Ingmar Bergman's Smiles of a Summer Night is a bit atypical considering his dark, religious oeuvre. Although the self-applied moniker of "romantic comedy" may be a bit of a stretch for contemporary audiences, it is more than apt considering his more brooding masterpieces. The plot follows a series of couples, their servants and maids, and the romantic complications they find themselves enmeshed in on a weekend outing at a summer house. As the plot progressed, I kept thinking how similar it was to The Rules of the Game (it even ends with a gunshot). There were also hints of Children of Paradise, especially in the same kind of confident filmmaking that comes with a complete mastery of the craft. Yet it's not quite as good as those two.The acting and writing were all fully realized. The cinematography and editing were more than competent. None of the individual technical aspects stood out on their own, but rather served as a groundwork for the message. Yet the message seemed to be an inferior, muted version of the many themes present in The Rules of the Game. Most were spelled-out or of little value, almost as if Bergman didn't trust the audience as much as he does in his more serious pics. I wasn't sure what I got out of the movie when it ended--no greater realization of life and love and all that jazz. Also, much of the romance was verbal or intellectual; everyone's love was talked about, but rarely felt. He should stick to stark portraits of faith. Despite my disparaging remarks, I consider this film an entertaining, joyous, cinematically triumphant film.
IMDb link: http://imdb.com/title/tt0048641/