Cries and Whispers (1972)

In the hushed transition from the nineteenth to the twentieth century in Sweden, an isolated country manor becomes the backdrop for a poignant tale of sisterhood, resentment, and looming mortality. Four women - the dying Agnes, her sisters Karin and Maria, and the loyal housemaid Anna - find themselves ensnared in a complex web of interpersonal relationships that are as strained as they are unspoken. Agnes' painful struggle against the clutches of a terminal illness draws her married sisters back to the family estate, despite the icy tension that permeates their reunion. Karin, the stoic sister, conceals a turbulent sea of repressed emotions behind a facade of propriety, her cold demeanor thinly veiling a bitter disdain for her diplomat husband, Fredrik. Maria, the self-absorbed sister, wields her subtle sensuality like a concealed weapon, her fleeting smiles and clandestine glances speaking volumes to her lovers, including David, Agnes' physician. Amid her torment, Agnes finds solace not in her sisters, but in Anna, her steadfast servant. Her desperate pleas for relief echo through the manor's vast, cold halls, filled with the haunting cries and whispers of a family on the precipice of transformation. Anna, faithful and pious, provides Agnes with the love and compassion her sisters seem incapable of, her own past marred by the untimely death of her infant daughter. As Agnes' life wanes, the simmering resentments and long-buried mistrust among the sisters bubble to the surface, their bitterness and selfishness becoming as palpable as the fear and revulsion that Agnes' suffering incites. The imminent specter of death forces them to confront their demons, sparking a heart-rending exploration of the human condition, the complexities of familial ties, and the painful path to redemption.

Cries and Whispers is a drama movie featuring Harriet Andersson.

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