The Seventh Seal ★ Best

Set during the in 14th-century Sweden, the story follows Antonius Block, a disillusioned knight returning from the Crusades. Upon his arrival, he is met by Death , personified as a pale figure in a black cloak. To buy time and seek answers about the existence of God and the afterlife, Block challenges Death to a game of chess . As they play, Block travels across a plague-ravaged landscape, observing the various ways humanity reacts to impending doom—through religious fanaticism, nihilistic hedonism, or simple, quiet joy. Core Themes

"The Seventh Seal" (1957), directed by , stands as a monumental pillar of world cinema, famously exploring the silence of God and the human fear of mortality. Narrative Summary The Seventh Seal

It transitioned cinema from simple entertainment into a medium for serious philosophical and theological inquiry. Set during the in 14th-century Sweden, the story

The film visualizes the medieval concept that Death unites all people, regardless of status, culminating in the iconic final silhouette on the horizon. As they play, Block travels across a plague-ravaged

Through the characters of Jof and Mia (a traveling actor family), Bergman suggests that while the universe may be silent, human connection and "a bowl of wild strawberries" provide the only true meaning. Cultural Legacy

Block’s primary struggle is his inability to find tangible proof of the divine amidst suffering, famously referred to as "the religious spiritual quest."

The image of the Knight playing chess with Death is one of the most parodied and referenced frames in film history (e.g., Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey ).

Reference

If you use the data or code please cite:

Chengrui Wang and Han Fang and Yaoyao Zhong and Weihong Deng, MLFW: A Database for Face Recognition on Masked Faces, arXiv preprint arXiv:2108.07189.

BibTeX entry:
@article{wang2021mlfw,
  title={MLFW: A Database for Face Recognition on Masked Faces}, 
  author={Wang, Chengrui and Fang, Han and Zhong, Yaoyao and Deng, Weihong},
  journal={arXiv preprint arXiv:2109.05804},
  year={2021}
}

Download the database

This database is publicly available. We provide: 1) the original images(250x250), 2) the aligned images(112x112) and 3) the pair list. Baidu Netdisk(code:328y) , Google Drive

Now, we provide a list to indicate the masked faces. Google Drive


Contact

For further assistance, please contact , and Weihong Deng.