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{{Short description|1982 film by Ingmar Bergman}}
{{Good article}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2017}}
{{Infobox film
| name           = Fanny and Alexander
| image          = Fanny&Alexander.jpg
| caption        = Original Swedish release poster
| director       = [[Ingmar Bergman]]
| producer       = [[Jörn Donner]]
| writer         = Ingmar Bergman
| starring       = {{Plainlist|
* Pernilla Allwin
* Bertil Guve
* [[Jan Malmsjö]]
* [[Börje Ahlstedt]]
* [[Anna Bergman]]
* [[Gunn Wållgren]]
* [[Kristina Adolphson]]
* [[Erland Josephson]]
* [[Mats Bergman]]
* [[Jarl Kulle]]
}}
| music          = Daniel Bell
| cinematography = [[Sven Nykvist]]
| editing        = Sylvia Ingemarsson
| studio         = {{Plainlist|
* Cinematograph<ref name="SFD"/>
* [[Sveriges Television]]<ref name="SFD"/>
* [[Gaumont Film Company|Gaumont International]]{{sfn|Vermilye|2006|p=41}}
* Personafilm<ref name="SFD"/>
* [[Tobis Film]]<ref name="SFD"/>
* [[Swedish Film Institute]]<ref name="SFD"/>
}}
| distributor    = {{Plainlist|
* [[Sandrew Metronome|Sandrew Film & Teater]] (Sweden){{sfn|Steene|2005|p=435}}
* Gaumont Distribution (France)
* Tobis Film (Germany)<ref>{{cite web|title=Fanny und Alexander|website=[[filmportal.de]]|access-date=8 October 2021|url=https://www.filmportal.de/en/movie/fanny-und-alexander_ea43d4a7a4d25006e03053d50b37753d}}</ref>
}}
| released       = {{Film date|df=y|1982|12|17|Sweden<ref name="SFD">{{cite web |url=http://www.svenskfilmdatabas.se/sv/Item/?type=film&itemid=5922 |title=Fanny och Alexander (1982) |publisher=[[Swedish Film Database]] |language=sv |access-date=13 December 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171214021139/http://www.svenskfilmdatabas.se/sv/Item/?type=film&itemid=5922 |archive-date=14 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>|1983|3|9|France<ref name="AlloCine"/>|1983|10|8|West Germany<ref name="Filmlexikon"/>}}
| runtime        = {{Plainlist|
* '''TV miniseries:'''<br />312 minutes
* '''Theatrical film:'''<br />188 minutes<ref name="BFI">{{cite web |url=http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b69415af8 |publisher=[[British Film Institute]] |title=Fanny and Alexander (1982) |access-date=14 December 2017 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170920064948/http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b69415af8 |archive-date=20 September 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>
}}
| country        = {{Plainlist|
* Sweden
* France
* West Germany<ref name="BOM">{{cite web |url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=fannyandalexander.htm |title=Fanny and Alexander |work=[[Box Office Mojo]] |access-date=13 December 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171213010848/http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=fannyandalexander.htm |archive-date=13 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>
}}
| language       = {{Plainlist|
* Swedish
* German 
}}
| budget         = [[US dollar|US$]]6 million<ref name="Steffen">{{cite web |publisher=[[Turner Classic Movies]] |title=Fanny and Alexander |access-date=13 December 2017 |url=https://www.tcm.com/this-month/article/136022 |last=Steffen |first=James |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171201035043/http://www.tcm.com/this-month/article/136022%7C0/Fanny-and-Alexander.html |archive-date=1 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>
| gross          = US$6.7 million<ref name="BOM"/>
}}

'''''Fanny and Alexander''''' ({{langx|sv|'''Fanny och Alexander'''}}) is a 1982 [[Epic film|epic]] [[Historical drama|period drama]] film written and directed by [[Ingmar Bergman]]. The plot focuses on two siblings and their large family in [[Uppsala]],{{efn|Critic [[Roger Ebert]] observed the town in the film is unnamed.<ref name="Ebert"/> However, some publications refer to it as Bergman's own hometown Uppsala.{{sfn|Haenni|Barrow|White|2014|p=231}}<ref name="NYT"/><ref name="Kempley"/> Frank Gado suggests that "though not identified by name," the town is "unmistakably Uppsala."{{sfn|Gado|1986|p=496}}}} Sweden during the first decade of the twentieth century. Following the death of the children's father ([[Allan Edwall]]), their mother ([[Ewa Fröling]]) remarries a prominent bishop ([[Jan Malmsjö]]) who becomes abusive towards Alexander for his vivid imagination.

Bergman intended ''Fanny and Alexander'' to be his final picture before retiring, and his script is semi-autobiographical. The characters Alexander, Fanny and stepfather Edvard are based on himself, his sister [[Margareta Bergman|Margareta]] and his father [[Erik Bergman (Lutheran minister)|Erik Bergman]], respectively. Many of the scenes were filmed on location in Uppsala. The documentary film ''[[The Making of Fanny and Alexander]]'' was made simultaneously with the feature and chronicles its production.

The production was originally conceived as a television [[miniseries]] and cut in that version, spanning 312 minutes; a 188-minute cut version was created later for cinematic release, although this version was in fact the one to be released first. The television version has since been released as a complete film, and both versions have been shown in theaters throughout the world. The 312-minute cut is one of the [[List of longest films|longest cinematic films in history]].

The theatrical version was released to universal critical acclaim. It won four [[Academy Awards]], including for [[Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film|Best Foreign Language Film]]; three [[19th Guldbagge Awards|Guldbagge Awards]], including [[Guldbagge Award for Best Film|Best Film]]; and other honours. ''Fanny and Alexander'' was followed by stage adaptations and further semi-autobiographical screenplays by Bergman, released as films in 1992: ''[[The Best Intentions]]'', directed by [[Bille August]], and ''[[Sunday's Children]]'', directed by [[Daniel Bergman]]. On both review websites [[Rotten Tomatoes]] and [[Metacritic]] it is the highest-rated film of the 1980s, and has since then been regarded as one of Bergman's finest works, one of the greatest works of Swedish cinema, and of [[List of films considered the best|all time]].

==Plot==
In 1907, young Alexander, his sister Fanny, and their well-to-do family, the Ekdahls, live in a Swedish town, running a moderately profitable theatre. At Christmastime, the Ekdahls hold a [[Nativity play]] and later a large Christmas party. The siblings' parents, Emilie and Oscar, are happily married until Oscar suddenly dies from a stroke. Shortly thereafter, Emilie marries Edvard Vergérus, the local bishop and a widower, and moves into his home where he lives with his mother, sister, aunt, and maids. The siblings' womanizing uncle, Gustav Adolf, carries on with the nursemaid, Maj, while the siblings' other uncle, Carl, bemoans himself as a failure.

It quickly becomes evident that the children's stepfather, the bishop Edvard, is a strict and controlling authoritarian. The relationship between the bishop and Alexander is especially cold, as Alexander invents stories, for which Edvard punishes him severely. As a result, Emilie asks for a divorce, which Edvard will not consent to; though she may leave the marriage, this would be legally considered desertion, placing the children in his custody. Meanwhile, the rest of the Ekdahl family has begun to worry about their condition, and Emilie secretly visits her former mother-in-law, Helena, revealing she is pregnant.

During Emilie's absence, Edvard confines the children to their bedroom, ostensibly for their safety. There, Alexander shares a story, claiming he was visited by the ghosts of the Vergérus family, who revealed the bishop was responsible for their deaths. The maid Justina reports the story to Edvard, who responds with [[corporal punishment]]. After Emilie returns, the Ekdahl family friend Isak Jacobi helps smuggle the children from the house. They live temporarily with Isak and his nephews in their store.

Emilie's former brothers-in-law confront Edvard to negotiate a divorce, using the children, the bishop's debts, and the threat of a public scandal for leverage, but Edvard is unmoved.

Emilie, now in the later stages of her pregnancy, refuses to restore the children to Edvard's home. Emilie allows Edvard to drink a large dosage of her [[bromide]] sedative. She explains to him, as the medication takes effect, that she intends to flee the home as he sleeps. He threatens to follow her family and ruin their lives, but falls unconscious. After she escapes, Edvard's dying Aunt Elsa accidentally overturns a gas lamp, setting her bedclothes, nightgown, and hair on fire. Engulfed in flames, she runs through the house, seeking Edvard's help, but he, too, is set aflame. Although partially incapacitated by the sedative, he is able to disentangle himself from Aunt Elsa, but is badly burned and dies shortly thereafter.

Alexander had fantasised about his stepfather's death while living with Isak and his nephews Aron and Ismael Retzinsky. The mysterious Ismael explains that fantasy can become true as he dreams it.

The Ekdahl family reunites for the christening celebration of Emilie's and the late bishop's daughter as well as the extra-marital daughter of Alexander's uncle, Gustav Adolf, and the maid, Maj. Alexander encounters the ghost of the bishop who knocks him to the floor, and tells him, "You can never escape me." Emilie, having inherited the theatre, hands Helena a copy of [[August Strindberg]]'s play ''[[A Dream Play]]'' to read and tells her that they should perform it together onstage. Initially scoffing at the idea and declaring Strindberg a "misogynist," Helena takes to the idea and begins reading it to a sleeping Alexander.

==Cast==
{{multiple image
|align     = right
|width      = 150
|direction = vertical
|image1    = Allan Edwall 1965.jpg
|image2    = Ewa Fröling 1971.jpg
|footer    =[[Allan Edwall]] and [[Ewa Fröling]] star as parents Oscar and Emilie Ekdahl.
}}
The cast consists of:<ref name="BFI"/>

'''The Ekdahl house'''
{{Castlist|
* [[Gunn Wållgren]] as Helena Ekdahl (grandmother)
* [[Jarl Kulle]] as Gustav Adolf Ekdahl
* [[Mona Malm]] as Alma Ekdahl (Gustav's wife)
* Angelica Wallgren as Eva Ekdahl (Gustav and Almas' daughter)
* Maria Granlund as Petra
* Kristian Almgren as Putte
* Emelie Werkö as Jenny
* [[Allan Edwall]] as Oscar Ekdahl
* [[Ewa Fröling]] as Emilie Ekdahl (Oscar's wife)
* Bertil Guve as Alexander Ekdahl
* Pernilla Allwin as Fanny Ekdahl
* [[Börje Ahlstedt]] as Carl Ekdahl
* [[Christina Schollin]] as Lydia Ekdahl (Carl's wife)
* [[Sonya Hedenbratt]] as Aunt Emma
* [[Käbi Laretei]] as Aunt Anna von Bohlen
* Majlis Granlund as Miss Vega
* [[Svea Holst]] as Miss Ester
* [[Kristina Adolphson]] as Siri
* [[Siv Ericks]] as Alida
* [[Inga Ålenius]] as Lisen
* Eva von Hanno as Berta
* [[Pernilla August]] as Maj
* [[Lena Olin]] as Rosa
* [[Gösta Prüzelius]] as Dr. Fürstenberg
* [[Hans Strååt]] as priest
* [[Carl Billquist]] as Jespersson, police officer
* [[Axel Düberg]] as witness
* [[Olle Hilding]] as priest in the epilogue
}}

'''The Bishop's house'''
{{Castlist|
* [[Jan Malmsjö]] as Bishop Edvard Vergérus
* [[Kerstin Tidelius]] as Henrietta Vergérus
* Hans Henrik Lerfeldt as Elsa Bergius
* [[Marianne Aminoff]] as Blenda Vergerus
* [[Harriet Andersson]] as Justina
* Linda Krüger as Pauline
* [[Pernilla Wahlgren]] as Esmeralda
* [[Peter Stormare]] as young man
}}

'''Jacobi's house'''
{{Castlist|
* [[Erland Josephson]] as Isak Jacobi
* [[Stina Ekblad]] as Ismael Retzinsky
* [[Mats Bergman]] as Aron Retzinsky
* [[Gerd Andersson]] as Japanese woman
}}

'''The Theatre'''
{{Castlist|
* [[Gunnar Björnstrand]] as Filip Landahl
* [[Heinz Hopf (actor)|Heinz Hopf]] as Tomas Graal
* [[Sune Mangs]] as Mr Salenius
* Nils Brandt as Mr Morsing
* [[Per Mattsson]] as Mikael Bergman
* [[Anna Bergman]] as Hanna Schwartz
* Lickå Sjöman as Grete Holm
* [[Ernst Günther]] as Rector Magnificus
* [[Hugo Hasslo]] as the singer
}}

==Production==
===Development===
[[File:Fanny och Alexander manus.jpg|250px|thumb|Bergman's screenplay]]
Director [[Ingmar Bergman]] conceived of ''Fanny and Alexander'' while working on his 1980 film ''[[From the Life of the Marionettes]]'', and wrote the screenplay at [[Fårö]] in summer 1979.{{sfn|Vermilye|2006|p=42}} Bergman intended ''Fanny and Alexander'' to be his last feature film,{{sfn|Gado|1986|p=494}} but he wrote several screenplays afterwards and directed for television. He told the press he decided to retire, because, "I don't have the strength any more, neither psychologically nor physically".<ref name="Baxter"/> The screenplay was semi-autobiographical, attempting to portray Bergman's fondest memories in what he called a "happy and privileged" childhood; Alexander himself was meant as a representation of the young Ingmar.{{sfn|Gado|1986|p=1}} His recollections of his grandmother's home were a particular inspiration.<ref name="Kakutani"/> He commented on his boyhood:
{{Blockquote|It was difficult to differentiate between what was fantasy and what was considered real. If I made an effort, I was perhaps able to make reality stay real. But, for instance, there were ghosts and specters. What should I do with them? And the sagas, were they real?<ref name="Bjorkman">{{cite web |url=https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/346-fanny-and-alexander-in-the-world-of-childhood |title=Fanny and Alexander: In the World of Childhood |publisher=[[The Criterion Collection]] |date=9 November 2011 |access-date=12 December 2017 |last=Björkman |first=Stig |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171213201235/https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/346-fanny-and-alexander-in-the-world-of-childhood |archive-date=13 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> }}
Bergman also recalled receiving his own [[magic lantern]] at age 10, from his aunt;{{sfn|Steene|2005|p=32}} in his autobiography, he described it as personally significant, and previously depicted a magic lantern in his 1972 ''[[Cries and Whispers]]''.{{sfn|Sitney|2014|p=49}}

However, the Ekdahls do not entirely match the Bergmans.{{sfn|Gado|1986|p=1}} Ingmar's relationship with his sister [[Margareta Bergman|Margareta]] during their shared childhood is depicted through the character Fanny, who is included in the title though she is not as large a character as Alexander.{{sfn|Gado|1986|p=498}} Bergman had previously modeled characters after his mother, Karin Åkerblom, as simultaneously "virgin and seductress": Emilie also fits that self-contradictory design.{{sfn|Gado|1986|p=498}}{{efn|Bergman also intended his 1972 ''[[Cries and Whispers]]'' as a "portrait of my mother ... the great beloved of my childhood".{{sfn|Gado|1986|p=408}} All four female ''Cries and Whispers'' protagonists are meant to represent different aspects of her personality.{{sfn|Gervais|1999|p=120}} }}

Margareta and Ingmar's father was the strict [[Erik Bergman (Lutheran minister)|Erik Bergman]], a [[Lutheran]] pastor.<ref name="Baxter">{{Cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2007/jul/30/ingmarbergman.obituaries |title=Obituary: Ingmar Bergman |last=Baxter |first=Brian |date=30 July 2007 |access-date=24 November 2011 |work=[[The Guardian]] |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140111193931/http://www.theguardian.com/film/2007/jul/30/ingmarbergman.obituaries |archive-date=11 January 2014 |df=dmy-all }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/person/14557%7C72751/Ingmar-Bergman|title=Ingmar Bergman Overview|access-date=24 November 2011|publisher=Turner Classic Movies|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111206172917/http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/person/14557%7C72751/Ingmar-Bergman/|archive-date=6 December 2011|df=dmy-all}}</ref> Edvard is based on Erik, and like Edvard, Erik was raised in a family almost completely made up of women.{{sfn|Gado|1986|p=503}} Erik and Ingmar also often conflicted over "truth" and honesty, much as Edvard and Alexander do.{{sfn|Hubner|2007|p=117}} The story Alexander tells of being sold to a circus resembles one Ingmar had told as a boy, and he was accosted by Erik much as Edvard lectures Alexander.{{sfn|Nyberg|2005|p=109}} However, Bergman also stated that "It has been suggested ... that 12-year-old Alexander is my alter-ego. But this is not quite true. ''Fanny and Alexander'' is a story, the chronicle of a middle-class, perhaps upper-middle-class family sticking closely together ... There's a lot of me in the Bishop, rather than in Alexander. He is haunted by his own devils".{{sfn|Cohen-Shalev|2009|p=76}}

Bergman proposed the project to producer [[Jörn Donner]], who said he could provide the budget if all production and costume design crew would be Swedish. Bergman initially doubted that Sweden alone had the manpower, but eventually caved, Donner said.<ref>{{cite AV media |last=Donner |first=Jörn |date=2011 |title=Fanny and Alexander: A Bergman Tapestry |work=Fanny and Alexander |medium=Blu-ray |publisher=The Criterion Collection}}</ref> The estimated budget of 40 million [[Swedish krona|SEK]] made it the most costly Swedish film ever.{{sfn|Steene|2005|p=330}} To raise the $6 million, Donner and the [[Swedish Film Institute]] partnered with the French company [[Gaumont Film Company|Gaumont]] and West German TV.{{sfn|Vermilye|2006|p=41}} Bergman completed the screenplay by October 1980 and assembled a budget of $7 million, according to ''[[New York (magazine)|New York]]''.<ref name="Wolf">{{cite magazine|title=Face to Face with Ingmar Bergman |last=Wolf |first=William |magazine=[[New York (magazine)|New York]] |date=27 October 1980 |volume=13 |number=42 |page=37}}</ref>

===Casting===
{{multiple image
 | align     = right
 | direction = horizontal
 | footer    = Ingmar Bergman's father [[Erik Bergman (Lutheran minister)|Erik Bergman]] (left) provided the inspiration for the character Edvard, played by [[Jan Malmsjö]] (right).
 | footer_align = left
 | width     =
 | image1    = Erik_Bergman.jpg
 | width1    = 175
 | alt1      = 
 | image2    = Jan Malmsjö -1992 Malmö cropped.jpg
 | width2    = 225
 | alt2      = 
}}
The project was announced in October 1980 with [[Liv Ullmann]], [[Max von Sydow]] and [[Erland Josephson]] in lead roles; von Sydow was cast as Edvard, the bishop who Ingmar told the press resembled Erik Bergman.<ref name="Wolf"/> However, negotiations to secure von Sydow became troubled as he continued to act more in productions beyond Sweden, and as his agent demanded a larger salary.<ref name="Steffen"/><ref name="Holmberg"/> Edvard was recast with [[Jan Malmsjö]], whom Bergman had worked with before in ''[[Scenes from a Marriage]]''.<ref name="Steffen"/> In 1981, Ullmann also rejected the role of Emilie, due to a scheduling conflict,{{sfn|Steene|2005|p=330}} though in 2013 she remarked "I still don't know why I did that".<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Born Outsiders |url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2013/12/09/born-outsiders |last=Thurman |first=Judith |magazine=[[The New Yorker]] |date=9 December 2013 |access-date=13 December 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171214073011/https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2013/12/09/born-outsiders |archive-date=14 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>{{efn|Before the director's death in 2007, Ullmann starred in 11 of his works and became known as his muse.<ref name="Shanahan">{{cite web |url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/lifestyle/names/2016/05/20/liv-ullmann-talks-about-ingmar-bergman/TrsHLpqPQo2VKY8Lp9uxVI/story.html |last=Shanahan |first=Mark |date=20 May 2016 |title=Liv Ullmann talks about Ingmar Bergman |work=[[The Boston Globe]] |access-date=11 October 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171011181620/https://www.bostonglobe.com/lifestyle/names/2016/05/20/liv-ullmann-talks-about-ingmar-bergman/TrsHLpqPQo2VKY8Lp9uxVI/story.html |archive-date=11 October 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> [[Roger Ebert]] remarked Bergman and Ullmann's "lives have been intertwined since ''[[Persona (1966 film)|Persona]]'', and that's been the most important fact in ... [Ullmann's] artistic life", and they also had a daughter, [[Linn Ullmann]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.rogerebert.com/interviews/liv-ullmann-and-memories-of-bergman |last=Ebert |first=Roger |date=16 February 2001 |title=Liv Ullmann and Memories of Bergman |publisher=RogerEbert.com |access-date=11 October 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171011181249/http://www.rogerebert.com/interviews/liv-ullmann-and-memories-of-bergman |archive-date=11 October 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> }}

Bertil Guve was 10 when cast as Alexander. Bergman had seen Guve in a television film by [[Lasse Hallström]] and called for an audition with Guve, though the boy did not know who Bergman was. Bergman ultimately cast Guve, without sharing the story of ''Fanny and Alexander'' with him, recognising his imagination when he told a story about killing his own grandfather during the audition.<ref name="Macnab">{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2008/may/30/2 |last=Macnab |first=Geoffrey |title=Memories of a child star |work=The Guardian |date=30 May 2008 |access-date=13 December 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171214072413/https://www.theguardian.com/film/2008/may/30/2 |archive-date=14 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> Guve also said, "I asked Ingmar later why he chose me. He said it was because I acted with my eyes".<ref name="Macnab"/> Child actress Pernilla Allwin was cast as Fanny, and she and Guve regarded each other as rivals when they first met and began working; Bergman identified with this [[sibling rivalry]].{{sfn|Macnab|2009|p=210}}

Other actors, like [[Harriet Andersson]], [[Gunnar Björnstrand]], and [[Jarl Kulle]], had previously appeared in Bergman's filmography.<ref name="Steffen"/> Björnstrand was developing [[Alzheimer's syndrome]], making it difficult for him to memorise his dialogue, but he was still awarded a small role.<ref name="Holmberg">{{cite web |url=http://www.ingmarbergman.se/en/production/fanny-and-alexander-0 |editor-last=Holmberg |editor-first=Jan |title=Fanny and Alexander |publisher=The Ingmar Bergman Foundation |access-date=13 December 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171214071501/http://www.ingmarbergman.se/en/production/fanny-and-alexander-0 |archive-date=14 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> Veteran actress [[Gunn Wållgren]] was cast as Helena, despite the fact that she was suffering from cancer, often concealing her pain during shots.<ref name="Farago"/> ''Fanny and Alexander'' marked the final film appearances of both Björnstrand and Wållgren.{{sfn|Vermilye|2006|p=164}}

[[Pernilla August|Pernilla Wallgren]] (later August) was cast, out of a state school where she was studying the stage, for what became her [[breakthrough role]].{{sfn|Qvist|von Bagh|2000|p=41}} August later explained she received a message inviting her to read the screenplay, and she did not know how the filmmakers knew of her.<ref>{{cite AV media |last=August |first=Pernilla |date=2011 |title=Fanny and Alexander: A Bergman Tapestry |work=Fanny and Alexander |medium=Blu-ray |publisher=The Criterion Collection}}</ref> She had developed an interest in acting after seeing Bergman's ''Cries and Whispers'', and wanted a part like [[Kari Sylwan]]'s in a film one day.<ref name="Sweet">{{cite web |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/theatre-dance/features/pernilla-august-bergman-jesus-darth-vader-i-have-mothered-them-all-117077.html |last=Sweet |first=Matthew |title=Pernilla August: Bergman, Jesus, Darth Vader - I have mothered them all |work=[[The Independent]] |date=26 April 2003 |access-date=13 December 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171214021334/http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/theatre-dance/features/pernilla-august-bergman-jesus-darth-vader-i-have-mothered-them-all-117077.html |archive-date=14 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> Bergman also cast some of his real-life children, including [[Mats Bergman]] as Isak's nephew Aron, and [[Anna Bergman]] as Hanna Schwartz; [[Linn Ullmann]] was to play Alexander's older sister Amanda, but when Linn's school refused to give her a break for production, her father cut the character.<ref name="Holmberg"/> His ex-wife [[Käbi Laretei]] was cast as an aunt.{{sfn|Vermilye|2006|p=43}} In total, there were 60 characters with lines, and over 1,200 [[extra (acting)|extras]].{{sfn|O'Sullivan|2014|p=116}}

===Pre-production===
Art director [[Anna Asp]] was given six months before production to prepare, and started by building miniature models and drawing sets.<ref name="Asp"/> In creating the Ekdahl home, Bergman envisioned his real-life grandmother's Uppsala residence as a model. She had one apartment in the residence, whereas the other apartment belonged to Erik Bergman and his family.<ref name="Model">{{cite AV media |date=2011 |title=Set Models |work=Fanny and Alexander |medium=Blu-ray |publisher=The Criterion Collection}}</ref> Asp designed Oscar and Emilie's apartment with an [[Art Nouveau]] style.<ref name="Model"/> For the bishop's house, Asp sought a design that would be frightening while still being a plausible home for a man of the church, and found inspiration from a photograph of a castle in a magazine.<ref name="Asp">{{cite AV media |last=Asp |first=Anna |date=2011 |title=Fanny and Alexander: A Bergman Tapestry |work=Fanny and Alexander |medium=Blu-ray |publisher=The Criterion Collection}}</ref>  In designing Isak's residence, Asp worked from Bergman's memory of a Jewish antiques shop owner, looking for a [[labyrinth]]-style.<ref name="Model"/>

Costume designer [[Marik Vos]] oversaw a project requiring 250 costumes for the principal actors, along with over 1,000 costumes for the extras. She allowed the testing of the vast majority of fabric samples to determine how they appeared in photography, with Bergman demanding to see as many of the test shots as he could.<ref name="Holmberg"/> Vos also co-ordinated colours with Asp.<ref name="Asp"/>

===Filming===
[[File:Upplandsmuseet September 2012.jpg|250px|thumb|[[Upplandsmuseet]] was used as a location.]]
[[Principal photography]] began in [[Uppsala]], Sweden,{{sfn|Gado|1986|p=496}} lasting from 7 September 1981 to 22 March 1982.{{sfn|Steene|2005|p=435}} The filmmakers began shooting around Uppsala streets, which municipal leaders allowed the crew to redecorate.<ref name="Dokument">{{cite AV media |last=Bergman  |first=Ingmar |date=2011 |title=[[The Making of Fanny and Alexander|Dokument Fanny och Alexander]] |work=Fanny and Alexander |language=sv |medium=Blu-ray |publisher=The Criterion Collection}}</ref> Scenes were shot in chronological order, and Guve only learned the thrust of the story was his conflict with his stepfather during production.<ref name="Macnab"/> On the first day of photography, Bergman decided to stage a pillow fight, which the apprehensive Wallgren credited for putting her at ease.<ref name="Sweet"/> It also endeared the director to the child actors.<ref name="Farago">{{cite AV media |last=Farago |first=Katinka |date=2011 |title=Fanny and Alexander: A Bergman Tapestry |work=Fanny and Alexander |language=sv |medium=Blu-ray |publisher=The Criterion Collection}}</ref> Guve developed a generally amiable relationship with Bergman and later Pernilla Allwin, and Allwin and Guve's habit of playing on bicycles between filming would dirty their costumes and cause the crew to rush to clean them.{{sfn|Macnab|2009|p=210}} Guve also conflicted with Bergman when he laughed during a shoot, at which point Bergman reprimanded him and said that it was "the most outrageous, the most unprofessional behaviour" he had ever seen.<ref name="Macnab"/> While production meant full-time days during the workweek, Guve remained in school by spending the weekend on homework.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://people.com/archive/when-it-comes-to-hits-bergman-star-bertil-guve-thinks-baseball-not-movies-vol-20-no-24/ |last=Johnson |first=Mary |date=12 December 1983 |title=When It Comes to Hits, Bergman Star Bertil Guve Thinks Baseball, Not Movies |work=[[People (magazine)|People]] |access-date=17 December 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171217205732/http://people.com/archive/when-it-comes-to-hits-bergman-star-bertil-guve-thinks-baseball-not-movies-vol-20-no-24/ |archive-date=17 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>

Scenes were shot outside of [[Uppsala Cathedral]], with the crew conflicting with the dean over whether an antenna could be removed.<ref name="Dokument"/> For Edvard's house, shooting moved to [[Upplandsmuseet]], [[Uppsala County]]'s museum.{{sfn|Udovic|2014}} For interiors, the same sets in Uppsala and the Swedish Film Institute were used to portray multiple places.<ref>{{cite AV media |last1=Farago |first1=Katinka |last2=Asp |first2=Anna |date=2011 |title=Fanny and Alexander: A Bergman Tapestry |work=Fanny and Alexander |language=sv |medium=Blu-ray |publisher=The Criterion Collection}}</ref>

With Bergman suffering from [[influenza]], his colleagues substituted for him in shooting Oscar's funeral scene with 500 extras and a [[brass band]].<ref name="Dokument"/> At one point during production, a [[Joist|crossbeam]] fell over in the studio and nearly hit Bergman and cinematographer [[Sven Nykvist]]. Other crew were injured in workplace accidents.<ref name="Steffen"/> One injury took place when a male [[stunt performer]] portraying the burning Aunt Elsa was actually burned by spilled [[napalm]].<ref name="Dokument"/> Much of the production was recorded by Bergman and Arne Carlsson for the 1984 documentary, ''[[The Making of Fanny and Alexander]]''.{{sfn|Steene|2005|p=332}}

==Themes and interpretations==
Critic [[Michiko Kakutani]] identified ''Fanny and Alexander'' as sharing marriage-drama and domestic themes as his ''[[Thirst (1949 film)|Thirst]]'' (1949), ''[[Scenes from a Marriage]]'' (1973) and ''From the Life of the Marionettes''.<ref name="Kakutani"/> In contrast, academic Linda Haverty expressed surprise at Bergman, including his use of fantastical elements such as ghosts and [[telepathy]] as they were a departure from the [[psychological horror]] of his work in the 1960s and 1970s, for this ''[[Bildungsroman]]'' story.{{sfn|Haverty|1988|p=176}} Professor Frank Gado argued in his 1986 book ''The Passion of Ingmar Bergman'' that ''Fanny and Alexander'' is "actually two films, which, except that they concern members of the same family, are dramatically separate entities. The glow that warmed audiences radiates from only an outer layer; its core is as chilling as any of Bergman's fictions".{{sfn|Gado|1986|p=496}}

===Magic and reality===
[[File:Gunn Wållgren and Uno Henning - A Dreamplay.jpg|175px|thumb|[[Gunn Wållgren]] in Strindberg's ''[[A Dream Play]]'', 1955.]]
Academic [[Egil Törnqvist]] identified the character Gustav Adolf with secular merriment, while Alexander and Isak inhabit a world filled with the supernatural and evil.{{sfn|Törnqvist|1995|p=185}} Critic [[Dave Kehr]] interpreted the [[fairy tale]] style as a product of the story being told from Alexander's perspective, coloured with "myth and legend".{{sfn|Kehr|2017|p=102}} Alexander experiences "visions of ghosts or dream visions alongside everyday reality", author Laura Hubner wrote.{{sfn|Hubner|2007|p=122}} The sequence these visions are seen in may be significant. After being punished by Edvard for telling a story about how the Vergérus family died, Alexander is haunted by the ghosts of the family who deny Edvard's culpability, suggesting Edvard frightened Alexander into seeing this new vision.{{sfn|Hubner|2007|pp=122-123}} Writer Mas'ud Zavarzadeh rationalised Alexander's visions as a product of the character being "an artist in the making". Zavarzadeh further noted, "He is involved in the construction of a more genuine and stable reality than the one that surrounds him".{{sfn|Zavarzadeh|1991|p=229}}

As indicated by Gustav Adolf's final speech, most of the Ekdahls do not spend much time grappling with the meaning of life.{{sfn|Törnqvist|1995|p=176}}{{efn|Gustav Adolf states: "We Ekdahls have not come into the world to see through it, never think that. We are not equipped for such excursions. We might just as well ignore the big things. [...] Suddenly, the storm howls and disaster is upon us [...] So it shall be. Therefore, let us be happy while we're happy, let's be kind, generous, affectionate, and good. Therefore it is necessary, and not in the least shameful, to take pleasure in the little world, good food, gentle smiles, fruit trees in bloom, Waltzes".{{sfn|Gervais|1999|pp=142-143}} }} Zavarzadeh also contrasted Alexander to another of his uncles, Carl, a scholar who relies on logic but who is reduced to an absurdity, at one point entertaining the children with his flatulence.{{sfn|Zavarzadeh|1991|p=232}} Törnqvist considered the surname of the characters to be inspired by [[Henrik Ibsen]]'s 1884 play ''[[The Wild Duck]]'', and that it made the name Ekdal synonymous with characters who cope with illusions about reality. ''Fanny and Alexander'' adds an H to Ekdal, giving it an aristocratic air, Törnqvist added.{{sfn|Törnqvist|1995|p=175}}

Huber cited academics Marilyn Johns Blackwell and Törnqvist in support of the point that, despite the title, Alexander is the lead role and Fanny is a minor character; Blackwell added that imagination is "largely gendered as male".{{sfn|Hubner|2007|p=121}} Concurring that Fanny is a minor character, Kehr further argued that Alexander influences the plot to a lesser degree than the adult characters, but remains the focus in the storytelling.{{sfn|Kehr|2017|p=102}}

On Alexander's visions and their reality, critic [[Roger Ebert]] argued:
{{Blockquote|''Fanny and Alexander'' is above all the story of what Alexander understands is really happening. If magic is real, if ghosts can walk, so be it. Bergman has often allowed the supernatural into his films. In another sense, the events in ''Fanny and Alexander'' may be seen through the prism of the children's memories, so that half-understood and half-forgotten events have been reconstructed into a new fable that explains their lives.<ref name="Ebert"/>}}

In the end, Helena reads from [[August Strindberg]]'s 1902 play ''[[A Dream Play]]'': "Anything can happen, all is possible and probable. Time and space do not exist. On an insignificant foundation of reality, imagination spins out and weaves new patterns".{{sfn|Gado|1986|p=506}} As with ''A Dream Play'', ''Fanny and Alexander'' explores "the unreality of life itself".{{sfn|Törnqvist|1995|p=176}} Gado suggested the quote refers to memories and imagination, and that all of Bergman's filmography could be dreams forming parts of one dream.{{sfn|Gado|1986|p=506}}

===Family conflict===
[[File:John Gilbert - Hamlet in the Presence of His Father's Ghost.JPG|left|170px|thumb|The story references Shakespeare's ''[[Hamlet]]'' and its [[Ghost (Hamlet)|Ghost]], played by Oscar.]]
''[[Film Quarterly]]'' essayist Jarrod Hayes concluded the conflict between Alexander and Edvard is a "clash of two Titans", as Edvard summons "the power of ''an'' image, God, Alexander has the power of ''the'' Image".{{sfn|Hayes|1997|p=46}} Törnqvist observed Alexander's father Oscar wears white while his stepfather Edvard wears black, signifying they represent [[good and evil]].{{sfn|Törnqvist|1995|p=185}}  Academic Amir Cohen-Shalev also observed contrasts between Oscar and Edvard, Oscar as "well-meaning, loving but passive", and Edvard, as a far more strict man of the church, in the mold of Erik Bergman. Cohen-Shalev argued Edvard disguises his emotional shortcomings with his bourgeois veneer and "glib, affected piety".{{sfn|Cohen-Shalev|2009|p=81}} While espousing his devotion, Edvard personally may have secretly lost his belief, and he conflicts with Alexander with "[[doublethink]]": using "love" to mean "hate".{{sfn|Brady|Lee|1988|p=205}} Following Oscar's death, Cohen-Shalev argued Emilie chooses to marry Edvard because she is frightened as to how empty she is: "I could not understand why nothing really happened, why I never felt really happy".{{sfn|Cohen-Shalev|2009|p=78}}

The story makes multiple references to [[William Shakespeare]]'s play ''[[Hamlet]]'';{{sfn|Weinstein|2008|p=191}} According to Scott-Douglas, Alexander observes Oscar playing [[Ghost (Hamlet)|''Hamlet'''s Ghost]] before he dies, and afterward appears as a ghost, while Alexander acquires a new abusive stepfather. This made "theatre and reality seem indistinguishable".{{sfn|Scott-Douglass|2004|p=256}} Cohen-Shalev argued Oscar being reduced to a ghost is his punishment for never truly living, and losing his life.{{sfn|Cohen-Shalev|2009|p=78}} Törnqvist wrote the "triangle" of Alexander, Emilie and Edvard is explicitly explained with Emilie's reference to ''Hamlet'', and the characters [[Hamlet (character)|Hamlet]], [[Queen Gertrude]] and [[King Claudius]]: "Don't act Hamlet, my son. I'm not Queen Gertrude, your kind stepfather is no king of Denmark, and this is not [[Elsinore Castle]], even if it does look gloomy".{{sfn|Törnqvist|1995|p=177}} Emilie, like Gertrude, is also portrayed as unfaithful, with Bergman's screenplay suggesting Oscar is not Alexander's biological father: in the Nativity play, Oscar plays [[Saint Joseph|Joseph]].{{sfn|Törnqvist|1995|p=177}} According to Helena, Oscar fell impotent after Fanny's birth, and Emilie afterward conducted circumspect affairs.{{sfn|Nyberg|2005|p=103}}

By framing Edvard as "stepfather-king", the story becomes a battle between "infanticide and parricide", where killing Edvard is associated with Alexander's "artistic/sexual emancipation", scholar [[Arnold Weinstein (scholar)|Arnold L. Weinstein]] wrote.{{sfn|Weinstein|2008|p=191}} Törnqvist wrote Alexander displays an "erotic attraction to his mother", combined with a hatred for his stepfather, referencing the [[Oedipus complex]].{{sfn|Törnqvist|1995|p=177}} Author Viveka Nyberg identified Oedipal themes as pervasive, suggesting Alexander believes he may have killed both his father and stepfather in competition for his mother's love.{{sfn|Nyberg|2005|p=101}} Nyberg described Emilie as "beautiful and aloof in equal measure", and she cares for her children but concerns herself more with other things.{{sfn|Nyberg|2005|p=103}} Alexander's story of being sold to the circus reflects his feelings of his mother forsaking him.{{sfn|Nyberg|2005|p=109}} While Alexander appears to admire Oscar and his imagination, Alexander also listens in on his parents' interactions, and sleeps in Maj's bed, with Maj acting as stand-in mother and an object of sexual desire.{{sfn|Nyberg|2005|p=105}}

Cohen-Shalev described cyclical patterns in the story: the family endures seasons of distinct "symbols, myths, and moods", including death in winter and resurrections in the spring; or, a trip to which the protagonist experiences a test in the "Valley of Tears" before achieving "blissful family unification".{{sfn|Cohen-Shalev|2009|p=76}} Edvard is also forgiven with "a kind of humanity", Cohen-Shalev wrote, as Edvard confesses his faith is a mask, and his burning death mirrors his analogy of a mask that cannot be removed unless the flesh is removed as well.{{sfn|Cohen-Shalev|2009|p=81}}

===Christianity and Judaism===

[[File:Julaftonen av Carl Larsson 1904.jpg|thumb|250px|[[Carl Larsson]]'s ''Julaftonen'', a depiction of the [[Jul (Sweden)|Swedish Christmas]] in the 1900s.]]
The story opens with exploring celebrations of the [[Jul (Sweden)|Swedish Christmas]], which is expressed through "colors, sounds, movements, music" that ''[[Cineaste (magazine)|Cineaste]]'' critic Royal Brown called "life-affirming, pagan Christianity". This is starkly contrasted with Edvard's Christianity, which is dictated by [[asceticism]], authoritarianism and concern with death, with Alexander finding his new home a bare, cold prison.<ref name="Brown">{{cite magazine |title=Fanny and Alexander |last=Brown |first=Royal S. |magazine=[[Cineaste (magazine)|Cineaste]] |date=Summer 2005 |volume=30 |issue=3 |page=76}}</ref> Professor Freddie Rokem wrote that, in contrast to Edvard's "rigorous and sterile" Protestantism, the Ekdahl Christmas party can include the Jewish Isak, as he is a dear friend of matriarch Helena Ekdahl, and this friendship is "utopian".{{sfn|Rokem|2012|pp=128-129}} While at Isak's, his nephew Aron Retzinsky brings out a puppet of God, or ''[[deus ex machina]]'' to which Alexander reacts with terror; he then tries to play down that fear, and is left to wonder how seriously to take the supernatural.{{sfn|Rokem|2012|p=129}} Author Harry Perridon argued that when Alexander declares God "is a shit", he means [[God in Christianity]], associating the deity with suffering in the world. After this point, true miracles in Bergman's universe have to come from a different source, Perridon wrote.{{sfn|Perridon|1998|p=185}}

The depiction of [[History of the Jews in Sweden|Jews in Sweden]] revolves around Isak, which academic Rochelle Wright argues is "far more nuanced" than in Bergman's previous ''[[The Touch (1971 film)|The Touch]]'' (1971). Isak is not completely assimilated, but his presence in Sweden is presented as positive, as he stands for imagination, "magic and mystery", Wright wrote.{{sfn|Wright|2005|p=59}} [[Erland Josephson]], who played Isak, described his performance as a stereotyped portrayal of a Jew, but with mystical and tragic elements, drawing on Jewish people and their history.<ref>{{cite AV media |last=Josephson |first=Erland  |date=2011 |title=Fanny and Alexander: A Bergman Tapestry |work=Fanny and Alexander |medium=Blu-ray |language=sv |publisher=The Criterion Collection}}</ref> Hayes argued that with its take on "time and space", the story hinted at Jewish mysticism and the [[Kabbalah]]. The light that engulfs Isak when he screams after being beaten by Edvard calls on the light of the Kabbalah to vanquish evil, Hayes hypothesised.{{sfn|Hayes|1997|p=43}} The scream may have invited "spiritual intervention", allowing the children's escape by rendering them invisible in Isak's trunk, while the children seemingly appear lying on the floor to Edvard.{{sfn|Luko|2015|p=196}} Törnqvist hypothesised that Jewish [[pantheism]] replaces Christian belief in "grace and punishment" in the story.{{sfn|Törnqvist|1995|p=177}} Royal Brown argued that Isak's "cabbalistic magic and animism" is closer to the Ekdahls' Christianity than to Edvard's.<ref name="Brown"/>
{{multiple image
 | align     = right
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 | footer_align = left
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 | image1    = Ismael i bronze.jpg
 | width1    = 150
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 | image2    = Stina Ekblad 2014-02-07 CROPPED.jpg
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}}

Törnqvist identified Ismael as "one of the more enigmatic features" of ''Fanny and Alexander'', commenting on the character as a fusion of elements. Ismael speaks the [[Finland Swedish|Finno-Swedish language]], and he is [[Androgyny|androgynous]], being a male character played by a woman, [[Stina Ekblad]]. Ismael also says to Alexander, "Perhaps we are the same person".{{sfn|Törnqvist|1995|p=185}} Author Daniel Humphrey also commented in Ismael's androgyny, conveying "queerness and foreignness" but presented as spiritually identical to Alexander.{{sfn|Humphrey|2013|pp=183-184}} Additionally, Humphrey commented on the name, with [[Ishmael]] of the Bible being a bastard son of [[Abraham]] and progenitor of the [[Arab people]], considered "paradigmatic" by Christians and Jews alike.{{sfn|Humphrey|2013|pp=183-184}} ''A Dream Play'' author Strindberg had taken interest in the Ishmael character.{{sfn|Haverty|1988|p=178}} Törnqvist also identified Ismael as matching Hamlet in education, intelligence, real or feigned insanity and anti-social nature.{{sfn|Törnqvist|1995|p=185}}

Hayes commented on the way Ismael holds Alexander, remarking it was "Alexander's erotic encounter with a man/a woman/himself".{{sfn|Hayes|1997|p=44}} Critic [[Robin Wood (critic)|Robin Wood]] and Richard Lippe argued Ismael directly replaces Oscar, dismissed by Alexander as not serving a purpose; Ismael instead brings danger and sexual ambiguity: Wood and Lippe observed Ismael touching Alexander and kissing Aron.{{sfn|Wood|Lippe|2012|p=250}} The role of Ismael and Alexander's ritual in Edvard's death is uncertain: Ismael speaks of what will happen in the future in describing Edvard's death, but it can all be logically explained, with a police officer informing Emilie the death is legally accidental.{{sfn|Haverty|1988|p=179}}

==Release==
{{quote box|align=right|quote= Acts in the long version<ref name="SFD"/>{{efn|name="Episodes"}}

'''Prologue'''

'''''Familjen Ekdahl firar jul''''', ''The Ekdahl Family Celebrates Christmas''

'''''Vålnaden''''', ''The Wraith''

'''''Uppbrottet''''', ''The Breakup''

'''''Sommarens händelser''''', ''The Summer's Events''

'''''Demonerna''''', ''The Demons''

'''Epilogue'''
}}
While cinematic [[film stock]] was used in production, Bergman conceived of the presentation as a television [[miniseries]],{{sfn|Gervais|1999|p=224}} and there are different versions, presented as a miniseries and film.<ref name="Waltenberg">{{cite web |url=https://www.sydsvenskan.se/2007-08-03/bergman-film-for-mastig-att-visas-utan-paus |work=[[Sydsvenskan]] |title=Bergman-film för mastig att visas utan paus |date=3 August 2007 |access-date=15 December 2017 |last=Waltenberg |first=Lilith |language=sv |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171017044932/https://www.sydsvenskan.se/2007-08-03/bergman-film-for-mastig-att-visas-utan-paus |archive-date=17 October 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> The longer version intended for television was the original.{{sfn|Wood|Lippe|2012|p=245}} After completing production, Bergman had to edit the complete cut to 188 minutes for screenings in theatres, regretting losing much of the fantasy material. He remarked, "This was extremely troublesome, as I had to cut into the nerves and lifeblood of the film".<ref name="Bjorkman"/> The film premiered in [[Stockholm]] on 17 December 1982 in its 188-minute theatrical cut.{{sfn|Marker|Marker|1992|p=305}} Distribution rights were sold to 30 other countries in 1982.{{sfn|Steene|2005|p=332}} It subsequently opened in France on 9 March 1983,<ref name="AlloCine">{{Cite web |url=http://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm_gen_cfilm=947.html |title=Fanny Et Alexandre |access-date=15 December 2017 |publisher=[[AlloCiné]] |language=fr |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171024093435/http://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm_gen_cfilm=947.html |archive-date=24 October 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> [[West Germany]] on 8 October 1983,<ref name="Filmlexikon">{{Cite web |url=https://www.zweitausendeins.de/filmlexikon/?sucheNach=titel&wert=24634 |title=Fanny und Alexander |access-date=15 December 2017 |work=Filmlexikon |language=de |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171216201234/https://www.zweitausendeins.de/filmlexikon/?sucheNach=titel&wert=24634 |archive-date=16 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> and the United States on 17 June 1983.{{sfn|Steene|2005|p=330}}

The complete version runs 312 minutes.{{sfn|Shargel|2007|p=xlviii}} It was released in Swedish theatres in 1983,{{sfn|Sundholm|2012|p=149}} and screened at the [[40th Venice International Film Festival]] in September 1983.{{efn|At the festival where the five-hour ''Fanny and Alexander'' was screened, Bergman accepted the [[Golden Lion]], though it was awarded for lifetime achievement rather than for ''Fanny and Alexander'' particularly, and had been announced at the [[39th Venice International Film Festival|1982 Festival]].{{sfn|Steene|2005|p=1041}} }} It subsequently aired as a miniseries on [[Sveriges Television]] in four segments, and five episodes of unequal length at Bergman's demand. They ran 92, 40, 37, 60 and 90 minutes, beginning 25 December 1984.{{sfn|Steene|2005|p=435}}{{efn|name="Episodes"|The first segment combines the Prologue and "The Ekdahl Family celebrates Christmas"; the second segment, combining acts "The Wraith" and "The Breakup", totals approximately 75 minutes; the third segment contains the act "The Summer's Events"; the fourth segment combines "The Demons" and Epilogue.{{sfn|O'Sullivan|2014|p=112}} }} After debuting at the Swedish Film Institute on 16 September 1984, ''The Making of Fanny and Alexander'' aired with a television repeat of ''Fanny and Alexander'' in Sweden on 18 August 1986.{{sfn|Steene|2005|p=332}} In 1991, the [[Guinness World Records|Guinness Book of World Records]] listed the five-hour version as among the [[List of longest films|longest films in history]].{{sfn|Robertson|1991|p=19}} The entire miniseries ran on [[SVT1]] in Sweden on 2 August 2007, with 10-minute newscast interruption, rendering it a two-part version.<ref name="Waltenberg"/> The screenplay was also published as a book and translated into English in 1983.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Theater |last=Deutelbaum |first=Marshall |magazine=Library Journal |date=1 February 1983 |volume=108 |issue=3 |page=219}}</ref>

In [[DVD region code#2|Region 2]], [[Curzon Film|Artificial Eye]] released the five-hour version on [[DVD]] in 2002.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2002/mar/08/artsfeatures.dvdreviews |work=The Guardian |title=Fluffy love |date=8 March 2002 |access-date=15 December 2017 |last=Mackie |first=Rob |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171216201239/https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2002/mar/08/artsfeatures.dvdreviews |archive-date=16 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> In 2011 in [[Blu-ray#A|Region A]], [[The Criterion Collection]] published a [[Blu-ray]] edition including the theatrical version, the television version, and ''The Making of Fanny and Alexander''.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.slantmagazine.com/dvd/review/fanny-and-alexander |work=[[Slant Magazine]] |title=Fanny and Alexander |date=10 November 2011 |access-date=15 December 2017 |last=Cabin |first=Chris |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171213104102/https://www.slantmagazine.com/dvd/review/fanny-and-alexander |archive-date=13 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>

==Reception==
===Box office===
There were large audiences in Sweden at showings of ''Fanny and Alexander'', including at the five-hour cut,{{sfn|Timm|2012|pp=127-137}} making it the most popular box-office film Bergman had in his native country.{{sfn|Sundholm|2012|p=149}}{{sfn|Vermilye|2006|p=162}} It had 374,208 admissions in France and 165,146 in Germany.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.jpbox-office.com/fichfilm.php?id=6904 |publisher=JP's Box-Office |title=Fanny Et Alexandre |access-date=17 December 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140812131418/http://jpbox-office.com/fichfilm.php?id=6904 |archive-date=12 August 2014 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> This amounted to minimal presence in the French box-office.{{sfn|Chabrol|2015|p=509}}

''Fanny and Alexander'' finished its run grossing $6,783,304 in North America.<ref name="BOM"/> According to critic [[Vincent Canby]]'s analysis, the film did "extremely well" and had its niche audience, but could not match summer [[blockbuster (entertainment)|blockbuster]] competition which dominated the top 15 spots in the box office, particularly ''[[Return of the Jedi]]''.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1983/09/18/movies/film-view-at-the-box-office-summer-has-a-split-personality.html |work=The New York Times |title=Film View; At The Box Office, Summer Has A Split Personality |date=18 September 1983 |access-date=17 December 2017 |last=Canby |first=Vincent |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150524140817/http://www.nytimes.com/1983/09/18/movies/film-view-at-the-box-office-summer-has-a-split-personality.html |archive-date=24 May 2015 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> In 1992, ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' ranked it the 21st highest grossing foreign film in U.S. box office history, and the fifth-highest grossing Swedish film after 1967's ''[[I Am Curious (Yellow)]]'' and ''[[Elvira Madigan (1967 film)|Elvira Madigan]]'', ''[[Dear John (1964 film)|Dear John]]'' (1964) and ''[[My Life as a Dog]]'' (1985).{{sfn|Segrave|2004|pp=213-214}}

===Critical reception===
{{quote box|align=left|quote=Upon its release in the U.S. in 1983, the theatrical version of Ingmar Bergman's ''Fanny and Alexander'' generated a wealth of controversy. Bergman has always seemed to breed conflict among cineastes [...] but ''Fanny and Alexander'', which the director announced as his final theatrical release, seemed to bring the critics out in even greater force, as though there were just the one remaining chance to be quoted on the subject. You either loved the film or hated it, and strong voices from the reviewing community lined up on either side.|source=—Rick Moody, The Criterion Collection<ref name="Moody">{{cite web |url=https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/347-fanny-and-alexander-bergman-s-bildungsroman |title=Fanny and Alexander: Bergman's Bildungsroman |publisher=The Criterion Collection |date=15 November 2004 |access-date=26 February 2012 |last=Moody |first=Rick |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120607052845/http://www.criterion.com/current/posts/347-fanny-and-alexander-bergman-s-bildungsroman |archive-date=7 June 2012 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>| width=25%}}

Upon release in Sweden, the film received generally positive reviews, with ''[[Expressen]]'' critic Lasse Bergström approving of the portrayal of the [[Oscarian era]].{{sfn|Steene|2005|p=332}} Critic [[Stig Larsson (author)|Stig Larsson]] assessed it as Bergman's ironic take on his past filmography.{{sfn|Steene|2005|p=332}} ''[[Jönköpings-Posten]]'' posted a positive review on 7 February 1983, followed by a second critic in the same paper accusing the film of creating false joy on 21 February.{{sfn|Steene|2005|p=333}} The film ranked 10th on [[Cahiers du Cinéma]]'s [[Cahiers du Cinéma's Annual Top 10 Lists|Top 10 Films of the Year List]] in 1983.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://alumnus.caltech.edu/~ejohnson/critics/cahiers.html|title=Cahiers du Cinema: Top Ten Lists 1951-2009|last=Johnson|first=Eric C.|website=alumnus.caltech.edu|language=en-US|access-date=2017-12-17|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120327102838/http://alumnus.caltech.edu/~ejohnson/critics/cahiers.html|archive-date=2012-03-27|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Vincent Canby's contemporary review in ''[[The New York Times]]'' described it a "big, dark, beautiful, generous family chronicle"; Canby also praised the cast as "uniformly excellent".<ref name="NYT">{{cite news | url=https://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9F51A0C01138F935A35750C8BF67 | work=[[The New York Times]] | title=Movie Review: Fanny and Alexander (1982) | date=17 June 1983 | access-date=26 February 2012 | last=Canby | first=Vincent | url-status=live | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131105154510/http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9F51A0C01138F935A35750C8BF67 | archive-date=5 November 2013 | df=dmy-all }}</ref> [[Roger Ebert]] awarded it four stars, assessing it as "a big, exciting, ambitious film", relatable to audiences though more specific in its story than Bergman's prior studies of faith and sex,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/fanny-and-alexander-1983 |title=Fanny and Alexander |last=Ebert |first=Roger |publisher=[[RogerEbert.com]] |date=8 July 1983 |access-date=13 December 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171214072236/https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/fanny-and-alexander-1983 |archive-date=14 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> and named  it the 4th best film of 1983.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20041215/COMMENTARY/41215001/1023 |work=Chicago Sun-Times |title=Ebert's 10 Best Lists: 1967–present |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060908200137/http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F20041215%2FCOMMENTARY%2F41215001%2F1023 |archive-date=September 8, 2006 |df=mdy-all }}</ref> ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' staff called it "a sumptuously produced period piece" blending "elegance with intimacy".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://variety.com/1981/film/reviews/fanny-och-alexander-1200425220/ |title=Fanny Och Alexander |author=Staff |work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |date=31 December 1981 |access-date=13 December 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171214072900/http://variety.com/1981/film/reviews/fanny-och-alexander-1200425220/ |archive-date=14 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> For ''[[The Washington Post]]'', Rita Kempley found the story more cheerful than past Bergman productions, highlighting Ewa Fröling and comparing her to Liv Ullmann.<ref name="Kempley">{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1983/07/01/bergmans-fanny-and-alexander/71a05cb9-705e-4c64-8e1f-704fc5bcb556/ |title=Bergman's 'Fanny and Alexander' |last=Kempley |first=Rita |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |date=1 July 1983 |access-date=13 December 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171229231446/https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1983/07/01/bergmans-fanny-and-alexander/71a05cb9-705e-4c64-8e1f-704fc5bcb556/ |archive-date=29 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> In ''The New York Times'', Michiko Kakutani compared the film's "generosity of vision" to the [[Shakespearean comedy|comedies of William Shakespeare]].<ref name="Kakutani">{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1983/06/06/magazine/26kaku.html |work=The New York Times |title=Ingmar Bergman: Summing Up a Life in Film |date=6 June 1983 |access-date=14 December 2017 |last=Kakutani |first=Michiko |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171214224359/http://www.nytimes.com/1983/06/06/magazine/26kaku.html |archive-date=14 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> ''[[The Nation]]'' critic Robert Hatch compared it to Shakespeare's ''[[The Tempest]]'' as a final life-affirming work, featuring "magic with the casual authority of [[Prospero]] himself".<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Films |last=Hatch |first=Robert |magazine=[[The Nation]] |date=2 July 1983 |volume=237 |number=1 |page=27}}</ref> [[Kerry Brougher]] denied it was Bergman's ''magnum opus'', but still said it was "a thoughtful, graceful, beautifully filmed work".<ref>{{cite magazine |title=The Cutting Room |last=Brougher |first=Kerry |magazine=[[Orange Coast Magazine]] |date=October 1983 |page=131}}</ref> ''[[National Review]]'' critic John Simon wrote a negative review, calling it "overstuffed", and expressing lack of interest in Fröling and Guve as newcomers to Bergman's filmography.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Farewell Symphony |last=Simon |first=John |magazine=[[National Review]] |date=22 July 1983 |volume=35 |number=14 |pages=887–888}}</ref>

Ebert added it to his [[The Great Movies|Great Movies]] list in 2004, hailing it as "astonishingly beautiful", crediting [[Sven Nykvist]] for "color and warmth".<ref name="Ebert">{{cite web |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-fanny-and-alexander-1983 |title=Fanny and Alexander |last=Ebert |first=Roger |publisher=RogerEbert.com |date=5 December 2004 |access-date=13 December 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171214071623/https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-fanny-and-alexander-1983 |archive-date=14 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> In 2010, ''[[The Guardian]]'' ranked the film eighth in its list of 25 greatest [[Art Film|arthouse films]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Fanny and Alexander: No 8 best arthouse film of all time|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2010/oct/20/fanny-alexander-bergman-arthouse|website=theguardian|date=20 October 2010}}</ref> Reviewing The Criterion Collection Blu-ray, Andre Dellamorte wrote that despite the five-hour runtime, the story was uncomplicated but always interesting.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://collider.com/fanny-and-alexander-criterion-blu-ray-review/ |title=Fanny And Alexander Criterion Blu-ray Review |last=Dellamorte |first=Andre |website=[[Collider (website)|Collider]] |date=28 December 2011 |access-date=13 December 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171214182604/http://collider.com/fanny-and-alexander-criterion-blu-ray-review/ |archive-date=14 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> ''[[The Observer]]'' quoted actor [[Matthew Macfadyen]] as saying the film "featured just the most extraordinary acting I'd ever seen". Macfadyen added that as a [[Royal Academy of Dramatic Art|RADA]] student, the film was shown as "an example to follow – an example of people acting with each other".<ref name="Macfadyen">{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2011/aug/21/matthew-macfadyen-fanny-and-alexander |work=[[The Observer]] |title=The film that changed my life: Matthew Macfadyen |date=21 August 2011 |access-date=26 February 2012 |last=Lamont |first=Tom |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131105163739/http://www.theguardian.com/film/2011/aug/21/matthew-macfadyen-fanny-and-alexander |archive-date=5 November 2013 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> Polish film director [[Agnieszka Holland]] also praised it in 2012, saying both children and intellectuals could enjoy it and that it gives a very vivid portrait of another era.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/film-news/9148864/Agnieszka-Holland-on-Fanny-and-Alexander.html |title=Agnieszka Holland on Fanny and Alexander |last=Bowie-Sell |first=Daisy |work=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |date=16 March 2012 |access-date=13 December 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160410114500/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/film-news/9148864/Agnieszka-Holland-on-Fanny-and-Alexander.html |archive-date=10 April 2016 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> In his ''2015 Movie Guide'', [[Leonard Maltin]] gave it four stars, identifying its emotions as "exquisitely expressed".{{sfn|Maltin|2014|p=761}}

[[Pauline Kael]] wrote a more mixed review, enjoying the merry atmosphere but writing the "conventionality" is "rather shocking", suggesting Bergman had moved to Victorian times to escape his usual eccentric viewpoints.{{sfn|Kael|2011|p=236}} ''[[The Guardian]]'' critic Alex Cox wrote a negative review in 2006, claiming there was no story for the first two of three hours, and that the analogy to ''Hamlet'' did not hold up as Alexander knows Edvard is evil, whereas Hamlet is uncertain if the Ghost is a demon and Claudius is innocent. Cox had not seen the longer version, but considered it might be better.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2006/jan/07/film |work=The Guardian |title=A sentimental education |date=7 January 2006 |access-date=14 December 2017 |last=Cox |first=Alex |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171215111245/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2006/jan/07/film |archive-date=15 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>

In 1990, ''Fanny and Alexander'' was named the best film of the 1980s by ''[[The Los Angeles Times|Los Angeles Times]]'' by [[Sheila Benson]],<ref name="Weinberg">{{cite magazine |title=The Eighties' Finest Films |last=Weinberg |first=Marc |magazine=Orange Coast Magazine |date=April 1990 |volume=16 |number=4 |page=189}}</ref> who called it "generous, ribald, reflective and radiantly life-affirming",<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-12-24-ca-2297-story.html |title=Films of the '80s--Critics Recall the Best |last=Benson |first=Sheila |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=24 December 1989 |access-date=15 December 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151012063413/http://articles.latimes.com/1989-12-24/entertainment/ca-2297_1_signal-films |archive-date=12 October 2015 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> and Michael Wilmington,<ref>{{cite magazine |title=The Eighties' Finest Films |last=Weinberg |first=Marc |magazine=Orange Coast Magazine |date=April 1990 |volume=16 |number=4 |page=191}}</ref> and the third best by ''[[Newsweek]]'' critic David Ansen.<ref name="Weinberg"/> In 1996, ''Fanny and Alexander'' was ranked at No. 36 in [[Movieline]] Magazine's "100 Greatest Foreign Films".<ref>{{cite web|title=100 Greatest Foreign Films by Movieline Magazine|publisher=[[Filmsite.org]]|url=https://www.filmsite.org/foreign100.html|access-date=19 April 2009}}</ref> In 2004, ''The New York Times'' also included the film on its list of "the Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made".<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/ref/movies/1000best.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160722141147/https://www.nytimes.com/ref/movies/1000best.html |title=The Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made |last=The Film Critics |year=2004 |access-date=13 August 2016 |archive-date=22 July 2016 |work=[[The New York Times]] |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all }}</ref> Xan Brooks, in ''The Guardian''{{'}}s Film Season, chose the film as the eighth "best arthouse film of all time". He described it as "an opulent family saga, by turns bawdy, stark and strange" with a rare abundance of "indelible supporting characters".<ref name="XanBrooks">{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2010/oct/20/fanny-alexander-bergman-arthouse |work=The Guardian |title=Fanny and Alexander: No 8 best arthouse film of all time |date=20 October 2010 |access-date=26 February 2012 |last=Brooks |first=Xan |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131017070424/http://www.theguardian.com/film/2010/oct/20/fanny-alexander-bergman-arthouse |archive-date=17 October 2013 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> In 2007, the film was ranked at No. 23 by ''[[The Guardian]]''{{'}}s readers' poll on its list of "40 greatest foreign films of all time".<ref>{{cite web|title=As chosen by you...the greatest foreign films of all time|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2007/may/11/1|website=[[The Guardian]]|date=11 May 2007}}</ref> The film was Voted at No. 44 on the list of "100 Greatest Films" by the prominent French magazine ''[[Cahiers du cinéma]]'' in 2008.<ref name=":2">{{cite web|url=http://www.filmdetail.com/2008/11/23/cahiers-du-cinemas-100-greatest-films/|title=Cahiers du cinéma's 100 Greatest Films|date=23 November 2008}}</ref> In the [[British Film Institute]]'s 2012 ''[[Sight & Sound]]'' polls of the greatest films ever made, ''Fanny and Alexander'' was 84th among critics and 16th among directors.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b69415af8/sightandsoundpoll2012 |title=Votes for Fanny & Alexander |publisher=British Film Institute |access-date=16 January 2017 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170118075306/http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b69415af8/sightandsoundpoll2012 |archive-date=18 January 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> In the earlier 2002 version of the list, the film ranked 35th among critics<ref>{{cite web|title=Sight & Sound Top Ten Poll 2002: The rest of the critics' list |work=Sight & Sound |publisher=British Film Institute |url=http://www.bfi.org.uk/sightandsound/topten/poll/critics-long.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120515211647/http://www.bfi.org.uk/sightandsound/topten/poll/critics-long.html |archive-date=15 May 2012 |access-date=24 April 2009}}</ref> and 19th among directors.<ref>{{cite web|title=Sight & Sound 2002 Directors' Greatest Films poll|url=https://www.listal.com/list/sight-sound-2002-directors|website=listal.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Sight & Sound Top Ten Poll 2002 The Rest of Director's List|url=http://old.bfi.org.uk/sightandsound/polls/topten/poll/directors-long.html|website=old.bfi.org.uk|access-date=28 April 2021|archive-date=1 February 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170201155933/http://old.bfi.org.uk/sightandsound/polls/topten/poll/directors-long.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> Also in 2002, ''[[Sight and Sound]]'' magazine invited several critics to make a list of the best films of last 25 years and ''Fanny and Alexander'' was ranked at number three.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://old.bfi.org.uk/sightandsound/feature/63 |title=Sight & Sound &#124; Modern Times |publisher=BFI |date=25 January 2012 |access-date=9 September 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181013200533/http://old.bfi.org.uk/sightandsound/feature/63 |archive-date=13 October 2018 |url-status=dead }}</ref> In 2012 the film was voted at number five on the 25 best Swedish films of all-time list by a poll of 50 film critics and academics conducted by film magazine FLM.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.flm.nu/2012/08/de-25-basta-svenska-filmerna-genom-tiderna/ |title=De 25 bästa svenska filmerna genom tiderna |date=30 August 2012 |work=Flm |language=Swedish |access-date=30 August 2012}}</ref> In 2018, the film was ranked 28th in BBC's list of The 100 greatest foreign language films.<ref>{{cite web|title=The 100 Greatest Foreign Language Films|url= https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20181029-the-100-greatest-foreign-language-films|website=bbc|date=29 October 2018|access-date=10 January 2021}}</ref> In 2022 edition of Sight & Sound's ''Greatest films of all time'' list the film ranked 53rd in the director's poll.<ref>{{cite web|title=Directors' 100 Greatest Films of All Time|url=https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/directors-100-greatest-films-all-time|website=bfi.org}}</ref>

''Fanny and Alexander'' has a [[List of films with a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes|100% approval rating]] on [[Rotten Tomatoes]], based on 45 reviews, with a [[weighted arithmetic mean|weighted average]] of 9/10. The site's consensus reads: "Ingmar Bergman conveys the sweep of childhood with a fastidious attention to detail and sumptuous insight into human frailty in ''Fanny and Alexander'', a masterwork that crystalizes many of the directors' preoccupations into a familial epic".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/fanny_and_alexander |title=Fanny & Alexander (1982) |website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]] |access-date=22 January 2021 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171221005958/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/fanny_and_alexander/ |archive-date=21 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> On [[Metacritic]], the film has a weighted average score of 100 out of 100 based on 8 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".<ref>{{cite web|title=Fanny and Alexander|url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/fanny-and-alexander-re-release|website=[[Metacritic]]}}</ref>

===Accolades===
The film received six [[56th Academy Awards|Academy Award]] nominations, winning four, including [[Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film|Best Foreign Language Film]].{{sfn|Marker|Marker|1992|p=326}} It also received the third highest number of nominations of 1984, after ''[[Terms of Endearment]]'' and ''[[The Right Stuff (film)|The Right Stuff]]'' (both released in 1983).<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1984/02/17/movies/endearment-tops-oscar-nominations.html |last=Harmetz |first=Aljean |title='Endearment' Tops Oscar Nominations |work=The New York Times |date=17 February 1984 |access-date=13 December 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170701012308/http://www.nytimes.com/1984/02/17/movies/endearment-tops-oscar-nominations.html |archive-date=1 July 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> The four wins was the most any foreign-language film had received at the Academy Awards to date until it tied the record with ''[[Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon]] '' ([[2000 in film|2000]]), ''[[Parasite (2019 film)|Parasite]]'' ([[2019 in film|2019]]) and ''[[All Quiet on the Western Front (2022 film)|All Quiet on the Western Front]]'' ([[2022 in film|2022]]).{{sfn|Vermilye|2006|p=44}} ''Fanny and Alexander'' marked the third and final time Bergman won Best Foreign Language Film, after ''[[The Virgin Spring]]'' (1960) and ''[[Through a Glass Darkly (film)|Through a Glass Darkly]]'' (1961).<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://variety.com/2007/film/markets-festivals/ingmar-bergman-dies-at-89-1117969421/ |title=Ingmar Bergman dies at 89 |agency=[[Associated Press]] |date=3 August 2007 |access-date=21 October 2017 |work=Variety |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171214071806/https://variety.com/2007/film/markets-festivals/ingmar-bergman-dies-at-89-1117969421/ |archive-date=14 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> Bergman did not personally attend the ceremony, while working on a stage production in [[Munich]], so his award was accepted by his wife Ingrid von Rosen and Jörn Donner.{{sfn|Vermilye|2006|p=44}} The film won the [[FIPRESCI Prize]] at [[40th Venice International Film Festival|1983 Venice Film Festival]].<ref>{{cite web|title=40th Venice Film Festival|url=https://fipresci.org/festival/40th-venice-film-festival/|website=FIPRESCI}}</ref> It also won the [[French Syndicate of Cinema Critics]] Award for Best Foreign Film.<ref>{{cite web|title=SFCC Critics' Award 1983|url=https://www.syndicatdelacritique.com/page-prix-sfcc/1983|website=Syndicate de la Critique}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable"
|+Accolades for ''Fanny and Alexander''
|-
! scope="col"| Award
! scope="col"| Date of ceremony
! scope="col"| Category
! scope="col"| Recipient(s)
! scope="col"| Result
|-
!scope="row" rowspan=6| [[Academy Award]]s<ref name="Oscars1984">{{Cite web |url=http://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1984 |title=The 56th Academy Awards (1984) Nominees and Winners |access-date=27 October 2013 |publisher=[[Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences]] |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402004202/http://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1984 |archive-date=2 April 2015 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>
| rowspan="6" | [[56th Academy Awards|9 April 1984]]
| [[Academy Award for Best Director|Best Director]]
| rowspan="3" | [[Ingmar Bergman]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay|Best Original Screenplay]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film|Best Foreign Language Film]]
| {{won}}
|-
| [[Academy Award for Best Production Design|Best Art Direction]]
| [[Anna Asp]]
| {{won}}
|-
| [[Academy Award for Best Cinematography|Best Cinematography]]
| [[Sven Nykvist]]
| {{won}}
|-
| [[Academy Award for Best Costume Design|Best Costume Design]]
| [[Marik Vos-Lundh]]
| {{won}}
|-
!scope="row" rowspan=3| [[British Academy Film Awards|BAFTA Awards]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://awards.bafta.org/award/1984/film?|title=Film in 1984|access-date=11 December 2017|publisher=[[British Academy of Film and Television Arts]]|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171212084924/http://awards.bafta.org/award/1984/film|archive-date=12 December 2017|df=dmy-all}}</ref>
| rowspan="3" | [[37th British Academy Film Awards|1984]]
| [[BAFTA Award for Best Film Not in the English Language|Film Not in the English Language]]
| [[Jörn Donner]], Ingmar Bergman
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[BAFTA Award for Best Cinematography|Best Cinematography]]
| Sven Nykvist
| {{won}}
|-
| [[BAFTA Award for Best Costume Design|Best Costume Design]]
| Marik Vos-Lundh
| {{nom}}
|-
!scope="row" | [[César Awards]]<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.allocine.fr/festivals/festival-128/edition-18353261/palmares/ |title=Prix et nominations : César 1984 |access-date=11 December 2017 |publisher=AlloCiné |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171212084920/http://www.allocine.fr/festivals/festival-128/edition-18353261/palmares/ |archive-date=12 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>
| rowspan="1" | [[9th César Awards|3 March 1984]]
| [[César Award for Best Foreign Film|Best Foreign Film]]
| rowspan="9" |  Ingmar Bergman
| {{won}}
|-
!scope="row" rowspan=3| [[David di Donatello|David di Donatello Awards]]<ref name="19thGuldbagge"/>
| rowspan="3" | 1984
| [[David di Donatello for Best Foreign Film|Best Foreign Film]]
| {{won}}
|-
| [[David di Donatello for Best Foreign Director|Best Foreign Director]]
| {{won}}
|-
| Best Foreign Screenplay
| {{won}}
|-
!scope="row" | [[Directors Guild of America]]<ref name="NY Times">{{cite web |url=https://movies.nytimes.com/movie/16747/Fanny-and-Alexander/awards |title=Fanny and Alexander |access-date=1 January 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100223025940/https://movies.nytimes.com/movie/16747/Fanny-and-Alexander/awards |archive-date=23 February 2010 |url-status=dead |department=Movies & TV Dept. |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=2010 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>
| rowspan="1" | 1983
| [[Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Feature Film|Best Director]]
| {{nom}}
|-
!scope="row" rowspan=2| [[Golden Globe Awards|Golden Globes]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.goldenglobes.com/film/fanny-alexander|title=Fanny & Alexander|access-date=11 December 2017|publisher=[[Hollywood Foreign Press Association]]|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171212013829/https://www.goldenglobes.com/film/fanny-alexander|archive-date=12 December 2017|df=dmy-all}}</ref>
| rowspan="2" | [[41st Golden Globe Awards|28 January 1984]]
| [[Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film|Best Foreign Language Film]]
| {{won}}
|-
| [[Golden Globe Award for Best Director - Motion Picture|Best Director - Motion Picture]]
| {{nom}}
|-
!scope="row" rowspan=3| [[Guldbagge Awards]]<ref name="19thGuldbagge">{{cite web |url=http://www.svenskfilmdatabas.se/en/item/?type=film&itemid=5922#awards |title=Fanny and Alexander (1982): Awards |publisher=[[Swedish Film Institute]] |access-date=11 December 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171212010127/http://www.svenskfilmdatabas.se/en/item/?type=film&itemid=5922#awards |archive-date=12 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>
| rowspan="3" | [[19th Guldbagge Awards|31 October 1983]]
| [[Guldbagge Award for Best Film|Best Film]]
| {{won}}
|-
| [[Guldbagge Award for Best Director|Best Director]]
| {{won}}
|-
| [[Guldbagge Award for Best Actor|Best Actor]]
| [[Jarl Kulle]]
| {{won}}
|-
!scope="row" rowspan=2| [[Los Angeles Film Critics Association]]<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.lafca.net/years/1983.html |title=9th Annual Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards |publisher=[[Los Angeles Film Critics Association]] |access-date=11 December 2017 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303172632/http://www.lafca.net/years/1983.html |archive-date=3 March 2016 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>
| rowspan="2" | [[Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards 1983|17 December 1983]]
| [[Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Foreign Language Film|Best Foreign Language Film]]
| Ingmar Bergman
| {{won}}
|-
| [[Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Cinematography|Best Cinematography]]
| Sven Nykvist
| {{won}}
|-
!scope="row" rowspan=2| [[National Board of Review]]<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.nationalboardofreview.org/award-years/1983/ |title=1983 Award Winners |publisher=[[National Board of Review]] |access-date=17 November 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161207025129/http://www.nationalboardofreview.org/award-years/1983/ |archive-date=7 December 2016 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>
| rowspan="2" | [[National Board of Review Awards 1983|14 December 1983]]
| [[National Board of Review Award for Best Foreign Language Film|Best Foreign Language Film]]
| rowspan="4" | Ingmar Bergman
| {{won}}
|-
| Top Five Foreign Films
| {{won}}
|-
!scope="row" rowspan=2| [[New York Film Critics Circle]]<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1983/12/22/movies/critics-pick-endearment.html |title=Critics Pick 'Endearment' |date=22 December 1983 |work=The New York Times |access-date=11 December 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171212084743/http://www.nytimes.com/1983/12/22/movies/critics-pick-endearment.html |archive-date=12 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>
| rowspan="2" | [[New York Film Critics Circle Awards 1983|29 January 1984]]
| [[New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Foreign Language Film|Best Foreign Language Film]]
| {{won}}
|-
| [[New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Director|Best Director]]
| {{won}}
|-
|}

==Legacy==
After ostensibly retiring from directing, Bergman completed ''[[After the Rehearsal]]'' in 1984.{{efn|Critic Robin Wood observed ''[[After the Rehearsal]]'' was a television production and ''Fanny and Alexander'' was announced as be his last cinematic work, though ''Fanny and Alexander'' was also made for television: "the distinctions blur", Wood wrote.{{sfn|Wood|Lippe|2012|p=245}} }} Bergman also conceived of a biographical project following his parents Erik and Karin Åkerblom, and in a press conference in August 1989, announced he planned a production that could be considered a follow-up to ''Fanny and Alexander'' and his 1987 autobiography ''The Magic Lantern''.{{sfn|Steene|2005|p=343}} The resulting 1991–92 miniseries and film ''[[The Best Intentions]]'' was directed by [[Bille August]] and won the ''[[Palme d'Or]]'' at the [[1992 Cannes Film Festival]]. Bergman selected Bille August as director on condition that ''Fanny and Alexander'' actress Pernilla Wallgren star as Bergman's mother; she did under the name [[Pernilla August]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1992/08/09/with-best-intentions/ |title=With 'Best Intentions' |last=Blair |first=Iain |date=9 August 1992 |access-date=13 December 2017 |work=[[Chicago Tribune]] |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171214033536/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1992-08-09/entertainment/9203110883_1_fanny-and-alexander-henrik-bergman-oscar-winning-danish-director |archive-date=14 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> Critic Vincent Canby also identified Ingmar's screenplay ''[[Sunday's Children]]'', directed by [[Daniel Bergman]] and released in 1992, as "a continuation" of ''Fanny and Alexander'' and ''The Best Intentions'', and questioned if Ingmar had truly retired.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9F0CEEDD1F31F930A35757C0A965958260 |title=Review/Film Festival; A Bergman Memoir By Son and Father |last=Canby |first=Vincent |work=The New York Times |date=3 April 1993 |access-date=15 December 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171215221543/http://www.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9F0CEEDD1F31F930A35757C0A965958260 |archive-date=15 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> Whereas Ingmar's recollections of Erik Bergman are damning in ''Fanny and Alexander'', his study of his father is "far more forgiving" in ''The Best Intentions'' and ''Sunday's Children''.{{sfn|Macnab|2009|p=210}}{{efn|Earlier with his 1963 film ''[[Winter Light]]'', which had a clergyman protagonist, Bergman took the rare step of sharing the screenplay with [[Erik Bergman (Lutheran minister)|Erik Bergman]], and boasted that Erik read it three times. Ingmar was possibly trying to communicate that he understood Erik, though the name of the character, Ericsson (son of Erik), may indicate the character represents Ingmar more than his father.{{sfn|Gado|1986|pp=281-282}} }} After ''The Best Intentions'', Pernilla August played Ingmar's mother twice more, in the 1996 ''[[Private Confessions]]'' and 1997 ''[[In the Presence of a Clown]]''.{{sfn|Qvist|von Bagh|2000|p=41}}

Following Bergman's death in 2007, [[PostNord Sverige]] decided to honour the director with a [[Postage stamps and postal history of Sweden|postage stamp]] depicting him directing ''Fanny and Alexander''.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/08/arts/08arts-STAMPSTOSALU_BRF.html |title=Stamps to Salute Ingmar Bergman |work=The New York Times |date=8 October 2007 |access-date=14 December 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171215111608/http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/08/arts/08arts-STAMPSTOSALU_BRF.html |archive-date=15 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> In the two decades following the release, "''Fanny and Alexander''" decorations were also common in Swedish businesses at [[Jul (Sweden)|Jul]].{{sfn|Timm|2012|pp=127-137}} In 2017, [[Hallwyl Museum]] also exhibited costumes from ''Fanny and Alexander'' and other Bergman films.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.eposten.se/kultur-noje/bergmans-kostymer-visas-i-anrik-miljo-unt4807861.aspx |title=Bergmans kostymer visas i anrik miljö |last=Stanelius |first=Patrick |work=[[w:sv:Enköpings-Posten|Enköpings Posten]] |language=sv |date=4 November 2017 |access-date=21 November 2017 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171201034021/http://www.eposten.se/kultur-noje/bergmans-kostymer-visas-i-anrik-miljo-unt4807861.aspx |archive-date=1 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>

Stefan Larsson directed a stage adaptation of ''Fanny and Alexander'' for the [[Royal Dramatic Theatre]], which traveled to Uppsala City Theater in 2012.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.svd.se/fanny-och-alexander-till-uppsala |title=Fanny och Alexander till Uppsala |work=[[Svenska Dagbladet]] |language=sv |date=10 April 2012 |access-date=14 December 2017 |url-access=subscription  |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171214230515/https://www.svd.se/fanny-och-alexander-till-uppsala |archive-date=14 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> It played at the [[John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts]] in Washington, D.C., in 2013.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/theater_dance/an-exuberant-fanny-and-alexander-at-the-kennedy-center/2013/03/08/3cc4727c-881c-11e2-b412-2e8596e7c927_story.html |title=An exuberant 'Fanny and Alexander' at the Kennedy Center |last=Marks |first=Peter |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=8 March 2013 |access-date=13 December 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171229172232/https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/theater_dance/an-exuberant-fanny-and-alexander-at-the-kennedy-center/2013/03/08/3cc4727c-881c-11e2-b412-2e8596e7c927_story.html |archive-date=29 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> In 2010, stage adaptations also played in Finland, directed by Maria Lundström and Tiina Puumalainen,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.svd.se/fanny-och-alexander-till-finland |title='Fanny och Alexander' till Finland |work=Svenska Dagbladet |language=sv |date=22 March 2010 |access-date=14 December 2017 |url-access=subscription  |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171215144958/https://www.svd.se/fanny-och-alexander-till-finland |archive-date=15 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> and Norway, where it was the biggest box office success in the [[National Theatre (Oslo)|National Theatre]]'s history.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.svd.se/fanny-och-alexander-storsta-succen |title='Fanny och Alexander' största succén |work=Svenska Dagbladet |language=sv |date=18 March 2010 |access-date=14 December 2017 |url-access=subscription  |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171214233534/https://www.svd.se/fanny-och-alexander-storsta-succen |archive-date=14 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> Later, [[Stephen Beresford]] wrote an adaptation for [[The Old Vic]] in London, directed by Max Webster and starring [[Penelope Wilton]]. It was scheduled to debut February 2018.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.timeout.com/london/theatre/fanny-alexander |title=Fanny & Alexander |work=[[Time Out (magazine)|Time Out]] |date=24 October 2017 |access-date=14 December 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171214215543/https://www.timeout.com/london/theatre/fanny-alexander |archive-date=14 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>

The film has exercised considerable influence on subsequent filmmaking, not only in Sweden. South Korean director [[Bong Joon-ho]] has listed it as one of his favourite films, and stated that it has "the most beautiful ending to a feature film career in the history of cinema".<ref>{{cite web |title=Bong Joon-ho's Top 10 |url=https://www.criterion.com/current/top-10-lists/212-bong-joon-ho-s-top-10 |website=The Criterion Collection |access-date=9 June 2020 |language=en |date=18 December 2013}}</ref> French director [[Arnaud Desplechin]] frequently cites ''Fanny and Alexander'' as a critical touchstone for his own career, and has labelled his own ''La Vie des Morts'' as "a complete rip-off of that film". He noted that "I saw Fanny and Alexander and then I became a director. Before, I was a technician, and after that film, I became a director."<ref>{{cite news |last1=Tola |first1=Yonca |title=Interview: Arnaud Desplechin |url=https://www.filmcomment.com/blog/interview-arnaud-desplechin-my-golden-days/ |access-date=9 June 2020 |work=Film Comment |date=5 October 2015 |language=en}}</ref> ''Fanny and Alexander'' is also listed as a favourite by filmmakers [[Barry Jenkins]]<ref>{{cite web|title=Barry Jenkins' Favourite Films:24 Classics Loved By the "Moonlight" Director|url=https://www.indiewire.com/gallery/barry-jenkins-favorite-films/|website=IndieWire|date=31 May 2017 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Director Barry Jenkins' 14 Favourite Films from Criterion Collection|url=https://nofilmschool.com/2017/06/director-barry-jenkins-14-favorite-films-criterion-collection|website=no film school|date=2 June 2017 }}</ref> and [[Akira Kurosawa]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Jagernauth |first=Kevin |date=January 9, 2015 |title=Akira Kurosawa's 100 Favorite Movies Include Films By Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola, Woody Allen, And More |url=https://www.indiewire.com/2015/01/akira-kurosawas-100-favorite-movies-include-films-by-martin-scorsese-francis-ford-coppola-woody-allen-and-more-268564/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220407234847/https://www.indiewire.com/2015/01/akira-kurosawas-100-favorite-movies-include-films-by-martin-scorsese-francis-ford-coppola-woody-allen-and-more-268564/ |archive-date=April 7, 2022 |access-date=26 May 2024 |work=[[IndieWire]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | title = Akira Kurosawa's Top 100 Movies! | url = http://wildgrounds.com/index.php/2009/01/17/akira-kurosawas-top-100-movies/ | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100327124349/http://wildgrounds.com/index.php/2009/01/17/akira-kurosawas-top-100-movies/ | archive-date = 27 March 2010 | df = dmy-all }}</ref>

==See also==
* [[List of longest films]]
* [[List of submissions to the 56th Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film]]
* [[List of Swedish submissions for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film]]

== Explanatory notes ==
{{Notelist}}

==References==
=== Citations ===
{{Reflist}}

=== General bibliography ===
{{Refbegin|30em}}
* {{cite book |last1=Brady |first1=Ben |last2=Lee |first2=Lance |chapter=Dialogue, Theme, Values, and Moral Urgency |title=The Understructure of Writing for Film and Television |location=Austin |publisher=University of Texas Press |date=1988 |isbn=978-0-292-78515-1 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/understructureof0000brad }}
* {{cite book|last=Chabrol |first=Marguerite |chapter=The Return of Theatricality in French Cinema |title=A Companion to Contemporary French Cinema |year=2015 |editor1=Alistair Fox |editor2=Michel Marie |editor3=Raphaelle Moine |editor4=Hilary Radner |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |isbn=978-1-118-58536-8 }}
* {{cite book |last=Cohen-Shalev |first=Amir |title=Visions of Aging: Images of the Elderly in Film |location=Brighton and Portland |publisher=Apollo Books |date=2009 |isbn=978-1-84519-280-8 }}
* {{cite book|last=Gado|first=Frank|title=The Passion of Ingmar Bergman|url=https://archive.org/details/passionofingmarb0000gado|url-access=registration|year=1986|publisher=Duke University Press|isbn=978-0-822-30586-6}}
* {{cite book |last=Gervais |first=Marc |author-link=Marc Gervais |title=Ingmar Bergman: Magician and Prophet |location=Montreal, Kingston, London and Ithaca |publisher=McGill-Queen's Press&nbsp;— MQUP |date=1999 |isbn=978-0-7735-1843-8 }}
* {{cite book|editor-last1=Haenni |editor-first1=Sabine|editor-last2=Barrow|editor-first2=Sarah |editor-last3=White |editor-first3=John |title=The Routledge Encyclopedia of Films |publisher=Routledge |year=2014 |edition=Revised |isbn= 978-1-317-68261-5 }}
* {{cite journal |title=Strindbergman: The Problem of Filming Autobiography in Bergman's Fanny and Alexander |last=Haverty |first=Linda |journal=Literature Film Quarterly |date=1988 |volume=16 |issue=3 }}
* {{cite journal |title=The Seduction of Alexander Behind the Postmodern Door: Ingmar Bergman and Baudrillard's 'De la séduction.' |last=Hayes |first=Jarrod |journal=Literature Film Quarterly |date=1997 |volume=25 |issue=1 }}
* {{cite book |last=Hubner |first=Laura |title=The Films of Ingmar Bergman: Illusions of Light and Darkness |publisher=Springer |date=2007 |isbn=978-0230801387 }}
* {{cite book |last=Humphrey |first=Daniel |chapter=Conclusion |title=Queer Bergman: Sexuality, Gender, and the European Art Cinema |publisher=University of Texas Press |location=Austin |date=2013 |isbn=978-0292743786 }}
* {{cite book |last=Kael |first=Pauline |author-link=Pauline Kael |title=[[5001 Nights at the Movies]] |location=New York |publisher=Henry Holt and Company |date=2011 |isbn=978-1250033574 }}
* {{cite book |last=Kehr |first=Dave |author-link=Dave Kehr |title=Movies That Mattered: More Reviews from a Transformative Decade |publisher=University of Chicago Press |date=2017 |isbn=978-0226495682 }}
* {{cite book |last=Luko |first=Alexis |title=Sonatas, Screams, and Silence: Music and Sound in the Films of Ingmar Bergman |publisher=Routledge |date=2015 |isbn=978-1135022747 }}
* {{cite book |last=Macnab |first=Geoffrey |title=Ingmar Bergman: The Life and Films of the Last Great European Director |location=London and New York |publisher=I.B.Tauris |date=2009 |isbn=978-0230801387 }}
* {{cite book |last=Maltin |first=Leonard |author-link=Leonard Maltin |title=Leonard Maltin's 2015 Movie Guide: The Modern Era |publisher=Penguin |date=2014 |isbn=978-0698183612 }}
*{{cite book|last1=Marker|first1=Lise-Lone|last2=Marker|first2=Frederick J.|title=Ingmar Bergman: A Life in the Theater|year=1992|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn= 978-0-521-42121-8}}
* {{cite book|last=Nyberg |first=Viveka |chapter=Shadows of the parental couple: oedipal themes in Bergman's ''Fanny and Alexander'' |title=Oedipus and the Couple |year=2005 |editor=Francis Grier |location=London and New York |publisher=Karnac Books |isbn=1855759225 }}
* {{cite book |last=O'Sullivan |first=Sean |chapter=Ingmar Bergman, Showrunner |title=Serialization in Popular Culture |editor1=Rob Allen |editor2=Thijs van den Berg |location=New York and London |publisher=Routledge |date=2014 |isbn=978-1134492053 }}
* {{cite book |last=Perridon |first=Harry |title=Strindberg, Ibsen & Bergman: Essays on Scandinavian Film and Drama Offered to Egil Törnqvist on the Occasion of His 65th Birthday |publisher=Shaker Publishing |date=1998 |isbn=9042300310 }}
* {{cite book|last1=Qvist |first1=Per Olov |last2=von Bagh |first2=Peter |title=Guide to the Cinema of Sweden and Finland |year=2000 |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |isbn=0313303770 }}
* {{cite book |last=Robertson |first=Patrick |title=Guinness Book of Movie Facts and Feats |publisher=Abbeville Press |location=New York |date=1991 |isbn=1558592369 |edition=4 }}
* {{cite book |last=Rokem |first=Freddie |chapter='Has this thing appeared again tonight?': Deus ex Machina and Other Theatrical Interventions of the Supernatural |title=Things: Religion and the Question of Materiality |editor1=Dick Houtman |editor2=Birgit Meyer |publisher=Fordham University Press |date=2012 |isbn=978-0823239450 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/thingsreligionqu0000unse }}
* {{cite book |last=Scott-Douglass |first=Amy |chapter=Dogme Shakespeare |title=Shakespeare, The Movie II: Popularizing the Plays on Film, TV, Video and DVD |publisher=Routledge |editor1=Richard Burt |editor2=Lynda E. Boose |date=2004 |isbn=1134457006 }}
* {{cite book |last=Segrave |first=Kerry |title=Foreign Films in America: A History |location=Jefferson, North Carolina and London |publisher=McFarland & Company Publishers |date=2004 |isbn=0786481625 }}
* {{cite book |last=Shargel |first=Raphael |title=Ingmar Bergman: Interviews |publisher=University Press of Mississippi |date=2007 |isbn=978-1578062188 }}
* {{cite book |last=Sitney |first=P. Adams |author-link=P. Adams Sitney |title=The Cinema of Poetry |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford and New York |date=2014 |isbn=978-0199337040 }}
* {{cite book |last=Steene |first=Birgitta |title=Ingmar Bergman: A Reference Guide |location=Amsterdam |publisher=Amsterdam University Press |date=2005 |isbn=9053564063 }}
* {{cite book|last=Sundholm |first=John |title=Historical Dictionary of Scandinavian Cinema |year=2012 |publisher=Scarecrow Press |isbn=978-0810855243 }}
* {{cite book |last=Timm |first=Mikael |chapter=A Filmmaker in the Borderland: Bergman and Cultural Traditions |title=Ingmar Bergman: An Artist's Journey |editor1=Roger W. Oliver |publisher=Skyhorse Publishing, Inc. |date=2012 |isbn=978-1628720037 }}
* {{cite book |last=Törnqvist |first=Egil |author-link=Egil Törnqvist |title=Between Stage and Screen: Ingmar Bergman Directs |publisher=Amsterdam University Press |date=1995 |isbn=9053561714 }}
* {{cite book |last=Udovic|first=Ana |title=Generation Ego: Att fostras i en narcissistisk kultur |publisher=Ordfront |date=2014 |isbn=978-9174414462 |language=sv }}
* {{cite book |last=Vermilye |first=Jerry |title=Ingmar Bergman: His Life and Films |location=Jefferson, North Carolina and London |publisher=McFarland & Company Publishers |date=2006 |isbn=1476612706 }}
* {{cite book |last=Weinstein |first=Arnold L. |author-link=Arnold Weinstein (scholar) |title=Northern Arts: The Breakthrough of Scandinavian Literature and Art, from Ibsen to Bergman |publisher=Princeton University Press |date=2008 |isbn=978-0691125442 }}
* {{cite book |last1=Wood |first1=Robin |author-link=Robin Wood (critic) |last2=Lippe |first2=Richard |chapter=Call Me Ishmael: ''Fanny and Alexander'' |title=Ingmar Bergman: New Edition |location=Detroit |publisher=Wayne State University Press |date=2012 |isbn=978-0814338063 }}
* {{cite book |last=Wright |first=Rochelle |chapter='Immigrant Film' in Sweden at the Millennium |title=Transnational Cinema in a Global North: Nordic Cinema in Transition |editor1=Andrew K. Nestingen |editor2=Trevor Glen Elkington  |publisher=Wayne State University Press |date=2005 |isbn=0814332439 }}
* {{cite book|last=Zavarzadeh |first=Mas'ud |chapter=The Political Economy of Art: Ingmar Bergman's ''Fanny and Alexander'' |title=Seeing Films Politically |year=1991 |publisher=State University of New York Press |isbn=0791405265 }}
{{Refend}}

==External links==
*[https://archive.org/details/fannyandalexander_202004 Fanny And Alexander] archive.org
* {{IMDb title|0083922}} (188-minute cut)
* {{IMDb title|tt6725158}} (miniseries/312-minute cut)
* {{Sfdb title}}
* {{TCMDb title|id=74540}}
* {{mojo title|fannyandalexander}}
* {{rotten-tomatoes|fanny_and_alexander}}
* [https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/347-fanny-and-alexander-bergman-s-bildungsroman "''Fanny and Alexander'': Bergman's Bildungsroman"], an essay by [[Rick Moody]] at the [[Criterion Collection]]
* [https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/346-fanny-and-alexander-in-the-world-of-childhood "''Fanny and Alexander'': In the World of Childhood"], an essay by [[Stig Björkman]] at the [[Criterion Collection]]

{{Ingmar Bergman}}
{{Navboxes
|title = Awards for ''Fanny and Alexander''
|list =
{{Academy Award Best Foreign Language Film}}
{{César Award for Best Foreign Film}}
{{David di Donatello Best Foreign Film}}
{{Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film}}
{{Guldbagge Award Best Film}}
{{Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Foreign Language Film}}
{{National Board of Review Award for Best Foreign Language Film}}
{{New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Foreign Language Film}}
{{Swedish submission for Academy Awards}}
}}

{{Authority control}}

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