Cries and Whispers

A shattering close encounter with death, the painfully voluptuous visual and aural experience of which should elicit only an eloquent silence. Three sisters have taken up residence in a large family manor:  Agnes (Harriet Andersson), dying in agony of cancer; Karin (Ingrid Thulin), ripped apart by a vampirelike appetite for human connection and an inability to get outside herself; and Maria (Liv Ullmann), trapped in her own narcissism and sensuality.  Death, to Agnes’s sisters, is inconvenient, an affront to their egotism—they are heartless souls islanded within the rounds of their flesh.  In contrast, the dead Agnes, sacramentally cradled against her maid’s earth-mother breasts, finds heaven—even resurrection—in sweet memories of summer innocence.  This superb film plumbs the deepest, darkest waters of the female body and spirit to find transcendent beauty and truth.

This screening is part of our free weekly double features this summer to celebrate Film at Lincoln Center’s 50th anniversary.

• Registration for a single ticket per person is subject to availability.
• If you register for more than one ticket, only one registration will be honored.
• If you register online, you must arrive at least 20 minutes prior to showtime to claim your seat, at which point tickets may be forfeited in the event of a standby line.
• Online registrants should skip the box office by presenting your Print-at-Home ticket (via print-out or on your mobile device) to the theater usher.
• Please note: walk-ups will still be accepted; tickets to be distributed on a space-available basis.

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