Liv Ullmann

I read this when it first came out in 1977; then, I wanted to know more about this lovely 'star' who held me transfixed when I saw her movies and the wonderful Scenes from a Marriage. Today, years later, I reread it, only this time to find out about the nature of a "muse;" you see, Liv Ullmann is widely regarded as the 'muse' for the great film director Ingmar Bergman. Also, I too have a muse, and I wanted to find out where they find their powers. Mine is the one I call "My wild Sicilian show more beauty," and when I come crying to her with some new hurt or disaster her response is usually terse and to the point: "Three words, Larry: 'not your problem!'" Sigh, she's my junkyard angel and she always brings me bread. If I told her I'm dying she's bound to put a blanket on my bed! Whoops! I just plagiarized a Bob Dylan lyric, but you get my point! Sadly, Ullmann, juggling her careers as an international star jetting from Europe to Hollywood and back, being an absent, guilty mother, and tending to Bergman's tenuous hold on reality seemingly drove her to distraction. This jealous, capricious, tempermental man dragged her off to a solitary island (Faro) where one ferry visited daily. She was locked up in a fenced-in estate inside an off-limits house and kept isolated and subjected to his tantrums and bad behavior. Bergman may have needed a muse but he could have used a therapist as well, and Ullmann seemed to be unsuited for yet another task. With this read, now I can watch a streaming documentary, Liv & Ingmar: a Love Story, to get a visual sense of their splendid isolation. And, years later, she wrote a sequel, Choices, that continues her saga and my research. (As I write this she is 81 and she still works!) show less

In contrast with her previous book "Mutations", this book was harder to read. There are descriptions of her experiences as UNICEF goodwill ambassador to places such as India, South-east Asia, Africa, Haiti, Ecuador and Colombia. The descriptions are heart wrenching but the worst part is to know that today, decades later, the situation in many of these countries have not changed. Some of her observations are well informed - the billions of dollars spent on the war machine and the science of show more destruction, and how governments have satellites and can see all the suffering going on in the world and still the human suffering persists - but then she contrasts that with philosophical questions like do the poor believe it is their destiny to be poor. She keeps saying she's a 40 year old woman and a 40 year old mother to a 13 year old girl. There seems to be a tension in the mother-daughter relationship which remains unresolved if it's a longing for her youth or difficulty in accepting ageing, though 40 is not old at all. The most interesting parts are when she questions gender roles such as why society frowns upon women expressing anger, or women giving up their careers for a relationship with a man, her questioning about being an actress, her fear of loneliness and her hope of falling in love again. The description of the scenes she directed of an old couple and the memories of her grandmother (river flow) are exquisite.There's also a lot about her romantic relationship with this man called Abel; she describes beautifully the ending of their relationship. show less

Qualquer pessoa que tenha um mínimo conhecimento sobre cinema sabe que Liv Ullmann é uma das grandes atrizes de sua história e esse livro (que ela escreveu quando tinha por volta quarenta anos) nos faz o favor de nos mostrar além de pequenos relances de sua vida pessoal, mas também um fabuloso diário de filmagens de Face a Face do Bergman, que por acaso considero sua melhor interpretação, muito embora ela tivesse atuado em melhores filmes de Bergman.
Além da vida com a filha, seu show more período em Hollywood, suas viagens pelo mundo, a estranhíssima proximidade com Henry Kissinger (!!!), nós ainda temos a certeza do que já havia ficado claro em Lanterna Mágica: que o Bergman era um macho chato do caralho. Ullman fala de tudo isso com muita destreza e maturidade, além de mostrar o quanto técnica e intuição moldaram suas sempre excelentes interpretações. show less

When existence feels too real, I retreat into the comforts of my reclusive tendencies and surround myself with the enchanting confines of cinema. It is in this same dangerous habit that I discovered Ingmar Bergman and my deepest love for this legendary artist. Together with this discovery came my unexpected awe with his Stradivarius, Liv Ullmann. My favourite film of theirs is Autumn Sonata. But after watching Shame, The Passion of Anna, and Scenes From A Marriage almost consecutively in the show more past weeks, I had to know more about Liv Ullmann. It is how I stumbled upon her contemplative memoir, Changing. Divided into four parts, Norway, Islanders, Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star, and Masks, its nonlinearity nearly gives a dreamlike impression with its constant recall of childhood. In her fragmented retrospection which reads like a diary, she tells her complicated affair with Bergman, especially when they lived in Fårö and their filming process (of their film Face to Face) and collaboration. She also shares her attempt to make a name in Hollywood, her yearning for home, the attack of loneliness and fading with age, and her conflicted passion for acting and theatre.

In the course of the memoir, she often ponders why mothers are immediately bad/neglectful for having a profession when men get a pass. And she worries she's selfish for being away from her daughter due to work. It's easy to define an artist based on their work alone. Liv reminds us of its hazards, of an artist's forgotten humanity if not for the surreal stories she nonchalantly includes here. Once, she attended a party and overheard Mae West mention she didn't know her seconds after feigning excitement about finally meeting her. Another was when she visited Playboy publisher Hugh Hefner's house and looked at a film about "a dog making love to a girl" (please don't ask me to elaborate further).

Changing often shifts from one grammatical person to the other. It can be a little annoying at times. A dialogue from Scenes From A Marriage describes this memoir aptly: "You have moments of greatness, interspersed with sheer mediocrity." But beyond Liv's apparent grapple for a distinct voice in her writing and her restraint, her sincere sensibilities and intense rumination are infectious. They reveal as much about herself as with ours. The memoir satisfies for its glimpse on one of the most unquestionably versatile and exquisite actresses to bless the screen. show less