Lars von Trier
«After all, if you think about it, it can't be some special effects or a bit of fake blood that scare you. But remember, life is made up of two very simple things: good and evil."
Lars von Trier (IPA: [ˈlɑːs fʌn ˈtʁiːˀɐ]), pseudonym of Lars Trier (Kongens Lyngby, 30 April 1956) is a Danish director and screenwriter, also editor, producer and photographer and widely know for his use of graphic violence and unsimulated sex in some of his films. He have also appeared as a actor in his first movies and other movies and various projects, like the explicit rap video by Nikoline Gourmet in 2020, and he edited many of his projects, creating also the Dogma 95 movement, and formulating a series of rules for every movie that belong in the Dogma 95 movement:
- Shooting must be done on location. Props and sets must not be brought in (if a particular prop is necessary for the story, a location must be chosen where this prop is to be found).
- The sound must never be produced apart from the images or vice versa. (Music must not be used unless it occurs where the scene is being shot.)
- The camera must be hand-held. Any movement or immobility attainable in the hand is permitted.
- The film must be in colour. Special lighting is not acceptable. (If there is too little light for exposure the scene must be cut or a single lamp be attached to the camera.)
- Optical work and filters are forbidden.
- The film must not contain superficial action. (Murders, weapons, etc. must not occur.)
- Temporal and geographical alienation are forbidden. (That is to say that the film takes place here and now.)
- Genre movies are not acceptable.
- The film format must be Academy 35 mm.
- The director must not be credited.
Von Trier, receiving eight Academy Award nominations for his movies, has been the subject of many criticisms and controversies, also because of his apparitions at the Cannes Film Festival, where as today is persona non grata for making a Nazism joke during an interview. He was accused of animal harm on Manderlay's set and he has been accused of mistreatment and negligence towards actresses during the filming process of Dancer in the Dark and Dogville, including Björk and Nicole Kidman.
Some of his popular movies projects are the already mentioned Dogville and Dancer in the Dark, the pornographic drama anthology Nymphomaniac (in two parts) and the tv series Riget (or The Kingdom), also remade in USA.
His next project is Études, an anthology film consisting of ten black and white segments, each ten minutes long, inspired by the musical form.
He is an atheist, and a nudist.
Films[edit]
| Year | Title | Also known as | Trilogies | Release date | RT | MC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | The Element of Crime | (Forbrydelsens element) | Europa | May 14 | 77% (13 reviews) | 66% (6 reviews) |
| 1987 | Epidemic | September 11 | 33% (6 reviews) | 66% (4 reviews) | ||
| 1991 | Europa | (Zentropa) | May 12 | 80% (15 reviews) | 69% (15 reviews) | |
| 1994 | The Kingdom I | (Riget) | The Kingdom | November 24 - December 15 | 84% (19 reviews) | 77% (9 reviews) |
| 1996 | Breaking the Waves | Golden Heart | May 18 | 85% (59 reviews) | 76% (28 reviews) | |
| 1997 | The Kingdom II | (Riget II) | The Kingdom | October 10 - October 31 | 84% (19 reviews) | 77% (9 reviews) |
| 1998 | The Idiots | (Idioterne) | Golden Heart | May 20 | 71% (31 reviews) | 47% (15 reviews) |
| 2000 | Dancer in the Dark | May 17 | 69% (121 reviews) | 61% (31 reviews) | ||
| 2003 | Dogville | USA - Land of Opportunities | May 19 | 69% (167 reviews) | 60% (30 reviews) | |
| 2003 | The Five Obstructions | (De fem benspænd) | September 11 | 89% (62 reviews) | 79% (22 reviews) | |
| 2005 | Manderlay | USA - Land of Opportunities | May 16 | 50% (103 reviews) | 46% (29 reviews) | |
| 2006 | The Boss of It All | (Direktøren for det hele) | September 21 | 75% (67 reviews) | 71% (17 reviews) | |
| 2009 | Antichrist | Depression | May 20 | 54% (179 reviews) | 49% (34 reviews) | |
| 2011 | Melancholia | May 18 | 79% (209 reviews) | 80% (40 reviews) | ||
| 2013 | Nymphomaniac | December 25 | 76% (I; 204 reviews) and 59% (II; 128 reviews) | 64% (I; 41 reviews) and 60% (II; 34 reviews) | ||
| 2018 | The House That Jack Built | May 14 | 60% (138 reviews) | 42% (29 reviews) | ||
| 2022 | The Kingdom: Exodus | (Riget: Exodus) | The Kingdom | October 9 - October 30 | 84% (19 reviews) | 77% (9 reviews) |
| TBA | Etudes | Etudes | TBA | TBA | TBA | |
