Liv Ullmann has a Golden Globe, an honorary Oscar, and an acting legacy that precedes her—but Saturday night was the first time the legendary actress has ever been dressed by a high fashion house. “This is my debut as a fashion model,” said Ullmann. “My debut and my ending, all in one night.”
Ullmann was dressed in a smart black suit by Lanvin, now under the design supervision of creative director Peter Copping. The house was hosting a special screening of Persona, the Ingmar Bergman classic that still manages to both transfix and inspire, 58 years after its debut. Ullmann hadn’t watched the film for decades. Despite its unflinching subject matter, it only brought back fond memories. “The movie doesn’t show that, but it was one of the most fun sets in my life. We were laughing all the time, and then came this movie.”
Cate Blanchett, wearing Lanvin as well, served as the evening’s host. On stage, she recalled the first time she had seen the film. “It really knocked me off my center. In a way, I still am processing,” said Blanchett. “It’s one of the most profound and influential works of cinema ever made by one of the world’s deepest directors, with two unmatchable, towering, central performances, which are as gobsmacking today as when you created them.”
The audience inside the small, basement-level theater at the Museum of Art and Design in Manhattan was rapt, hanging onto every word. Marina Abramović, Hari Nef, Gina Gershon, Lena Olin, Lasse Hallström, and Jeremy O. Harris were among those in attendance.
Ullmann had previously collaborated with Blanchett on stage; she directed her in a run of A Streetcar Named Desire. “I said to her, you know, if Bergman had seen you 60 years ago, I would never have gotten all the parts,” Ullmann recalled. The actress admitted she’s a bit shy (if not self-deprecating), but it’s hard to imagine anyone else in the role of Persona’s Elisabet Vogler. As for why the movie still manages to move audiences, all these years later? “Even if they don’t understand, necessarily, the movie, I think all of us are trying to be something. And inside, we are scared,” she said. “It is showing people that everybody has their mask, and that there is someone behind that facade. Be careful.”
