The Idiots/Idioterne (1998) - Von Trier challenges normalcy and human behavior in his Dogme masterpiece

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+ Best Movie of the Year

+ Best Danish Movie of the Year + Best Experimental Movie of the Year + Most Undeserved Flop Movie of the Year

 

A cast assembly framed upside down, and the promise of a nude Jens Albinus in the lower right corner, makes up this French poster for Lars Von Trier's The Idiots

 

The woman Karen is sitting in a restaurant, where a noisy group of disabled people are also dining. But she finds out that they are actually only 'normal' people from a collective, who just cultivate a private 'sport' of 'spazzing out'.

 

The Idiots is written and directed by Danish master filmmaker, Lars Von Trier (Images of Liberation/Befrielsesbilleder (1982)). It is his 6th feature, and the 2nd film made according to the strict rule set of the Dogme 95 movement, co-founded by Von Trier. It is also the 2nd in Von Trier's Golden Heart trilogy, which also contains masterpiece Breaking the Waves (1996) and Dancer in the Dark (2000).

It is Von Trier's only Dogme film, - an ascetic vow to shoot without major effects and interference, budget or accreditation, among other things, - and it is a fittingly extreme film filled with embarrassing scenes, where both people in the scenes and certainly us watching as audiences are made uncomfortable. The cast of young actors, which contains many of the biggest names in Danish film in the subsequent decades, jump courageously into Von Trier's bizarre pool of ideas with both feet.

Watching The Idiots is a funny and wild experience; it is probably the most pure of the Dogme films, and extremely original. It is a deeply unusual film, which ranks among the best Danish films ever made. At its core The Idiots is an existentially provocative masterpiece.

 

Related posts: 

Lars Von Trier: The House That Jack Built (2018) - Something's amiss in Von Trier's depraved, unpleasant serial killer pic  

Nymphomaniac (2013) short version, vol. 1 & vol. 2, or, Lars Von Trier's Suck It  
Melancholia (2011) - Von Trier's heightened reality doomsday reflections 
Antichrist (2009) - Von Trier's cabin-in-the-woods psycho-horror 
The Early Years: Erik Nietzsche Part 1/De Unge År: Erik Nietzsche Sagaen Del 1 (2007) - Thuesen and Von Trier's hilarious film school comedy (autobiographical screenplay) 

Top 10: Best Danish movies reviewed by Film Excess to date 
2006 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess
Top 10: Best comedies reviewed by Film Excess to date
The Boss of It All/Direktøren for det Hele (2006) - Von Trier's hilarious absurd comedy 
Dear Wendy (2005) - Vinterberg and Von Trier's unpopular, gun-themed megaflop (writer)

2003 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess 
Top 10: The best big flop movies reviewed by Film Excess to date 
Dogville (2003) - Von Trier's implacable, truly unique drama  
The Five Obstructions/De Fem Benspænd (2003, documentary) or, Lars von Trier vs. Jørgen Leth
Dancer in the Dark (2000) or, Selma the Immigrant  

1998 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess 

Top 10: Best drama-thrillers reviewed by Film Excess to date   
Zentropa/Europa (1991) - Von Trier's audacious ode to the heavy continent is a fever dream on celluloid
Epidemic (1987) - Von Trier's trippy, bizarre second film  
The Element of Crime/Forbrydelsens Element (1984) - Von Trier's ultra-strange debut 

 

 

Watch a 5 -minute excerpt from the film here

 

Cost: 2.5 mil. $

Box office: Around 4.68 mil. $

= Big flop (returned around 1.87 times its cost)

[The Idiots premiered 20 May (Cannes Film Festival, in competition) and runs 114 minutes. The script was reportedly written in 4 days, in connection with the creation of the Dogme 95 manifesto. No less than 13 companies were involved with the financing and production of the film. Shooting took place in Denmark around June 1997. It is one of the first films shot entirely on digital cameras. Details about its limited North-American release are not made available online but was likely very small. In the film's main production country Denmark it sold 119,892 tickets, which comes to roughly 8.2 mil. DKK, or approximately 1.31 mil. $. A Danish blog by the head of the cinemas of Denmark informs that the film sold 719k admissions outside of Denmark, and with an average prize of 4.69 $ at the time, that comes to 3.37 mil. $, a total gross of around 4.68 mil. $. The film lost the Palme d'Or to Eternity and a Day. It won a Robert award (Denmark's Oscar), and was nominated for a European Film award. Von Trier returned with 3 TV movie and video short credits priot to his theatrical return with Dancer in the Dark (2000). Bodil Jørgensen (Ronal the Barbarian/Ronal Barbaren (2011)) returned in 4 TV credits prior to her theatrical return in Klinkevals (1999)). The Idiots is fresh at 71 % with a 6.50/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

 

What do you think of The Idiots? 

The King Is Alive (2000) - Levring's trying desert theatrics

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Dunes of desert landscape and lone figures walking there make up this sparse poster for Kristian Levring's The King Is Alive

A busload of Western tourists get stranded in Africa's Namibian desert after having driven incredible long - but in the wrong direction. They spend their time while waiting for rescue on acting out Shakespeare's King Lear.

The King Is Alive is written by Anders Thomas Jensen (Red Road (2006)) and co-writer/director Kristian Levring (Et Skud fra Hjertet (1986)), and it is the 4th film done following the Dogme95 manifesto, which limits filmmaking techniques and effects to a radical, sometimes lifelike sparseness in method and style.
The film seems bent on exhibiting the hypocrisy, hysteria and incompetence of regular Westerners, - there may be more sins in play than these I am sure, - because, of course, the masks of civilization inevitable come to crumble and fall in the meeting with the brutal, uncaring desert.
But even though The King Is Alive is well cast and well acted and seems to have the makings of something potentially great in it, it is both written and directed with too unsure hands as to what it is it expresses. The fact that all of the characters are rather distasteful doesn't make the slow-moving drama any more exciting. The King Is Alive is finally more special than good.

Related post:

Kristian Levring: The Salvation (2014) - Classic western yarn meets Danish dynamite

Watch a 23-minute video here of Levring and executive producer Vibeke Windeløv talking about the making of the film here - with English subtitles

Cost: Unknown
Box office: Uncertain, but in excess of 156k $
= Uncertain - but almost certainly a box office disaster
[The King Is Alive premiered 11 May (Cannes Film Festival, out of competition) and runs 109 minutes. 10 companies, representing 6 nations, were involved in this co-production. Shooting took place in Namibia. The film sold only 13,248 tickets in main production country Denmark, coming to approximately 139k $. In North America the film grossed 17k $ in its first week of release in 6 theaters. No other release details are released, but figuring that the film was made on a low 2 mil. $ budget, it looks like a box office disaster. It won 1/2 Robert award nominations (Denmark's Oscar). Roger Ebert gave it a 3/4 star review, translating to 2 notches higher than this one. Levring returned with D-Dag - Den Færdige Film (2001, TV movie, segment) and theatrically with The Intended (2002). Miles Anderson (The Musketeers (2015, TV-series)) returned in 10 TV credits prior to his theatrical return in The Silent Fall (2007). The King Is Alive is fresh at 60 % with a 5.96/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of The King Is Alive?

The Celebration/Festen (1998) - Vinterberg's charged, stirring Dogme drama masterpiece

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+ 3rd Best Movie of the Year

+ Best Drama of the Year + Breakthrough Actor of the Year: Ulrich Thomsen

Four of the film's leads evocative faces clash in a broken mirror in this stark and intriguing poster for Thomas Vinterberg's The Celebration

Christian is going to his father's 60th birthday celebration on their family's castle hotel. With him he carries two speeches, which are going to change his family forever.

The Celebration is written by Mogens Rukov (Reconstruction (2003)) and its Danish master co-writer/director Thomas Vinterberg (The Hunt/Jagten (2012)), whose 3rd feature it is, as well as his best film overall. It represented a kick in the ass on Danish cinema, Danish cultural centrism and Danish traditions in general, which the film - and us as audiences - invariably laugh at. (It is the first of the so-called Dogme films: Read about some of the wave's specifications below.) The humor in this heavily themed drama is liberating and pivotal, saving The Celebration from becoming a depressing acquaintance.
It is fantastically put together script and editing-wise, impressively shot on a simple Sony Handycam (by cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle (Kursk (2018)).) The Celebration is full of great ideas, which simply work, and great Danish actors who give career-defining performances: Paprika Steen (The Substitute/Vikaren (2007)), Ulrich Thomsen (Centurion (2010)) as Christian, Thomas Bo Larsen (A Second Chance/En Chance Til (2014)), Henning Moritzen (Roser og Persille (1993)), Helle Dolleris (Karla og Jonas (2010)), Trine Dyrholm (Fluerne på Væggen (2005)) and Klaus Bondam (Lykkevej (2003)), who is wonderful as the party's German toastmaster.
The Celebration is funny, gripping and intense, a fiery drama that booms with energy.

Related posts:

 
Thomas Vinterberg: Far from the Madding Crowd (2015) - Vinterberg's plush but grating English adaptation

The Hunt/Jagten (2012) - Vinterberg's strongest film since 1998 is a reversed Celebration  

2010 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED III]

2010 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED II]

2010 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I]

Submarino (2010) - Vinterberg's elegant, downbeat Copenhagen-set social realism drama
Dear Wendy (2004) - Vinterberg and Von Trier's unpopular, gun-themed mega-flop 

1998 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess  

 Watch a trailer for the film here

Cost: 1.3 mil. $
Box office: 1.6 mil. $ (North America only); gross likely exceeds 5.6 mil. $
= Big hit (likely returned in excess of 4.3 times its cost)
[The Celebration premiered in May (Cannes Film Festival, in competition) and runs 105 minutes. The inspiration for the film was a radio program in which a man told about his experiences coming from an incestuous family. - The man was later revealed to have invented the whole story. Shooting took place in Zealand, Denmark. It was the first film to follow the 1995 Dogme manifesto, which detailed that films should be made according to several rules, barring non-diegetic music, sound editing, elaborate setups and crediting the filmmaker. The film opened #52 to a 50k $ first weekend in 28 theaters in North America, where it peaked at #41, only decreasing in theater number, and grossed 1.6 mil. $. In its production country Denmark the film sold impressive 403k tickets, amassing approximately 4 mil. $. Its performance in other markets is not known. Roger Ebert gave the film a 3/4 star review, translating to two notches harder than this one. The film was Denmark's annual entry for the Oscars, but it was not nominated. It was nominated for a Golden Globe, a BAFTA, won 2/2 Bodil awards (Danish film critics' award), the Jury Prize in Cannes, was nominated for a César award, won 1/3 European Film award nominations, an Independent Spirit award, 7/7 Robert awards (Denmark's Oscar) and many other honors. It has been adapted to the stage. Vinterberg returned with 4 video and TV credits before his theatrical return with little-seen Canadian indie The Third Lie (2000). Thomsen returned in Angel of the Night/Nattens Engel (1998); Larsen in I Wonder Who's Kissing You Now (1998); Moritzen in 4 TV credits before Her i Nærheden (2000); and Dyrholm in A Regular Thing/Kys, Kærlighed og Kroner (1998, short), Taxa (1997-99) and theatrically in In China They Eat Dogs/I Kina Spiser De Hunde (1999). The Celebration is fresh at 92 % with an 8.09/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of The Celebration?

Open Hearts/Elsker Dig for Evigt (2002) - Mikkelsen stands out in Bier's terrific Dogme drama

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+ Best Copenhagen Movie of the Year 

 

The interchanging hot and cold of intimate relations define this Danish poster for Susanne Bier's Open Hearts

 

A woman accidentally drives into a man in her car. He becomes a tetraplegic [losing partial or complete control of all four limbs and torso], and his girlfriend begins an affair with the first woman's husband, SPOILER who falls in love with her and ultimately leaves his family for her, as the hospitalized man starts to become better.

Open Hearts is the 8th theatrical feature from Danish master filmmaker Susanne Bier (Love Is All You Need/Den Skaldede Frisør (2012)), written by Anders Thomas Jensen (The Salvation (2014)), and is also the 28th Dogme movie, referring to its production according (more or less) to the conventions of the Dogme 95 manifesto, an ascetic Danish approach to filmmaking. Its original Danish title translates to 'Love You Forever'.

Bier toys with the cruel, mercurial nature of human feelings and love in this intense and compelling drama that is among the finest in the Dogme tradition. Mads Mikkelsen (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)) is especially magical as a man who isn't a big talker, but who acts on his feelings here, - and suffers some consequences for it. The acting is fine all around, and Jensen's script plays on several keys with humor, depth and a great pace to it.

 

Related posts:

Susanne Bier: Love Is All You Need/Den Skaldede Frisør (2012) - Bier strikes gold with Italy-set romcom

2012 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED III]

2012 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED II]
2012 in films - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I]
2012 in films - according to Film Excess

In a Better World/Hævnen (2010) - Bier's Big Moral Drama lives on its actors' performances
Brothers/Brødre (2004) or, A Woman Came Between Them 

2002 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I]  

Watch a clip from the film with English subtitles here

Cost: 8.7 mil. DKK, equal to approximately 1.24 mil. $

Box office: 1,692,272 $, excluding Denmark; with Denmark (approximately 4.3 mil. $) = 5.9 mil. $

= Big hit

[Open Hearts premiered August 23 (Norwegian International Film Festival) and runs 113 minutes. Shooting took place in Copenhagen, mainly in the Østerbro neighborhood. The film has a score, partly made by Bier's husband Jesper Winge Leisner, which a Dogme movie isn't allowed to have, but Open Hearts tries to get around that by having it played in its scenes. The film was a huge hit in its native Denmark, where 506k people paid admission to see it and it grossed approximately 4.3 mil. $ (72.9 % of the total gross). In North America it opened #71, its peak, in 2 theaters, later expanding to 13 theaters and grossing 136k $ (2.3 %). The 2nd and 3rd biggest markets were Germany with 507k  $ (8.6 %) and Norway with 413k $ (7 %). The film won 5 Roberts (Danish Oscars), including Best Film, out of 10 nominations, and 3 Bodils (Danish critics' awards), including Best Film, out of 6 nominations, as well as a nomination for the Nordic Council Prize and a special mention critics' prize at the Toronto International Film Festival. Zach Braff has talked about doing an American remake for years, which hasn't materialized yet. The film will be adapted into a musical in Aarhus, Denmark in 2017. Open Hearts is certified fresh at 96 % with a 7.7 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of Open Hearts?

Italian for Beginners/Italiensk for Begyndere (2000) - Scherfig's perfect gem of a Dogme romcom

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The attractive poster for Lone Scherfig's Italian for Beginners

The Danish Dogme manifesto of 1995 was a set of pious rules that meant hand-held photography, low budgets, no stunts, no extra-diegetic music, no unreal violence, etc. etc. etc., and together, Lars Von Trier's The Idiots/Idioterne (1998), Thomas Vinterberg's The Celebration/Festen (1998) and Lone Scherfig's Italian for Beginners are above question the finest films that came out of the successful wave.

Italian for Beginners is the story of a priest that temps in a broken down parish; two sisters that find each other when both their parents pass away; and a soccer stadium restaurant manager who gets fired. They all attend an evening course in Italian and end up going to Venice together.

This film is a liberating watch for many reasons: It is filled with weighty drama, (joggling themes of death, impotence and loneliness), and none of the heavy parts of life are slighted here. But they are balanced in an incredibly sensitive and funny script (also by Scherfig (An Education (2009))), and combined with tender romances. It all bears the risk of becoming sentimental, but the Dogme realism luckily keeps the film from that pitfall.
Much of the ironic humor of the film lies in the special Danish language, intonations and national quirks and will therefore likely not be picked up by foreigners, but much of it still will, I suspect, and the film should prove a great enjoyment to all in any case.
There are exceedingly charming performances from the female actors; Annette Støvelbæk (Speed Walking/Kapgang (2014)) as the clumsy Olympia, Ann Eleonora Jørgensen (The Killing/Forbrydelsen (2007), TV-series) as the assured hairdresser, and Sara Indrio Jensen (No Time for Love/Simon & Malou (2009)) as the Italian waitress. Anders W. Berthelsen (Mifune/Mifunes Sidste Sang (1999)) is wonderful as the troubled priest, and in his perhaps finest work of all, Peter Gantzler (Copenhagen Dreams (2013), short) shines and acts with all of his great talent as the cautious, good-willed Jørgen Mortensen.
The wonderful supporting cast builds the pleasure of Italian for Beginners up even higher; especially Jesper Christensen's (The Debt (2010)) performance has garnered national notoriety (and is commonly quoted), but also Bent Mejding (We Shall Overcome/Drømmen (2006)) as the disillusioned priest is formidable, and Lars Kaalund (In a Better World/Hævnen (2010)) as the temperamental Halfin is an asshole, but fun.

A film about the passions of the self-effacing, the weak, the arrogant, and the ridiculous, and about the tremendous gift of love, Italian for Beginners turned out to be recognized and appreciated the world over, and is said to have been the most profitable Scandinavian film in history to date, (which may or may not be true.)
Though the cast never withdrew much career-wise (internationally, anyway) from this placement, - only Christensen has since then developed a strong international career with performances in films such as The Interpreter (2005), Casino Royale (2006), Quantum of Solace (2008), Melancholia (2011) etc. - Scherfig has build a strong path for herself, especially through films in the UK, but has never since made such a masterful film, though especially her great An Education (2009) received much praise, three Oscar-nominations, and served as the breakthrough for Carey Mulligan (Drive (2011)).
Scherfig's current project is an Oxford-set university thriller with the title The Riot Club to come out in 2014.

Related post:

Top 10: The best adaptations reviewed by Film Excess to date 

 

Vibrant filmmaking, - you will not be able to resist it! Italian for Beginners - look it up pronto!

Cost: Reportedly between 0.6 mil.-1 mil. $
Box office: 16.3 mil. $
= Mega-hit (returned at least 16.3 times the cost)
[Italian for Beginners was released 8 December (Denmark) and runs 118 minutes. Shooting took place in Zealand, Denmark and in Venice, Italy. The film opened #42 to a 66k $ strong first weekend in 3 theaters in North America, where it peaked at #25 and in 99 theaters (different weeks) and grossed impressive 4.5 mil. $ (27.6 % of the total gross) during its 25-week run there. The film's biggest market was its native Denmark, where it grossed 5.2 mil. $ (31.9 %) from 828,701 admissions, making it the 13th highest attended Danish film in the country ever. North America was the 2nd largest market, and Germany was the 3rd largest with 3.5 mil. $ (21.5 %). The film won 4/5 nominations at the Berlin International Film Festival; it was nominated for a European Film award and won 3/11 Robert noms, Denmark's Oscar, among other honors. In 2010, Zentropa, the production company behind the film, payed an undisclosed sum to Irish writer Maeve Binchy, whose novel Evening Class (1998) Scherfig admitted to have "borrowed from" from for the film. Italian for Beginners is certified fresh at 88 % with a 7.2/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

Thoughts on Dogme and other great romances in cinema history?
What do you think of Italian for Beginners?