5 Questions With: Princeton Postdoctoral Research Associate Dylan Murray
5 Questions With is a recurring feature where we sit down with a special guest to get their unique perspective. Here, we talk with Dylan Murray, Princeton University Postdoctoral Research Associate, ahead of his introduction for The Seventh Seal (1957). (Presented as part of our Prof Picks series, in celebration of director Ingmar Bergman’s centenary - Playing at the Princeton Garden Theatre Wednesday, October 10th at 7:30pm)
What was it about this film that spoke to you?
It’s probably one of the most philosophically rich films that’s ever been made. In that respect, more generally, one of the things that I like most about film is that it can ask an d sometimes answer some of the questions that philosophers are interested in, but rarely try and tackle directly, at least in the same way these days. Film has the ability to ask these big philosophically rich questions in an engaging, personal way, in a way that an essay or book, where you’re confined to having to state things in terms of arguments, doesn’t really afford.
As a philosopher, how do you feel your work connects with this, and the rest of Bergman’s body of work?
My own work doesn’t really address these same questions directly, but The Seventh Seal explores the problem of evil and related questions: Why is it that God allows such evil to occur in the world if God is omnipotent, omniscient, and omni-benevolent? Why does God keep himself hidden from us? Why does he, as the character of the knight puts it “…hide in a mist of vague promises, and invisible miracles?”. What is the meaning of life in a world where the prospect of death is so highly salient, but God is hidden or invisible? Bergman was preoccupied with those questions throughout his career, and part of the appeal of The Seventh Seal is that it’s probably his most direct confrontation with them.
With regard to your work in philosophy, what are some other films that resonate with you?
On the topic of those big philosophical questions, all of Bergman’s work is really at the top of the list, much of it dealing with the same questions about death, God, and religion from a more psychological perspective. Wild Strawberries (1957), Through a Glass Darkly (1961), Winter Light (1963), The Silence (1963), and Persona (1966) all come to mind. I’m also a big Federico Fellini fan. 8½ (1963) has to be right up there with The Seventh Seal. More recently The Great Beauty (2013), and really everything else by Paolo Sorrentino are big favorites.
What do you think the role of film is today, and do you think it’s capable of effecting social change?
I think that for more personal questions about the nature of, and the meaning of life and what-not, film can really inspire people to reflect on and think about those things. In terms of social change though, I do worry that Hollywood is becoming even more “Hollywood”. The movies that get made are the ones that’ll sell the most tickets. Those aren’t necessarily the best movies. That’s why we get a ton of remakes, sequels, and the never-ending rollout of Marvel universe movies these days. From that perspective, we wouldn’t exactly expect film to be at the forefront of social change, we’d instead expect it to support the status quo and comfortably reinforce what people already believe.
That said, there is a long history of films that have highlighted certain social issues for a broader audience than might otherwise have been aware of them, Harlan County USA (1976), The Thin Blue Line (1988), Do the Right Thing (1989), Chi-Raq (2015), Blackkklansman (2018). Black Panther (2018) is an interesting recent example. I just lamented the percentage of the film industry that’s making comic book movies a moment ago, but I doubt that any film has given young black people more powerful, progressive avatars than Black Panther.
The Seventh Seal has earned a reputation as being the quintessential, dense art-film, what should we be looking out for that might help us navigate this film?
I’d watch for the contrast between the knight, Antonius Block; his squire, Jöns; and the husband-actor Jof. Bergman seems to play Jöns’ hedonism and materialism against Block’s idealism and abstraction, but I think there’s also the suggestion that Jof lies somewhere in between. Look out for how each of those people sees death and what their respective outlooks on life are. I’d also pay attention to the grayscale of the film, and the vertical plane of the cinematography. Pay attention to what’s shot from above, compared to what’s shot from below.
The Seventh Seal is presented as part of our Prof Pics series, and plays at the Princeton Garden Theatre on Wednesday, October 10th at 7:30pm. For more information on our upcoming Prof Pics screenings, view our lineup Here.
More from our Bergman Centenary series:
Wild Strawberries Wed, Nov 28 at 7:30pm. (Princeton Garden)
The Seventh Seal Thu, Nov 15 at 7:30pm. (Ambler Theater)
Presented on 35mm film and introduced by Steven Carter of the Westminster Theological Seminary. Free for members.
Persona Thu, Nov 29 at 7:30pm. (Ambler Theater)The Seventh Seal Wed, Oct 10 at 7:30pm. (County Theater)
Persona Wed, Nov 7 at 7:30pm. (County Theater)
