The Touch

Year: 1971

Runtime: 112 mins

Language: Swedish

Director: Ingmar Bergman

RomanceDrama

A Swedish housewife embarks on an illicit affair with a foreign archaeologist who is haunted by his past as a Jewish survivor of a concentration camp. Their bond is strained by deep emotional wounds, cultural distance and guilt, making the relationship painfully fragile and complex.

Warning: spoilers below!

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Timeline & Setting – The Touch (1971)

Explore the full timeline and setting of The Touch (1971). Follow every major event in chronological order and see how the environment shapes the story, characters, and dramatic tension.

Location

Sweden, London, Denmark

The story unfolds in a quiet Swedish town and moves between the couple's life in London and a potential Danish university appointment. Key locations include a hospital where Andreas works and a clinic where Karin's mother is ill, as well as a restored church associated with David's archaeological work. The setting widens from Sweden to London and Denmark, underscoring a transnational, intimate drama.

🇸🇪 Swedish town 🏥 Hospital setting ⛪ Church restoration

Last Updated: October 04, 2025 at 17:58

Main Characters – The Touch (1971)

Meet the key characters of The Touch (1971), with detailed profiles, motivations, and roles in the plot. Understand their emotional journeys and what they reveal about the film’s deeper themes.

Last Updated: October 04, 2025 at 17:58

Major Themes – The Touch (1971)

Explore the central themes of The Touch (1971), from psychological, social, and emotional dimensions to philosophical messages. Understand what the film is really saying beneath the surface.

Last Updated: October 04, 2025 at 17:58

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Explore Movie Threads

Discover curated groups of movies connected by mood, themes, and story style. Browse collections built around emotion, atmosphere, and narrative focus to easily find films that match what you feel like watching right now.

Movies about melancholy affairs like The Touch

Stories of illicit love weighed down by a pervasive, quiet sadness and emotional barriers.If you appreciated the somber, delicate handling of an illicit affair in The Touch, this thread gathers similar movies. You'll find stories where romance is intertwined with sadness, exploring emotional infidelity, existential loneliness, and relationships burdened by the past.

melancholicsomberrestrainedfragileintrospectiveunrequited longingemotional tension

Narrative Summary

Narratives in this thread typically follow characters who seek emotional fulfillment outside their lives, only to find that their new connection is equally fraught with pain. The journey is less about passionate highs and more about the slow, introspective examination of desire, duty, and the spaces between people, often leading to ambiguous or bittersweet conclusions.

Why These Movies?

Movies are grouped here for their shared focus on complex, often extramarital, relationships portrayed with a melancholic tone. They prioritize emotional depth and psychological realism over dramatic plot twists, creating a consistent mood of fragile, introspective longing.

Dramas about relationships complicated by trauma like The Touch

Relationships where the past's deep wounds dictate the fragile dynamics of the present.For viewers of The Touch interested in how past trauma impacts love, this section finds similar movies. These narratives explore the difficult interplay between romance and healing, often featuring characters grappling with survivor's guilt, grief, or deep emotional wounds within a relationship.

grievingunsettlingpsychologically complexfragileheavyintrospectiveemotionally draining

Narrative Summary

The narrative pattern involves a connection forming between two people, one of whom carries a significant, often unspoken, burden from their history. The relationship becomes a space to confront this trauma, but the process is fraught with setbacks, miscommunication, and pain. The story unfolds as a slow, character-driven exploration of whether love can coexist with, or even heal, such deep-seated wounds.

Why These Movies?

These films are united by their central theme of trauma as a third party in a relationship. They share a heavy emotional weight, a deliberate pacing that allows for psychological depth, and a tone that balances melancholy with the fragile hope of connection.

Unlock the Full Story of The Touch

Don't stop at just watching — explore The Touch in full detail. From the complete plot summary and scene-by-scene timeline to character breakdowns, thematic analysis, and a deep dive into the ending — every page helps you truly understand what The Touch is all about. Plus, discover what's next after the movie.

The Touch Summary

Read a complete plot summary of The Touch, including all key story points, character arcs, and turning points. This in-depth recap is ideal for understanding the narrative structure or reviewing what happened in the movie.

The Touch Timeline

Track the full timeline of The Touch with every major event arranged chronologically. Perfect for decoding non-linear storytelling, flashbacks, or parallel narratives with a clear scene-by-scene breakdown.

The Touch Spoiler-Free Summary

Get a quick, spoiler-free overview of The Touch that covers the main plot points and key details without revealing any major twists or spoilers. Perfect for those who want to know what to expect before diving in.

More About The Touch

Visit What's After the Movie to explore more about The Touch: box office results, cast and crew info, production details, post-credit scenes, and external links — all in one place for movie fans and researchers.

Similar Movies to The Touch

Discover movies like The Touch that share similar genres, themes, and storytelling elements. Whether you’re drawn to the atmosphere, character arcs, or plot structure, these curated recommendations will help you explore more films you’ll love.