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"Four women dressed in white in a mansion painted red... haunted by whispers and cries."
Cries and Whispers - Characters & Cast
Character Analysis
Agnes
Harriet Andersson
Motivation
To find relief from her excruciating pain and to experience a final moment of connection and love with her estranged sisters.
Character Arc
Agnes's arc is one of physical decline and a desperate yearning for connection. As she dies, her suffering strips away all pretense, and her primary desire is for comfort and the loving presence of her sisters. Through her diary, read at the end, we see that despite her pain, she was capable of experiencing moments of profound happiness and gratitude, suggesting a spiritual grace that transcends her physical torment.
Karin
Ingrid Thulin
Motivation
To maintain control and protect herself from emotional vulnerability through rigid self-discipline and emotional detachment.
Character Arc
Karin is trapped in a loveless marriage and a life of emotional repression. The presence of death forces some of her long-buried hatred and self-loathing to the surface, notably in a shocking act of self-mutilation. She briefly attempts to connect with Maria after Agnes's death, but ultimately retreats back into her cold, isolated existence, unable to sustain genuine intimacy.
Maria
Liv Ullmann
Motivation
To avoid unpleasantness and to be seen as desirable and loved, without having to offer genuine emotional commitment in return.
Character Arc
Maria is shallow, self-absorbed, and seeks validation through flirtation and affairs. Confronted with her sister's death, her emotional immaturity is exposed. She is incapable of offering real comfort and is repulsed by the ugliness of death. Though she makes a brief, sentimental attempt to bond with Karin, her shallowness prevents any lasting change, and she quickly reverts to her superficial self.
Anna
Kari Sylwan
Motivation
To provide selfless comfort and care to Agnes, driven by a deep well of empathy and a simple, powerful faith.
Character Arc
Anna is a steady, grounding presence throughout the film. Having lost her own daughter, her devotion to Agnes is an act of selfless love. She is the only character who remains unchanged because her core of empathy and faith is unshakable. She provides the film's moral and emotional center, representing a quiet, profound humanity in the face of the sisters' self-absorption and the indifference of the universe.