Although I've read about Ingrid Bergman's life before, I liked the angle this author used. He said people like Charlie Chaplin were international stars even though they worked in one cinema venue, Hollywood. However, Ingrid was a star in Sweden and Germany before becoming a Hollywood star. Then, she moved to Italy and became a star there and then made a French film before returning to Hollywood. The fact that she could adapt to so many different cinematic styles and directors' personalities is a tribute to her diversity.
I absolutely love analysis; this life history is full of analysis of the star and the movies she made. However, the author goes further by showing how Ingrid's decisions were tempered and affected by the politics and attitudes of the ticket-buying public and the changing decades (and changing mores). It was interesting to see that moviegoers understood Ingrid's apolitical stance while she worked in Germany (during the Nazi era), but reacted sharply to her affair (and subsequent marriage) to a seriously left-leaning Italian director (Roberto Rossellini) in the 1950 (McCarthy era).
It is surprising to see that this book is only rated a bit above average. Obviously, readers did not appreciate the wealth of interviews (of Ingrid and her work) that the author of this short review wove together so adroitly.
I absolutely love analysis; this life history is full of analysis of the star and the movies she made. However, the author goes further by showing how Ingrid's decisions were tempered and affected by the politics and attitudes of the ticket-buying public and the changing decades (and changing mores). It was interesting to see that moviegoers understood Ingrid's apolitical stance while she worked in Germany (during the Nazi era), but reacted sharply to her affair (and subsequent marriage) to a seriously left-leaning Italian director (Roberto Rossellini) in the 1950 (McCarthy era).
It is surprising to see that this book is only rated a bit above average. Obviously, readers did not appreciate the wealth of interviews (of Ingrid and her work) that the author of this short review wove together so adroitly.
