Ingmar Bergman's The Faith Trilogy

I think we've chatted about Bunuel before too; he's definitely in my top 10 (though it's been so long since I updated my list I can't be sure specifically where I'd rank anyone anymore except for my top ~5 or so). Yeah, Bergman was always almost exclusively interested in individuals and characters rather than sociology, and for people who prefer their art to have a more social component I can see why they'd prefer a filmmaker like Bunuel, who was just as interested in history and class as he was in religion and psychology. Bunuel also tended to be "cooler" than Bergman in terms of tone, meaning he kept a more distant, objective perspective while Bergman's films were always intensely personal.

Persona was a weird film for me because I remember seeing it as a young cinephile and I just didn't get it all. By the time I rewatched it in my 20s I knew instantly it was a masterpiece and one of the best films ever made. I wrote a really, really long review/analysis of it back in the day. If you'd like to read it I might could hunt it down (my old reviews are kinda scattered around). The Seventh Seal is my favorite Bergman, probably because I saw it at a time in my life when I was having my own crisis of faith and it resonated with me on a deeply personal level. I also love that film's expressionistic aesthetic. Persona is my #2 Bergman, and Fanny & Alexander probably my #3. Wild Strawberries and Cries & Whispers are close for my #4. The latter is also personally meaningful because I know what it's like to take care of someone who lives with excruciating chronic pain.