MOVIEVIBE ← Back to Home

The Silence

1963 1h 35m
Drama Romance
MOVIEVIBE Rating
7.5/10
410 reviews
Your Rating
The Silence

Traveling through an unnamed European country on the brink of war, sickly, intellectual Ester, her sister Anna and Anna's young son, Johan, check into a near-empty hotel. A basic inability to communicate among the three seems only to worsen during their stay. Anna provokes her sister by enjoying a dalliance with a local man, while the boy, left to himself, has a series of enigmatic encounters that heighten the growing air of isolation.

"BERGMAN at his most POWERFUL! SHOCKING! BOLD!"

Top Billed Cast

Ingrid Thulin
Ingrid Thulin
Ester
Gunnel Lindblom
Gunnel Lindblom
Anna
Birger Malmsten
Birger Malmsten
Bartender
Håkan Jahnberg
Håkan Jahnberg
Hotel Steward
Jörgen Lindström
Jörgen Lindström
Johan
Kotti Chave
Kotti Chave
Officer in the Train Compartment
Lissi Alandh
Lissi Alandh
Woman in Variety Hall (uncredited)
Leif Forstenberg
Leif Forstenberg
Man in Variety Hall (uncredited)

Detailed Critic & Audience Reviews

C CinemaSerf Verified TMDB Critic
2026-01-31

Though they are travelling together through an un-named country, there appears to be little love lost between the poorly “Ester” (Ingrid Thulin) and her younger sister “Anna” (Gunnel Lindblom) who also has her young son “Johan” (Jörgen Lindstrom) in tow, too. Even though “Ester” is a linguist, she doesn’t readily understand the language here and so frequently resorts to sign language to make her self understood. “Anna” uses altogether different methods of making herself understood and that merely serves to irritate her sister who might wish she could be so open, but has ...