andrewdunn
Lifetime Total
1+
IMDb Member
20 years
Reviews
Dogville (2003)
The great dane left us a pile of dogCRAPville
I have seen `Dogville,' I have thought about `Dogville,' and now I am ready to comment on `Dogville.'
But first, let's go back three years ago when I saw `Dancer in the Dark.' This was my first Lars Von Trier film and I loved it. I loved the way he merged a dogma film with a Technicolor musical and surprisingly, made it work. I loved Bjork. Her performance as Selma was brilliant and her haunting musical numbers embedded themselves in my mind forever.
The fact that Lars set that film in the U.S. didn't bother me. After all, the scenes of the American judicial system were so fictitious; it was impossible to take them seriously. Also, `Dancer in the Dark' was part of a trilogy that also included films set in Scotland (`Breaking the Waves') and Denmark (`The Idiots'). But Lars apparently did have a problem when some U.S. critics questioned why he set the movie in the U.S. - a country he's never been to and says he's afraid to visit. Lars, in response, decided to make a new trilogy called `U.S.A.: Land of Opportunities' and `Dogville' is the first in this trilogy. I remember him saying that the Americans made `Casablanca' and never went there. I don't know how true that is but `Casablanca' wasn't a movie about Morocco and its people whereas `Dogville' is about America according to Lars Von Trier's imagination.
Like `Dancer in the Dark' and `Breaking the Waves,' `Dogville' has an innocent female (Nicole Kidman) persecuted by the people around her. But, the comparisons stop there. Unlike the previous films, `Dogville' is pretentious, overlong and just plain unlikable.
The story concerns a beautiful fugitive (Grace) who seeks refuge in a small American hamlet called Dogville. A no-talent philosopher/writer named Tom Edison convinces the close minded, dumb townspeople to let Grace stay and in exchange, she'll help everyone out with various chores. When wanted posters go up, the townspeople decide to up their demands on Grace and soon she is turned into a slave. The townspeople later proceed to rape, scapegoat and degrade her. Grace is a good person and continues to forgive their brutality until the end when judgment day arrives. This narrated fable stretches out for three edious hours on a nearly bare soundstage.
On the positive side, the soundstage is a nice technique. Having a small town represented by chalk lines and minimal props is an interesting way to show the claustrophobic nature of hamlets where everyone knows everyone and everyone's business. Also, sacrificing sets and locations did allow Von Trier to afford an impressive cast including Nicole Kidman, Lauren Bacall, Stellan Skaarsgard, James Caan, Patricia Clarkson and more.
On the downside, the actors' time is wasted on long-winded, pretentious dialog. Surprisingly, other than Stellan, the rest of the acting isn't very good. Scenes that should be emotional or passionate are just monotone. Even Nicole seems bored with her role. The camera work is lame and irritating. Worst of all, the length of the movie is inexcusable; there is no reason why this movie needed to be three hours!
As an American, I have to speak up and say that I took offense to this film. I've read in several publications where Lars is now saying this film takes place in America but could easily take place in any small town, anywhere in the world. This is a contradictory and a cowardly thing for him to say; Von Trier took every step to make sure this town was American. This movie is nothing more than a mean-spirited attempt to paint the United States and its people as hypocrites.
But first, let's go back three years ago when I saw `Dancer in the Dark.' This was my first Lars Von Trier film and I loved it. I loved the way he merged a dogma film with a Technicolor musical and surprisingly, made it work. I loved Bjork. Her performance as Selma was brilliant and her haunting musical numbers embedded themselves in my mind forever.
The fact that Lars set that film in the U.S. didn't bother me. After all, the scenes of the American judicial system were so fictitious; it was impossible to take them seriously. Also, `Dancer in the Dark' was part of a trilogy that also included films set in Scotland (`Breaking the Waves') and Denmark (`The Idiots'). But Lars apparently did have a problem when some U.S. critics questioned why he set the movie in the U.S. - a country he's never been to and says he's afraid to visit. Lars, in response, decided to make a new trilogy called `U.S.A.: Land of Opportunities' and `Dogville' is the first in this trilogy. I remember him saying that the Americans made `Casablanca' and never went there. I don't know how true that is but `Casablanca' wasn't a movie about Morocco and its people whereas `Dogville' is about America according to Lars Von Trier's imagination.
Like `Dancer in the Dark' and `Breaking the Waves,' `Dogville' has an innocent female (Nicole Kidman) persecuted by the people around her. But, the comparisons stop there. Unlike the previous films, `Dogville' is pretentious, overlong and just plain unlikable.
The story concerns a beautiful fugitive (Grace) who seeks refuge in a small American hamlet called Dogville. A no-talent philosopher/writer named Tom Edison convinces the close minded, dumb townspeople to let Grace stay and in exchange, she'll help everyone out with various chores. When wanted posters go up, the townspeople decide to up their demands on Grace and soon she is turned into a slave. The townspeople later proceed to rape, scapegoat and degrade her. Grace is a good person and continues to forgive their brutality until the end when judgment day arrives. This narrated fable stretches out for three edious hours on a nearly bare soundstage.
On the positive side, the soundstage is a nice technique. Having a small town represented by chalk lines and minimal props is an interesting way to show the claustrophobic nature of hamlets where everyone knows everyone and everyone's business. Also, sacrificing sets and locations did allow Von Trier to afford an impressive cast including Nicole Kidman, Lauren Bacall, Stellan Skaarsgard, James Caan, Patricia Clarkson and more.
On the downside, the actors' time is wasted on long-winded, pretentious dialog. Surprisingly, other than Stellan, the rest of the acting isn't very good. Scenes that should be emotional or passionate are just monotone. Even Nicole seems bored with her role. The camera work is lame and irritating. Worst of all, the length of the movie is inexcusable; there is no reason why this movie needed to be three hours!
As an American, I have to speak up and say that I took offense to this film. I've read in several publications where Lars is now saying this film takes place in America but could easily take place in any small town, anywhere in the world. This is a contradictory and a cowardly thing for him to say; Von Trier took every step to make sure this town was American. This movie is nothing more than a mean-spirited attempt to paint the United States and its people as hypocrites.
Adolphe (2002)
A grand return for Isabelle Adjani
This movie has not been released yet in the U.S. and who knows if it ever will be. Fortunately, I have a multi-region DVD player so I ordered the DVD from amazon.fr. I enjoyed "Adolphe" very much. The story is quite sad (A young man pursues a beautiful older woman. She in turn becomes obsessed with him, even leaving her own children for this doomed affair.) but engaging and hard to forget. Isabelle Adjani shines as the tragic Ellenore. Ms. Adjani hasn't been in the public eye since the mid-90s (except for 2001's "La Repentie") and I'm thrilled to see my favorite actress back in such a challenging role. The movie itself comes across more like theater than film - its very minimalist. Such technique, keeps one focused on the story but may come across as boring to viewers used to big-budget productions. The attention to detail in the costumes and other peroid data is very good. Hopefully this film will eventually be shown outside France for the rest of the world to enjoy. Until then, if you have a multi- region DVD player or a computer than can view region 2 DVDs, you can order it from amazon.fr. If you're a fan of Isabelle Adjani and her work in such films as "L'historie d'Adele H, Camille Claudel and La Reine Margot, you wont be disappointed.