The Virgin Spring

Set in fourteenth-century Sweden, The Virgin Spring follows a wealthy landowner, Töre, and his wife, Märeta, who send their daughter Karin to carry candles to a distant church. Their foster daughter, Ingeri, travels with her but the two separate along the way. Alone in the forest, Karin meets a group of herdsmen, and violence follows. When the same men later seek shelter at the family's farm, Töre learns what happened to his daughter and takes revenge. Ingmar Bergman directed the film from a screenplay by Ulla Isaksson, based on a medieval Scandinavian ballad.

The film belongs with Bergman's earlier work: it was his ninth feature as director, arriving after The Venetian and before The Devil's Eye. Max von Sydow plays Töre, with Birgitta Valberg as Märeta, Gunnel Lindblom as Ingeri and Birgitta Pettersson as Karin. Smaller roles include Axel Düberg and Allan Edwall. SF Studios produced the film, which runs ninety minutes.

Released in February 1960, The Virgin Spring holds a rating of 7.8 out of 10 on TMDB from 691 votes, while its critics' rating stands at 8 out of 10 from 25 reviews, showing broad approval from both critics and audiences.