• User Ratings
• External Reviews
• Metacritic Reviews
• Full Cast and Crew
• Release Dates
• Official Sites
• Company Credits
• Filming & Production
• Technical Specs
• Plot Summary
• Plot Keywords
• Parents Guide

Did You Know?

• Crazy Credits
• Alternate Versions
• Connections
• Soundtracks

Photo & Video

• Photo Gallery
• Trailers and Videos

Related Items

• External Sites

Related lists from IMDb users

Recently Viewed

• Rankings FA
• TV Premiere Calendar
• Coming in 2024
• Latest Reviews

• Credits 
• Image gallery  [5]

All images are copyrighted by their respective copyright holders and/or producers/distributors.

• See all credits

All copyrighted material (movie posters, DVD covers, stills, trailers) and trademarks belong to their respective producers and/or distributors.

User history

Watch The Visit

• 1 hr 40 min
• 7.4   (1,958)

The Visit is a 1964 Italian drama film directed by Bernhard Wicki and starring Ingrid Bergman, Anthony Quinn, and Paolo Stoppa. The film is based on a play by Swiss playwright Friedrich Dürrenmatt and tells the story of a wealthy woman who returns to her hometown after many years to seek revenge on the man who betrayed her in her younger years.

The film opens with the arrival of Karla Zachanassian (Bergman) in the small town of Güllen. It is immediately clear that she is a woman of significant wealth and power, as she is surrounded by servants and luxury cars. She approaches the town leaders with a proposal: she will donate one billion dollars to the town if they will execute the man who wronged her when they were younger.

The man in question is Alfred Ill (Quinn), who is now a respected businessman and pillar of the community. At first, the townspeople are outraged by Karla's proposal and reject it outright. However, as they begin to experience the benefits of her wealth (new buildings, improved infrastructure, etc.), they begin to soften their stance.

As the film progresses, we learn more about Karla and Alfred's shared past. We see flashbacks of their youthful romance, which was cut short when Alfred abandoned Karla to marry someone else for money. Karla was left with a child out of wedlock, which caused her to be ostracized from the town and eventually led to a life of prostitution.

The tension mounts as the town becomes increasingly divided over Karla's proposal. Some see it as a chance to finally get justice for Karla, while others worry about the morality of executing Alfred. Meanwhile, Karla's behavior becomes increasingly erratic and menacing, leading some to question her true motives.

One of the standout performances in the film comes from Paolo Stoppa, who plays the town's schoolteacher and moral voice. Stoppa's character serves as a voice of reason throughout the film, questioning the townspeople's willingness to compromise their values for money.

The Visit is a thought-provoking film that explores a variety of themes, including justice, morality, and the corrupting influence of money. It also features two of the greatest actors of their generation in Bergman and Quinn, who deliver powerful performances that help to anchor the film's emotional weight.

Overall, The Visit is a must-see for fans of classic cinema and anyone who appreciates a well-crafted story with strong performances. While it may be a bit slow-moving for some viewers, those who stick with it will be rewarded with a poignant and unforgettable meditation on the human condition.

The Visit is a 1964 drama with a runtime of 1 hour and 40 minutes. It has received mostly positive reviews from critics and viewers, who have given it an IMDb score of 7.4.

• Genres Drama Romance
• Cast Ingrid Bergman Anthony Quinn Paolo Stoppa
• Director Bernhard Wicki
• Release Date 1964
• MPAA Rating NR
• Runtime 1 hr 40 min
• Language English,French
• IMDB Rating 7.4   (1,958)

The 15 Best Ingrid Bergman Movies, Ranked

When Ingrid Bergman came to Hollywood in 1939, the Swedish native couldn't speak English . She was discovered by legendary producer David O. Selznick who was struck by her effortless beauty. Yet, the studio system still tried to pluck her thick brows and cover her face in gobs of stage makeup. Bergman flat-out refused and Selznick backed down, eventually declaring she would be the first "natural" actress . 

Howard Hughes was so taken with Bergman that he bought her RKO studios as a gift . She was a married woman but had many affairs : musicians, photographers, and of course, her co-stars. After one on-set fling the famously unflappable Gary Cooper remarked, "No one loved me more than Ingrid Bergman, but the day after filming concluded, I couldn't even get her on the phone." Her true passion was the work, and everyone knew it. She could count both Cary Grant and Alfred Hitchcock as professional admirers.

In 1949, Bergman walked out on her husband and ten-year-old daughter and moved in with director Robert Rossellini. It was a seismic Hollywood scandal. There were boycotts and even condemnation on the Senate floor. Yet, when that marriage collapsed, Bergman made a comeback and won her second Oscar. There was another failed marriage and another Oscar. Until her death from breast cancer on her 67th birthday in 1982, she always returned to her craft. The star is gone, but her body of work is immortal. Here are the icon's 15 best movies, ranked.

15. Stromboli, Europa 51, and Journey to Italy

Around 1947, Ingrid Bergman wrote Italian director Roberto Rossellini a flattering and flirtatious fan letter , praising his work and offering her services. Rossellini didn't receive the missive for over a year but was ecstatic when it finally turned up. "I just received with great emotion your letter ... as the most precious gift," the director gushed. "It is absolutely true that I dreamed to make a film with you..."

Bergman would leave her family and go to Italy to begin a seven-year affair with Rossellini. The romance produced three children, including actress Isabella Rossellini, and three somewhat pretentious films in the style of Italian neo-realism, an anti-Hollywood notion that cinema could be as dismal as real life. It focused on Italy's post-World War II social problems, utilized real locations, amateur acting talent, and was filled with all the tedium and imperfection of reality. However, Rossellini bravely shunted aside some of these notions when a movie star showed up on his doorstep.

The first of these films, 1950's "Stromboli," stars Bergman as a Lithuanian refugee who marries an Italian man and moves to his volcanic island of "Stromboli." The conservative local culture treats her with disdain, and she becomes disenchanted and leaves. The end. These films are not exactly driven by rousing stories. The New York Times called the picture "incredibly feeble, inarticulate, uninspiring, and painfully banal." Bergman's Italian trilogy is nevertheless an exhibition of her talent in yet another language.

14. The Bells of St. Mary's

Bing Crosby won an Oscar for his turn as the slightly whimsical priest-to-the-people, Father Chuck O'Malley, in the 1944 film "Going My Way." In 1945 RKO Pictures released a sequel of sorts, "The Bells of St. Mary's," in which O'Malley is transferred to a rundown inner-city Catholic school that may soon be condemned — by local government, not God. It's there that O'Malley meets the self-assured and sometimes set-in-her-ways mother superior, Sister Mary Benedict, played by Ingrid Bergman.

O'Malley's first act is to dismiss all the students for an impromptu holiday. Sister Mary certainly doesn't approve of this good-guy act, and the two continually clash over their competing visions for how to save this school. Things get tense as a greedy local businessman tries to scoop up the crumbling property. This film may be easier to enjoy if you're Catholic or 100 years old. Despite its slow pacing, critics at the time liked it a lot . This is early-career Bergman at the height of her beauty. Even in a habit. she is a vision in this gentle parochial tale.

13. The Inn of the Sixth Happiness

What is the sixth happiness? Well, each person decides that in their own heart, or so goes the slogan of the Chinese Inn at the proverbial center of the true story of Gladys May Aylward . Aylward was a British missionary whose good works were interrupted by the outbreak of the Sino-Japanese war. She was wounded but led 100 orphans to safety during a perilous mountain escape.

Aylward's life was first turned into a book, "The Small Woman," and then, this Hollywood film "The Inn of the Sixth Happiness" in 1958. It's Bergman's most overtly heroic role since "Joan Of Arc" a decade earlier. The reliable Curt Jurgens has a good turn as Lin Nan, a half-Chinese-half-Dutch military officer who forms a romantic bond with Aylward and assists on her missionary quest to save the children. Director Mark Robson got a best director Oscar nod in 1959 and extracted typically buoyant work from Bergman as this tenacious woman with an unfailing inner assurance she's been called to her true purpose.

12. Joan of Arc

The real Joan of Arc was burned at the stake as a heretic at just 19, but a 33-year-old Ingrid Bergman delivers a mature performance as the French heroine that earned her an Oscar nomination  — even though the 1948 film was not a success . Director Victor Flemming was a married man, but according to The New York Times , "fell deeply in love with the irresistible Swede and never really got over it." Flemming would die of heart failure the following year.

Given the slightly less fascinating film itself, one wonders how many historical figures would have been deemed deranged in other eras. Christ  was likely thought of in this light by the pagan but practical-minded Romans of his day. Joan of Arc is just as zealous, but by her time, the West was entrenched in Christendom. So when this 15th-century peasant girl tells a magistrate she's had a vision from God that she is to lead French armies and save the country, her claims coincide with prophecy, and she gets an audience with the Dauphin.

A historical advantage of this 1948 biopic is that it was made at a time when Hollywood was catering to a country where Christian self-identification was more ubiquitous. This film's sincere religiosity contrasts with the more Machiavellian 1999 version starring Mila Jovovich. It's not hard to imagine further swashbuckling girl-boss reboots, but Bergman's version depicts Joan in her sincere spiritual commitments.

11. The Visit

Ingrid Bergman plays Karla Zachanassian, a beautiful and wealthy woman living in a decaying European hamlet, who has an affair with a local businessman, Serge Miller (Anthony Quinn). When she becomes pregnant, he denies paternity, and she flees the town in shame. Years later, she returns with an almost Hitchcockian proposal to the town's people. She will lavish on them millions if her scumbag ex is strung up in a show trial.

Released in 1964, "The Visit" was adapted from a popular Broadway play, but the theme about cash corrupting society is somewhat softened for the big screen, and it loses its Shakespearean coup de grâce. The film's director, Bernhard Wicki,  explained the change in tellingly Tinseltown terms: "One cannot end a film with death as easily as one can a play."

The idea then becomes that Bergman's vengeful Karla has lived her life as a Count de Monte Cristo-esque quest for revenge, and yet, at her moment of satisfaction — plot twist! All along, she planned to shame the townspeople for accepting her twisted bargain, and most deliciously, her former lover must live out his days in the knowledge that his friends were willing to murder him for money. This ending might be darker than death and sillier, too, but Bergman is rousingly sinister in this black and white film. She would have made a good Cruella Deville or Maleficent had she lived until Hollywood became Disneyland.

10. Intermezzo

"Intermezzo" was Ingrid Bergman's first Hollwyood film. Released in 1939, it's a remake of the 1936 original from Bergman's home country of Sweden. Leslie Howard stars as Holger Brandt, a married concert violinist who falls in love with his daughter's piano teacher, Anita Hoffman (Bergman). He invites Anita on tour, and despite the couple's guilt, Holger is set on leaving his wife — until tragedy strikes and changes their plans.

Bergman was around 23 years old and unable to speak English, but you wouldn't know it by watching. More importantly, the film's producer, David O. Selznick, who discovered Bergman, was blown away by her work ethic. He was simultaneously shooting "Gone With The Wind" but made time to praise the ingenue. "Miss Bergman is the most completely conscientious actress with whom I have ever worked ... She never for a minute suggests quitting at six o'clock or anything of the kind ... her natural sweetness and consideration and conscientiousness ... is completely in keeping with the fresh and pure personality and appearance which caused me to sign her."

Selznik was certainly selling his new star, and he would go on to loan her out at a great personal profit. Perhaps his flattery could be seen in that light alone if Bergman didn't earn so many other professional admirers in her long and dedicated career. "Intermezzo" was her first success and despite the language barrier, it vaulted her to Hollywood stardom.

9. Cactus Flower

"Cactus Flower" is a screwball comedy from 1969 and was well received by both audiences and critics . Roger Ebert liked it so much  that he wrote that it's the kind of comedy that inspires "raucous laughter." 

This comedy is so specific to a time and place that it's not likely to induce any side-splitting laughs these days, but the story, based on a long-running Broadway play, is still amusing. Ingrid Bergman plays the nurse to a middle-aged dentist, Dr. Julian Winston (Walter Matthau). He's having a fling with 21-year-year-old Toni (Goldie Hawn) but tells her he's married to keep things casual. When he falls for her anyway, nurse Stephanie agrees to pose as Dr. Winston's wife and demand a divorce so this deceitful dentist doesn't have to admit he lied — about being married at least. The only problem is Bergman's nurse is in love with Winston too.

"Cactus Flower" doesn't have the moody style of the star's World WarII era films, particularly her masterful Hitchcock collaborations, but even in the late 1960s, Bergman still had the stuff to make a romantic plot turn.

8. Autumn Sonata

Ingrid Bergman's final film performance in 1978's "Autumn Sonata" is a stunner. It's her only collaboration with fellow Swede director Igmar Bergman (no relation). She plays an aging matriarch who just watched her husband slowly die in the hospital. That's when she makes the trek to stay with her estranged daughter. To her surprise, her other daughter, who has a degenerative disease and uses a wheelchair, is also living in the home.

Bergman shows up like a whirlwind. On the first night, she puts on a bright red dress for dinner so she doesn't appear the grieving widow. She feels personally aggrieved that she wasn't told that her disabled child lives in the home as if it is all a plot to shame or embarrass her. We know this because she talks to herself incessantly in great, frantic monologues.

Bergman (the director) is known for his talky dramas with tons of psychological subtext in which characters often break the third wall. "Autumn Sonata" has some of the feel of a stage play, but the saturated colors and smooth camera work by cinematographer Sven Nykvist elevate the proceedings. The film is almost entirely in Swedish, but Ingrid Bergman's intense and nearly manic performance carries the film in a fitting end to an iconic career. Even more impressive,  production was at one point delayed for Bergman's cancer surgery . The disease eventually led to her death in 1982.

7. For Whom the Bell Tolls

In this 1943 adaptation of Ernest Hemingway's famed novel, Gary Cooper plays Roberto Jordan. He's an American operative in Spain assisting rebel fighters resisting the dictatorial reign of General Francisco Franco. High in the mountains, preparing to strike a crucial bridge, Roberto meets a displaced Spanish woman named María (Ingrid Bergman) living among the gruff guerillas.

Maria has been living rough. Her face is covered in dirt, and her hair is shorn because she recently escaped the fascist forces who shaved her head. This is a studio film in the literal sense and is shot entirely on sets. The combination of grime and bright studio lights brings out Bergman's incredible eyes. It's easy to understand why Roberto is taken with this spunky young partisan.

Bergman and Cooper's affair during filming is well documented, and the passion feels real in her first ever Oscar-nominated role . Cooper's Roberto is infatuated in a way that changes his wartime calculus and seems destined to end in tragedy. "For Whom The Bell Tolls," like the novel it's based on, has an epic scope — maybe too much so. The Blu-ray version runs for almost three hours. There's a shorter theatrical cut, and that's the one to see.

6. Gaslight

"Gaslight" from 1944 opens almost like a flickering silent movie and doesn't have the production values of an even older film from Ingrid Bergman's canon like "Casablanca." It is, however, awash in period charm. It's a remake of the same story from only four years prior , but this version of the thriller oddly doesn't stage the opening murder, the brutal strangulation of an English opera singer in her home. Years later, the murdered woman's niece, Paula (Bergman), is training to be a singer but gives it up during a whirlwind romance with a dashing pianist named Gregory Anton (Charles Boyer). The couple soon moves back into her deceased aunt's spooky, gothic London flat.

Married life soon turns tense. An heirloom of Paula's goes missing, then a picture on the wall. The gas lamps in the house are brightened, then oddly dimmed, but Gregory denies even noticing this and questions Paula's sanity as she becomes more paranoid and isolated. "Gaslight" is based on a play from 1938 but this film is most responsible for the popular term. It's a baroque and mannered portrait of domestic psychological abuse at the hands of a man who is not who or what he says he is. "Gaslight" is dated, but even as the lamps are turned low, Bergman in her black and white prime was never more luminous.

5. Indiscreet

This slightly underrated 1958 film is Ingrid Bergman and Cary Grant 's second collaboration. Bergman was coming off an Oscar win in 1957, which Grant accepted in her stead , so she jumped at the chance to work with her friend again after their iconic collaboration on Alfred Hitchcock's "Notorious" 12 years earlier.

It's not known if Bergman and Grant had an affair, but their close relationship is well-documented . During their initial collaboration in 1945, the normally controlling Hitchcock was so smitten with the married Bergman that he allowed her war photographer lover , Robert Capa, to take photos on his set. Meanwhile, Grant was coming off one of his four divorces . Maybe the timing was never right for a real Bergman-Grant fling, but their onscreen chemistry was intense, and they work that same magic in "Indiscreet."

Bergman plays Anna Kalma, a famous stage performer resigned to a life without love. That's when her similarly upscale sister, Margaret (Phyllis Calvert), invites her to a party where she meets a dashing banker named Philip Adams (Grant). The chemistry is immediate, but it turns out he's already married. The romance goes ahead, but there's a screwball element, and nothing with Adams is what it seems. "Indiscreet' is irresistible. The photography is lush and colorful and so are the sets, but most of all, you'll swoon for its two stars.

4. Murder on the Orient Express

"Murder On The Orient Express" is one of the most engrossing films of the 1970s and among the best murder mystery films ever made . Adapted from the Agatha Christie novel of the same name, the plot follows a large ensemble of strangers on a train. When one of them is stabbed to death, the brilliant detective Hercule Poirot (Albert Finney) interviews each passenger aboard the stranded locomotive to piece together how this crime may link back to a famous abduction case. Poirot's investigation is the real show in this dialogue-driven film, as his gift for deductive reasoning stands in for the inventive plot-minded genius of Christie.

Ingrid Bergman has a small role, but no less than the other stars like Sean Connery, Lauren Bacall, and Anthony Perkins, and she nabbed her second Oscar for the part of Greta, a zealous religious missionary who shouts things like, "Only God can judge!" But doth thou protest too much? The Swedish-born Bergman learned English to become a global movie star but leans on her roots for a broken Swedish-English accent as she unfurls her supposedly innocent backstory. The fun is in figuring out if this woman of God is telling the truth or hiding a devilishly clever crime.

3. Spellbound

In "Spellbound," Ingrid Bergman stars as Dr. Constance Petersen, a psychoanalyst at Green Manors Mental Hospital in Vermont. Her patients are dangerous and unhinged, and the other doctors fall all over themselves for her affection. It's quite a job. Constance, however, remains constant and detached — "a human glacier," as one colleague brands her. That all changes when a new and very handsome young doctor named Anthony Edwardes (Gregory Peck) joins the ward. The two fall fast in love, but soon, a patient with a supposed guilt complex triggers Edwardes to believe he repressed memories of his own complicity in a murder.

This psychological thriller by Alfred Hitchcock takes the most explicit interest in Freudian psychology of all the films in the director's storied career. "Spellbound" was released in 1945, just six years after Freud's death, and it portrays a mental health profession in the thralls of the founder of psychoanalysis ideas. The entire premise is a bit like one big spell of mass delusion among experts. That works because Hitchcock's interest in Freudian symbolism here is less subtle than in "Psycho" or "Rear Window" or even "Vertigo." Freud is really just a device for an amnesia story as Bergman deploys her skills to probe the depths of the identity of the dashing Dr. Edwardes.

2. Notorious

Ingrid Bergman as Alice is absolutely transfixed by Cary Grant's Devlin in "Notorious." The two stare into each other's eyes as they pour out the last of a bottle after a dinner party that somehow turned into a booze binge. Alice's hair is tousled, but somehow Devlin isn't intoxicated at all. Their chemistry is electric, yet his composure says something else is on his mind.

Alice has reason to drown her worries. Her father has just been convicted as a Nazi war criminal, and soon, we find out the mysterious Devlin didn't crash this party by accident. He's a spy and wants Alice to help him smoke out another Third Reich fugitive hiding abroad. Devlin's deception cools the romance, and things get even more complicated when she learns this sexy spy wants her to seduce a Nazi hiding in Brazil.

This steamy thriller from 1946 is one of Alfred Hitchcock's very best films. Carried by the romance plot, it's one of his pictures that holds up from this era before color. There are just some duos that make you believe the passion is real, and you know it when you see it. "Notorious" has fun with spies and Nazis and other various MacGuffins, but really, it's all a thrilling ruse to keep these lovers apart.

1. Casablanca

There has always been one glaring problem in what is arguably the greatest movie Hollywood ever produced. Humphrey Bogart is on brand as the brooding tough guy, Rick Blaine. He's a no-nonsense proprietor of a classy casino bar in the Nazi-occupied North African territory of Casablanca. He has zero interest in taking sides as passports out of the province become invaluable. However, when his ex, Ilsa Lund (Ingrid Bergman), shows up needing a ticket out, Rick turns into a blubbering, moody teenager, drowning himself in drink in his stylish and shadowy office above the bar.

This is an odd way for a film noir anti-hero to act in 1942. We learn Rick was once a freedom fighter, so the tough-talk isn't just a front. Yet, Bergman's beauty instantly melts him, and that really is the key to salvaging this incoherency. Bergman is simply among the most telegenic women ever captured on celluloid and her spell on Rick is supernatural.

Flashbacks show the former couple's whirlwind romance in Paris, and we get why Rick is so sore that she ghosted him all those years back. When she wanders into Rick's Cafe, dressed all in white, a halo of gauze over the lens, Bergman's more apparition than actor. Rick fancies himself a realist who sees all the angles, and usually, he does. Only Bergman could pull the wool over his eyes, and his journey is about overcoming his cynicism and love-lorn grief for the greater good.

Join or Sign In

Sign in to customize your TV listings

By joining TV Guide, you agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge the data practices in our Privacy Policy .

• TV Listings
• Cast & Crew

The Visit Reviews

• 1 hr 40 mins
• Watchlist Where to Watch

Ingrid Bergman as the world's richest woman, who returns to her birthplace for vengeance. Anthony Quinn, Irina Demich, Paolo Stoppa, Valentina Cortesa. Bardrick: Claude Dauphin. Innkeeper: Eduardo Ciannelli. Diluted from Duerrenmatt's chilling play. Bernhard Wicki directed.

A weird premise hinders the believability of this international film involving four countries. Bergman, who (as widow of the richest man in the world) is the richest woman in the world, returns to the small European town where she was born. The little town is on the skids, and the news that she is returning sends hopes soaring--the townspeople believe that she might help them out financially, lifting them out of the doldrums. Bergman, though, has something else in mind: vengeance on those who caused her suffering. Bergman comes to town in a classic Rolls-Royce with an entourage and a pet leopard. The town honors the local girl who made good with a large dinner, at which she makes them what she thinks will be an irresistible offer. Quinn, a big man in town, who married well after his teenage love affair with Bergman, is the target of her wrath. She offers the town $2 million to murder Quinn! Years before, Quinn abandonded her, pregnant, to the scorn of the town, having his buddies spread the rumor that she was a whore. The ensuing furor compelled her to leave the small town, and her child died. Later, she became a prostitute in Trieste, where she met the old, fabulously rich man who became her husband. The people of the town listen, astounded, to the story. Some even consider the offer, but ultimately they refuse. Soon trucks begins arriving with loads of goods for the people. At first, they are suspicious, but when Bergman begins to distribute the merchandise and asks for nothing in return, the townspeople begin to rethink their position. Bergman's pet leopard gets away, and the locals get their guns and go after it. What if Quinn should happen to be hit by a bullet gone astray? some wonder. Quinn realizes that this is exactly what could happen, so he goes into hiding until the big cat is nabbed. He approaches Bergman directly and begs her to call off her plan, but she reminds him that his marriage to someone with a larger dowry than hers forced her into a life of prostitution. The fact that she somehow managed to turn the situation to her advantage is beside the point; she wants her pound of flesh in retribution. Quinn next attempts to flee but is thwarted. The local people plead with Bergman to give up her plan, and they spend some money in town themselves. Then they are informed that she already owns the entire town and its surrounding area. In a young servant, Demick, carrying on with a local married policeman, Bergman recognizes the young girl that she herself was two decades ago. She gives Demick money and advises her to get away from the town as soon as she can. Quinn's wife, Cortese, sticks by him--barely. Quinn goes to trial on a trumped-up charge, is found guilty, and is sentenced to death. Bergman tells the packed courtroom that she will allow him to be set free if anyone will speak up to say that he has been condemned by a kangaroo court. No one says a word. Then Bergman lifts the death sentence anyway, condemning him instead to life among people who would have let him die for the sake of money. Bergman takes Demick by the hand, tells everyone that her visit is now over, and the two women depart. The Durrenmatt play (and the translation by Valency that was a hit in New York) featured lead characters a great deal older than Quinn and Bergman. In May 1958 Alfred Lunt and wife Lynn Fontanne played the roles in New York. Using older stars to underline the hatred that has festered for a lifetime might have been more effective. Bergman was cast against type, and Quinn served as little more than a human dart board for her anger. Made at Cinecitta Studios in Rome, with locations in Italy, THE VISIT featured some good acting in the smaller roles, including that of the mayor (Schroder) and the police chief (Blech) among others. The same theme (that people will do anything for money) was treated in the comedy THE MAGIC CHRISTIAN. The film was nominated by the Academy for Best Costume Design.

• Movies & TV
• Featured Categories

Enjoy fast, free delivery, exclusive deals, and award-winning movies & TV shows with Prime Try Prime and start saving today with fast, free delivery

Amazon Prime includes:

Fast, FREE Delivery is available to Prime members. To join, select "Try Amazon Prime and start saving today with Fast, FREE Delivery" below the Add to Cart button.

• Cardmembers earn 5% Back at Amazon.com with a Prime Credit Card.
• Unlimited Free Two-Day Delivery
• Streaming of thousands of movies and TV shows with limited ads on Prime Video.
• A Kindle book to borrow for free each month - with no due dates
• Listen to over 2 million songs and hundreds of playlists
• Unlimited photo storage with anywhere access

Important:  Your credit card will NOT be charged when you start your free trial or if you cancel during the trial period. If you're happy with Amazon Prime, do nothing. At the end of the free trial, your membership will automatically upgrade to a monthly membership.

Return this item for free

We offer easy, convenient returns with at least one free return option: no shipping charges. All returns must comply with our returns policy.

• Go to your orders and start the return
• Select your preferred free shipping option
• Drop off and leave!

Image Unavailable

• Sorry, this item is not available in
• Image not available
• To view this video download Flash Player

• Prime Video $3.79 — $9.99

Purchase options and add-ons

Frequently bought together.

Customers who bought this item also bought

Product Description

A multi-millionaires returns to the poor home town that ostracized her after her teenage pregnancy, promising to alleviate the town's massive debt in exchange for the life of the man who betrayed her.

Product details

• Aspect Ratio ‏ : ‎ 1.33:1
• Is Discontinued By Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ NR (Not Rated)
• Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 0.5 x 5.35 x 7.5 inches; 3.5 ounces
• Item model number ‏ : ‎ 384872
• Director ‏ : ‎ Bernhard Wicki
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ NTSC
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour and 40 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ October 17, 2012
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Ingrid Bergman, Anthony Quinn
• Producers ‏ : ‎ Julien Derode, Anthony Quinn
• Studio ‏ : ‎ Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation
• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B009L4DSUA
• Writers ‏ : ‎ Ben Barzman
• Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ USA
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1
• #7,439 in Drama DVDs

Customer reviews

• 5 star 4 star 3 star 2 star 1 star 5 star 85% 7% 3% 2% 3% 85%
• 5 star 4 star 3 star 2 star 1 star 4 star 85% 7% 3% 2% 3% 7%
• 5 star 4 star 3 star 2 star 1 star 3 star 85% 7% 3% 2% 3% 3%
• 5 star 4 star 3 star 2 star 1 star 2 star 85% 7% 3% 2% 3% 2%
• 5 star 4 star 3 star 2 star 1 star 1 star 85% 7% 3% 2% 3% 3%

Customer Reviews, including Product Star Ratings help customers to learn more about the product and decide whether it is the right product for them.

To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average. Instead, our system considers things like how recent a review is and if the reviewer bought the item on Amazon. It also analyzed reviews to verify trustworthiness.

• Sort reviews by Top reviews Most recent Top reviews

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. please try again later..

Top reviews from other countries

• Amazon Newsletter
• About Amazon
• Accessibility
• Sustainability
• Press Center
• Investor Relations
• Amazon Devices
• Amazon Science
• Sell on Amazon
• Sell apps on Amazon
• Supply to Amazon
• Protect & Build Your Brand
• Become an Affiliate
• Become a Delivery Driver
• Start a Package Delivery Business
• Advertise Your Products
• Self-Publish with Us
• Become an Amazon Hub Partner
• › See More Ways to Make Money
• Amazon Visa
• Amazon Store Card
• Amazon Secured Card
• Amazon Business Card
• Shop with Points
• Credit Card Marketplace
• Reload Your Balance
• Amazon Currency Converter
• Your Account
• Your Orders
• Shipping Rates & Policies
• Amazon Prime
• Returns & Replacements
• Manage Your Content and Devices
• Recalls and Product Safety Alerts
• Registry & Gift List
• Conditions of Use
• Privacy Notice
• Consumer Health Data Privacy Disclosure
• Your Ads Privacy Choices

Oscars Nominations 2025

Predictions, best picture.

• Conclave 17/2
• Sing Sing 9/1

Best Actress

• Mikey Madison 9/2
• Karla Sofia Gascon 5/1
• Angelina Jolie 6/1
• Colman Domingo 39/10
• Ralph Fiennes 4/1
• Timothee Chalamet 11/2

Best Supporting Actress

• Danielle Deadwyler 19/5
• Zoe Saldana 9/2
• Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor 13/2

Best Supporting Actor

• Clarence Maclin 5/1
• Kieran Culkin 5/1
• Stanley Tucci 13/2

Best Adapted Screenplay

• Sing Sing 39/10
• Conclave 9/2
• Nickel Boys 6/1

Best Original Screenplay

• A Real Pain 13/2

Best Director

• Sean Baker 9/2
• Steve McQueen 13/2
• Denis Villeneuve 15/2

Best Animated Feature

• The Wild Robot 71/20
• Inside Out 2 39/10
• Memoir of a Snail 5/1

Ingrid Bergman movies: 15 greatest films ranked worst to best

• Tom O'Brien , Chris Beachum , Misty Holland
• August 24, 2024 6:00AM

Born in Stockholm in 1915, Ingrid Bergman was working in Swedish and German films during the 1930s, when one of her Swedish films, 1936’s “Intermezzo,” caught the eye of powerful Hollywood producer David O. Selznick . He announced that he planned to remake “Intermezzo” in English and would bring Bergman to Hollywood to star. The only problem was that Bergman didn’t speak English, but she turned out to be a fast learner, and the combination of her work ethic and her radiant beauty put Bergman well on her way to becoming an authentic movie star.

Not only did Bergman become an audience favorite, but her acting skills earned her the respect of moviegoers and Hollywood producers alike. In the course of her four-decade film career, Bergman was nominated for seven Academy Awards, winning three for “Gaslight,” “Anastasia” and “Murder on the Orient Express”. She is one of only six actors in history ever to manage that feat of three or more acting victories. In addition, she was also nominated for seven Golden Globe Awards for her film work, also winning three. Other classics in her career have included the legendary “Casablanca,” “Notorious” and “Spellbound.”

Let’s take a photo gallery tour and rank her 15 greatest films from worst to best.

15. SARATOGA TRUNK (1945)

Director: Sam Wood.  Writer: Casey Robinson, from the Edna Ferber novel.  Starring Gary Cooper, Ingrid Bergman, Flora Robson.  

Based on the Edna Ferber novel, “Saratoga Trunk” starred Bergman as Clio, the illegitimate daughter of an aristocratic Creole father and a light-skinned Creole mother who, after living in Paris, return to New Orleans and team up with a Texas gambler (Gary Cooper) to seek justice for her mistreatment at the hands of her father’s family.  “Saratoga Trunk” was Warner Bros.’ biggest box-office hit in 1945, and somehow, despite the ludicrousness of casting a Swedish actress in the role of a Creole outcast, Bergman’s skill somehow made the whole thing work.

14. INTERMEZZO: A LOVE STORY (1939)

Director: Gregory Ratoff.  Writer: George O’Neil.  Starring Leslie Howard, Ingrid Bergman, Edna Best.  

The film that started it all for Bergman in America.  With “Gone With the Wind” co-star Leslie Howard as her leading man, Bergman simply lit up the screen as Anna Hoffman, who is the piano teacher to the daughter of famed virtuoso violinist Holger Brandt (Howard).  Upon hearing Anna play, Holger insists that she be his accompanist on his upcoming concert tour.  While traveling together in such close quarters, one thing leads to another, and Anna begins a torrid affair with Holger.  When the affair becomes public Holger’s wife Margit demands a divorce, and Anna must decide if staying with Holger is worth the toll on his family.  As young as she is, Bergman is an absolute revelation here.

13. STROMBOLI (1950)

Director: Roberto Rossellini.  Writers: Sergio Amidei, Gian Paolo Callegari, Art Cohn, Renzo Cezana.  Starring Ingrid Bergman, Mario Vitale.  

Although critical reaction to Rossellini’s film was negative at the time, “Stromboli” has since grown in reputation to be considered a classic of Italian neo-realism.  And, from a film history perspective, it’s the film where Bergman and Rossellini began their scandalous love affair which resulted in a 7-year marriage.  Bergman plays an Lithuanian emigre who marries an Italian fisherman (Mario Vitale) who brings her back to his volcanic island of Stromboli where she must fight to earn the respect of the disapproving island dwellers.

12. THE BELLS OF ST. MARY’S (1945)

Director: Leo McCarey.  Writer: Dudley Nichols.  Starring Bing Crosby, Ingrid Bergman, Henry Travers, William Gargan. 

Every Christmas, my mom and dad gathered the family around to watch the umpteenth rerun of Leo McCarey’s “The Bells of St. Mary’s,” the semi-sequel to “Going My Way,” probably in hopes that the film’s religiosity would somehow sink into us.  (Hint:  It didn’t.)  But Catholicism aside, this is an emotionally potent film, thanks in large part to Bing Crosby (reprising his earlier Oscar-winning role of Fr. Chuck O’Malley) and Bergman, whose hard-nosed Sister Mary Benedict goes head-to-head with the good padre.  For her performance as Sister Mary Benedict, Bergman won her second Golden Globe Award and received her third Oscar nomination.

11. FOR WHOM THE BELL TOLLS (1943)

Director: Sam Wood.  Writer: Dudley Nichols, from the Ernest Hemingway novel.  Starring Gary Cooper, Ingrid Bergman, Akim Tamiroff, Katina Paxinou. 

Bergman earned her first Best Actress Oscar nomination for her performance as Maria, a young guerrilla fighter who meets Robert Jordan (Gary Cooper), an American volunteer in Spain fighting the Franco forces during the Spanish Civil War.  Readers around the world loved this story by Ernest Hemingway, who is said to have personally selected Bergman and Cooper for their roles, and Bergman’s performance in particular did not let him down.

10. CACTUS FLOWER (1969)

Director: Gene Saks.  Writer: I.A.L. Diamond, based on the play by Abe Burrows.  Starring Walter Matthau, Ingrid Bergman, Goldie Hawn.  

One of Bergman’s most commercial films (“Cactus Flower” was the eighth highest-grossing film of 1969), Gene Saks’ film is a rare comedy for the actress in which she plays Miss Dickinson, the loyal nurse to womanizing dentist Dr. Julian Winston (Walter Matthau).  His girlfriend Toni Simmons (Goldie Hawn, in her Oscar-winning performance) has attempted suicide because a lack of a marriage proposal from Dr. Winston, who claims he’s married.  He finally proposes, but that means he needs a “wife” to divorce.  Enter Miss Dickinson.  For her performance as Miss Dickinson, Bergman received her sixth Golden Globe nomination.

9. INDISCREET (1958)

Director: Stanley Donen.  Writer: Norman Krasna, based on his play “Kind Sir.”  Starring Cary Grant, Ingrid Bergman, Cecil Parker.  

Bergman reunited with her “Notorious” co-star Cary Grant in this Stanley Donen romance, earning her fifth Golden Globe nomination as Anna, an actress who has abandoned all hope of finding love when she meets Philip, an economist who claims that he can’t commit to her because he’s married.  He’s actually single, and when Anna finds out, she sets out to get revenge.  The set-up is clever and bears a striking resemblance to the plot of her 1969 hit, “Cactus Flower.”

8. JOAN OF ARC (1948)

Director: Victor Fleming.  Writers: Maxwell Anderson, Andrew Solt.  Starring Ingrid Bergman, José Ferrer, George Coulouris.

“Joan of Arc” was a passion project for Bergman.  By 1948, she had amassed enough clout in the industry to realize her dream projects, but making “Joan of Arc” was still a tough road for Bergman, and the film was finally made not by a major studio but by an independent company.  While the reviews of the film at the time were largely positive, the reviews that Bergman received for her performance as the Maid of Orleans were glowing, resulting in her fourth Oscar nomination as Best Actress.

7. MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS (1974)

Director: Sidney Lumet.  Writer: Paul Dehn, based on the Agatha Christie novel.  Starring Albert Finney, Lauren Bacall, Ingrid Bergman, Sean Connery.  

Sidney Lumet’s film version of Agatha Christie’s classic whodunnit gathered a galaxy of stars playing passengers on board a train headed for England when a murder occurs, and every one of the first class passengers are suspects.  Lumet offered Bergman the flashy role of suspect Princess Dragomiroff, but she asked to play the much smaller role of missionary Greta Ohlsson.  Bergman clearly knew what the meaty part was, and, as a result, Bergman won her third Academy Award and her first in the supporting category.

6. SPELLBOUND (1945)

Director: Alfred Hitchcock.  Writers: Angus MacPhail, Ben Hecht.  Starring Ingrid Bergman, Gregory Peck, Leo G. Carroll. 

“Spellbound” was Bergman’s second film under the direction of Alfred Hitchcock and one that was much more psychologically intense than “Notorious.”  Set at a mental hospital, Dr. Constance Petersen (Bergman), a psychoanalyst thought by many on the staff to be an ice princess, is surprised when the hospital’s director (Leo G. Carroll) is forced into retirement and replaced by the much younger Dr. Anthony Edwardes (Gregory Peck).  Something about the new director doesn’t feel right to Dr. Petersen, and through snooping, she discovers that Dr. Edwardes is not whom he claims to be.

5. AUTUMN SONATA (1978)

Writer/Director: Ingmar Bergman.  Starring Ingrid Bergman, Liv Ullmann, Lena Nyman.  

Bergman’s final screen appearance proved to be one of her most acclaimed.  In Ingmar Bergman’s “Autumn Sonata,” Bergman returned to her Swedish-language roots for this family drama in which she plays Charlotte, a renowned pianist who is invited by her housewife daughter Eva (Liv Ullmann) to return to her village in hopes of a reconciliation, which proves to be easier said than done.  For her performance as Charlotte, Bergman was nominated for her seventh Academy Award and her seventh Golden Globe Award.

4. ANASTASIA (1956)

Director: Anatole Litvak.  Writer: Arthur Laurents.  Starring Ingrid Bergman, Yul Brynner, Helen Hayes. 

In Anatole Litvak’s historical drama, Bergman won her second Best Actress Academy Award as Anna, an amnesiac who bears a striking resemblance to Russia’s Grand Duchess Anastasia, who was widely rumored to have survived the massacre of her royal family during the Russian Revolution.  Anna soon becomes a pawn in an extortion scheme by a renegade Russian general (Yul Brynner) to use Anna’s resemblance to claim Anastasia’s £10 million inheritance.  But it’s up to Anna to sell it.  In addition to her Oscar, Bergman also won her third Golden Globe Award as Best Actress.

3. GASLIGHT (1944)

Director: George Cukor.  Writers: John Van Druten, Walter Reisch, John L. Balderston.  Starring Charles Boyer, Ingrid Bergman, Joseph Cotten, Angela Lansbury. 

Bergman won her first Best Actress Academy Award as Paula Alquist, who, as a young girl, witnessed the murder of her aunt.  Now grown up, she is whisked off her feet by Charles Anton (Charles Boyer), who convinces her to leave her friends behind and live with him in London.  Slowly but surely, the manipulative Charles gaslights Paula, persuading her that the events and evidence she is clearly seeing aren’t really happening, thus having her question her own sanity and her own memories of the murder.   In addition, for her performance as Paula, Bergman won her first Golden Globe Award as Best Actress.

2. NOTORIOUS (1946)

Director: Alfred Hitchcock.  Writer: Ben Hecht.  Starring Cary Grant, Ingrid Bergman, Claude Rains.  

Throughout her career, Bergman was showered with critical recognition and awards, but I would argue that her two best films — at least the two that have aged the strongest — received no critical awards for her at all.  The first is “Notorious,” to my mind one of Alfred Hitchcock’s best films and a very mature work by the master, in which he treated a love story seriously and not just an adjunct to the suspense plot.  Bergman plays Alicia Huberman, daughter of a Nazi spy, who is engaged by agent T.R. Devlin (Cary Grant) to infiltrate a Nazi ring in Brazil.  The chemistry between Grant and Bergman truly sizzles.

1. CASABLANCA (1942)

Director: Michael Curtiz.  Writers: Julius J. Epstein, Philip G. Epstein, Howard Koch.  Starring Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, Paul Henreid, Claude Rains.  

“Play it once, Sam, for old times’ sake.  Play it, Sam.  Play ‘As Time Goes By.'”  With those words, Ingrid Bergman became a part of film history with her indelible performance as Ilsa Lund, the wife of Czech Resistance leader Victor Laszlo (Paul Henreid), who suddenly appears in the Casablanca cafe and gambling den of American expatriate Rick Blaine (Humphrey Bogart), Ilsa’s former lover and a man for whom she still carries a torch.  Rick and Ilsa’s romance is one of the great love stories, and Bogart & Bergman bring it to life so skillfully that “Casablanca” remains a beloved American classic to this day.

Stay informed with our weekly Newsletter