The Virgin Spring
1960 · Movie · 90 min · ★ 7.9 · 83% critics
In medieval Sweden, a sheltered young woman and her resentful companion are sent through the woods to deliver candles to a distant church. After a brutal attack shatters their journey, the crime echoes back to the family home, forcing a reckoning with faith, guilt, and the cost of seeking justice.
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Watch free on Kanopy — also streaming on The Criterion Channel.
2 hours to watch.
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Details
- Original title
- Jungfrukällan
- Years
- 1960
- Release date
- 1960-02-08
- Language
- Swedish
- Runtime
- 90 min
- Critic score
- 83/100
- TMDB rating
- 7.8/10 (674 votes)
About
You may like this if you want a stark medieval drama that wrestles with faith, evil, and vengeance in an unforgettable way, similar to The Seventh Seal; Not for you if sexual violence, grim themes, or slow pacing are dealbreakers.
Pros: haunting atmosphere; powerful moral questions; memorable performances | Cons: very distressing violence; bleak tone throughout; slow, ritual-like pacing
Themes
- rape
- brother
- peasant
- child murder
- revenge
- pregnant woman
- medieval
- rape and revenge
- 13th century
- spring (water)
Awards & recognition
- Academy Award — Best International Feature Film · 1961
- Academy Award — Best Costume Design, Black-and-White · 1961 · nominated
- Academy Award — Best International Feature Film · 1961 · nominated
- International Submission to the Academy Awards · 1961 · nominated
Cast & crew
Max von Sydow
as Töre
Birgitta Valberg
as Märeta
Gunnel Lindblom
as Ingeri
Birgitta Pettersson
as Karin
Axel Düberg
as Thin Herdsman
Allan Edwall
as Beggar
Tor Isedal
as Mute Herdsman
- OP
Ove Porath
as Boy
Axel Slangus
as Bridge Keeper
Gudrun Brost
as Frida
Directed by Ingmar Bergman