Seething with teenage emotion and desire, SUMMER WITH MONIKA is without a doubt Bergman’s most lust-filled work. Harriett Andersson was becoming Sweden’s it-girl, and this film placed her powerful sexual energy at the center of the narrative. Andersson’s Monika is a rebellious teenager who breaks everyone’s rules when she runs away to be with her boyfriend, setting up camp on a remote island, away from their families and society’s judgements. Their summer of love is brought to an abrupt halt when the lovers must face consequences of their rebellion. There is an absolute perfection in Andersson’s performance of Monika– her physical and emotional embodiment of teenhood, and refusal to accept the cruelties of adult society.