4,178 words

I (Minor Spoilers)

There is no other musical like Dancer in the Dark; there is no other film like Dancer in the Dark. The cinematography, the atmosphere, the acting, even the sentimentality of the film are all in some way unique. The result is a work of art that offers something entirely different from anything else, namely a character portrayal that captures at once the wild idealism and the naive, sweet, supernatural innocence of the heroine.  (more…)

2,940 words

I (Minor Spoilers)

The Idiots (Idioterne) is not an accessible film, and neither is it is easy to digest. The sexual content is so extreme that The Idiots is rated the same as any pornographic film in the United Kingdom, Spain, Australia, Norway, and several others. The depiction of mentally disabled individuals, both real and those merely acting as such, is alarming and controversial. During the screening at the Cannes Film Festival in 1998, film critic Mark Kermode was removed from the venue for exclaiming, ‘Il est merde!’ (more…)

3,770 words

I. (Minor Spoilers)

The opening chapters of Lars von Trier’s Breaking the Waves introduce the viewer to Bess and her little, pastoral Scottish community, which is pervaded and dominated by a highly austere Calvinist Christianity. In the very first scene, which features the elders of the church questioning Bess about her betrothed, Jan, a stranger to the community, the atmosphere is immediately stifling and rigorous. (more…)