The Magician story
Ansiktet (lit. Swedish: "The Face"), also released as The Magician, is a 1958 Swedish film written and directed by Ingmar Bergman starring Max von Sydow and Ingrid Thulin. The plot follows a traveling magician named Albert Vogler, whose allegedly supernatural live shows are challenged by the skeptical population of a small village.
14 total · 1 choice · 3 major · 10 minor
| Theme | Level | Motivation |
|---|---|---|
| faith vs. science | choice | Dr. Vergerus and Concul Egerman discussed whether there could be anything that is beyond science, and came to wager on Albert's abilities being genuine or not. The rest of the story tied into this wager and its object. |
| con artistry | major | Tubal and Albert's activities ranged from pseudo medicine to outright quackery. |
| female sexuality | major | The kitchen maids turned the tables on the men and showed themselves to be conspicuously forward. For instance, Ottilia propositioned Albert and was later turned on when her husband hit her. |
| husband and wife | major | especially Albert and Manda |
| coping with the death of a child | minor | Ottilia spoke of her late daughter and her grief. |
| extramarital affair | minor | Mrs. Starbeck implied that some of her children were not MR. Starbeck's |
| facing death | minor | drunken man, Johan Spegel, in the forest explained his experiences as he died - or so we thought |
| hatred | minor | Dr. Vergerus spoke to Albert about hatred, Albert expressed hatred to his marks |
| lesson in humility | minor | the film concluded with a lengthy lesson being administered to Vergerus, who denied that it had been effective |
| love potion | minor | Tubal sold love potions to eager enough maid servants |