picked him up at the fire and Anna replies: "I came to ask for forgiveness." Andreas gets out of the car and she drives away. In a long shot we see him pace back and forth. As the long shot pulls in to an increasingly grainy close-up, we see Andreas fall to his knees, and, as the screen turns to white, a voice-over states: "This time he was named Andreas Winkelman." The End. Cast Production The film has its origins in Bergman's 1968 film Shame, also starring Ullmann and Von Sydow. After shooting of Shame completed, Fårö's environmental regulations required the house built for the film be burned, but Bergman had developed an attachment to its appearance and saved it by claiming there were plans to use it in another film. He began writing The Passion of Anna, and with Von Sydow and Ullmann still contracted to work with him, envisioned The Passion of Anna as "virtually a sequel." Themes Author Jerry Vermilye wrote that in exploring "the thread of violence intruding on ordinary lives," Hour of the Wolf (1968), Shame and The Passion of Anna represent a trilogy. Author Amir Cohen-Shalev concurred the films form a trilogy. Cohen-Shalev wrote that, like Persona and Shame, The Passion of Anna follows an "artist as fugitive" theme touching on issues of guilt and self-hatred. Reception On Rotten Tomatoes, The Passion of Anna garnered 100% approval among 15 critics. Vincent Canby argued that "it does seem designed more for the indefatigable Bergman cryptologists (of which I am not one) than for interested, but uncommitted filmgoers", but praised its lead actors' performances and wrote that "Bergman gives each of them extraordinary moments of cinematic truth, monologues of sustained richness and drama". The film was included in "The New York Times Guide to the Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made" in 2002. The film is not considered one of Bergman's greatest works, but retrospective evaluations are still positive. Sam Jordison wrote for Film4, "While it lacks the lightness of touch and smooth flow that distinguishes Bergman at his finest, this is still a powerful, profound work of art." Roger Ebert gave it four out of four stars and included it in his Top 10 of 1970. References External links Four Stories by Ingmar Bergman (contains The Passion of Anna) 1969 films Films directed by Ingmar Bergman Films with screenplays by Ingmar Bergman Films shot in Sweden