Magical take on childhood

Ingmar Bergman has made so many films which qualify as masterpieces that the word becomes a little devalued each time one of them is revived.

Some people call this particular film the culmination of a lifetime's work, and that accolade is as good as any. It documents one year in the life of a large and well-to-do family living in Uppsala, where Bergman was born.

The central characters are the eightyearold Fanny and the 10-year-old Alexander - who may or may not be a portrait of Bergman himself.

When their father dies, their mother marries a puritanical local bishop and everything changes. But an old family friend comes to their rescue, and film ends optimistically, which is a change for Bergman.

It is beautifully acted, has superb production design and its magical take on childhood shows that Bergman understood a lot more about the young than we might have suspected.

Even at three hours, you want more not less, which is, I suppose, me arguing against myself.

Fanny And Alexander
Cert: 15