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Search 713 spoiler-free recommendations from 1916 to 2026. Filter by the night you want—not the list you’re supposed to finish.

Direct film viewShowing master rank #573 on its own—not above the ranking.
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DirectorAll directors

Most represented · 6+ films

More recurring directors · 3–5 films54
All directors · surname A–Z438
ActorAll actors

Most represented actors

Big Three membership
Major award winners

1 selected film

Master Rank balances Greatness, Engagement, and Ease. Sort by Greatness for the artistic-canon view.

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View Cries and Whispers film page
Original poster artwork · Great Cinema Master List

Spoiler-free premise

When a woman dying of cancer in turn-of-the century Sweden is visited by her two sisters, long repressed feelings between the siblings rise to the surface.

Read expanded premiseLonger, still spoiler-free

In a red-walled Swedish manor, Agnes is dying of cancer while sisters Karin and Maria gather at her bedside with devoted maid Anna. Pain and waiting reopen the sisters' emotional distance, marriages, memories, and inability to offer care.

Why it belongs

Through red rooms, whispering faces, ticking clocks, and four actresses exposed at intimate range, Cries and Whispers makes touch and its refusal overwhelming.

Read expanded why it belongsThe fuller editorial case

Crimson walls, white gowns, clocks, bells, breath, skin, direct-address memories, and Sven Nykvist's soft close-ups transform the house into an interior body—Kari Sylwan's Anna gives care physical steadiness.

Major award record

Metadata only · zero points in 40/40/20
Academy Awards1 win1974 · official ceremony record ↗

Plus 1 additional win

No headline-category win to name

Totals include every recorded competitive win. Only Picture or top-film honors, Direction, Screenplay, and lead or supporting performances are named.

Good for
Film Club
Descriptive guidance derived from rating, genre, runtime, mood, and GCML scores.

Institutional reference ranks

Sight & Sound225IMDb Top 250—AFI 100—
Reference metadata only · not part of the 40/40/20 score

Great Cinema Master List scores

Greatness9.3
Engagement8.0
Ease5.8

Swedish · R
Narrative Feature
Mood: Reflective & Challenging