Critics often talk about the striking styles Bergman uses because they launched his films to international success. For the 1950’s, open thinking and free thought hadn’t been necessarily encouraged. Bergman’s style definitely highlights and provokes the more reflective and inner thought processes. In a non-scholarly, journalistic interview with Woody Allen, the narrator, Mark Kermode, describes Bergman’s style as “rigorous, beautiful, explorations of faith, philosophy, and death, making a profound connection with the emergent comedian.” This is a common perspective among critics because these are a common theme of Bergman’s style as a filmmaker. A quote from Woody Allen describes the style as, “The ultimate subject matter, I mean it doesn’t get anymore deep with man’s confrontation of is there a God, is there no God, if there’s no God you know how do we live and what do we do and and why isn’t everything so terrifying and you’re paralyzed and all of these questions that are much beyond social issues in terms of their unanswerable profundity.“ Woody Allen describes Bergman as an artist he connected with deeply. In a scholarly article, another critic named Amir Cohen-Shalev also commented on the weight of Bergman’s concepts by saying, “The picture of aging emerging from Wild Strawberries is dominated by pressure toward resolution.” It is clear that the remarks made by critics of Wild Strawberries by Bergman often note the profundity of the messages behind the theme and style.

I agree with the critics. My personal view is that Bergman uses existential thoughts to provoke an eerie feel that strikes a deep chord in the viewers. The abstract yet simple perspective causes a melancholy to resonate throughout the movie as the viewers connect with a humble protagonist.

A question to wonder is if the role of the family man and patriarch put an unhealthy burden on the shoulders of men in the first half of the 20th century. The callous, cold emotion portrayed provokes the thought of if every man kept things private as a way to function with the least perceived resistance in that day and age.

In an interview with Bergman, he begins to describe what it’s like having difficulty translating what he wants to say into English. This link is an example of the pressure of the time period that men, and specifically Ingmar Bergman, may have had to go through. He says, “Do you know what’s bad? It’s when you make an interview, when you can’t, er, you don’t find the right word in Swedish or English or some other language and you hear the whole time the noise of the camera, the film running and you think “God heavens, now it starts to cost money.””. This quote shows how the filmmaker endures pressure. In an example of a textual resource it can be seen that the protagonist was cold his whole life. The critic believes it is clear that the doctor is troubled but also begins to show some softer traits as he reflects on his life. This quote shows the change in times and the historical aspect of this film.  “These days, therapy and processing things for closure are common practice rather than at the end of one’s life. I don’t have any respect for the pain of the soul, so don’t come here to cry. But if you need spiritual support, I can tell you the name of a priest or analyst.”No wonder his wife left him and his son is estranged. But it isn’t that simple. As the movie progresses, instead of being repelled by him we gradually begin to feel sympathetic as the doctor slowly faces his past honestly.”

I think this film relates to history and society because everyone discusses it as a reflection of existential thoughts, which were less talked about and taboo at the time. This parallels the historical trend of human rights when men were the ones in control. It was not accepted for men to be weak as they had all the power in those days. This is because of the way society had developed. People experienced it subconsciously but now that it is half a decade in the future, we can experience the dysfunction through the historical film. This unconventional film brought attention to this way of looking inward and learning through self-reflection, allowing humans to better ourselves.  Through interpreting these experiences we dissect the social dialogue and context that represents the hurt emotions or reflective thoughts. This demonstrates to us how we can understand the situational themes related to the film.