Listonixio Fresh and Exciting

SpunkySelfTwitter It’s an especially fun movie from a director and cast who are clearly having a good time allowing themselves to let loose.

Humaira Grant It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

Kaydan Christian A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

catalina I only saw this movie once, while I was in high school. I watched it over the course of a whole weekend, as I had to stop each 15 minutes for crying. It is the most heartbreaking movie about the injustice there is in the world, about the beauty of emotional and good hearted people. It portrays love, but in a way that it has no power, if not for the beauty it brings for a moment in time. It still remains the saddest movie I have seen in my life. Bjork is delivering such beautiful acting.

lyrafowlpotter This is a very unique film on many levels. It is a musical, but certainly not your typical musical. It is by far, the absolute most depressing film I have ever seen, and I actually generally enjoy depressing films, this one definitely took the cake for me. The songs are joyous up until the very end, and the performance by Bjork is beyond outstanding, she absolutely should have won the Oscar that year for her song, and I maintain she should have been nominated for best actress, she would have kicked Julia Roberts butt in the lead actress category. It is a shame Bjork will never act again, but after this movie, I wouldn't act again either. I hated everyone in this movie so much except for Bjork, her son, and her friend at work. Everyone else was condemnable, and it was beyond me when the final 1/3 of the film unfolds, it was already a very depressing film, and the final third officially made it the most depressing film, without any sort of hope at all, period. It is true, that somehow there is joy in her mind which plays out in the songs in her head, which we see on screen, just as we have throughout the film, but this is far and away the best film to watch if you need a reminder of why your life is not that bad. Even though I will never watch this again, I still think it is worth watching once, if only for Bjork's performance and the wonderful songs and performances of them. The film is well-done and the acting is good all around, the camera work is nice, the songs are great, and the film has a very gritty quality to it. I did love the tenacity of the main character, even though things are so dire, and they are not looking any better. A movie that is hard to recommend, but worth watching, if you can stomach films that are depressing beyond anything you have probably seen before, the only other film I felt comes close is "Requiem for a Dream" in terms of depression.God Bless ~Amy

joshvonhousen Well, I'm not an especially big fan of the work of Lars Von Trier, and i had actually never listened to Bjork's music at all before this movie. Lars von Trier has just never impressed me as a filmmaker. I've always admired the visuals in his movie, like the opening of Melancholia and Antichrist, but none of the movies I had seen from him seemed to be anything special. Until I saw this movie. Now, I'm still not a Von Trier fanboy, but, goodness, I love this movie. It definitely is not for everyone. The style of the movie may be hard for some people to look past, and, admittedly, it was hard for me to digest for the first half-hour or so. But, after the first song "Cvalda", I was completely sold on this movie. I didn't even notice the grainy style of the old digital camera. It's a movie that is definitely more subtle than other Von Trier films. Now, it's not incredibly subtle, but there are some things I noticed the second time around that I didn't catch the first time. For example, during the song sequences, the colors are actually brighter and more vibrant, but it's almost invisible in a first viewing. At least, it was to me. I was raised on musicals, and this one does hold up in its own quirky way. The music is Bjork, and if you are familiar with her, then you will know what to expect. I didn't, and to hear music like this kind of took me aback. However, most of the singing is very good, and this movie completely sold me on Bjork's singing abilities, and I'm glad I was introduced to her through this movie. And, it is a very emotional movie. When it was over, me and my uncle (with whom I watched it with) just sat there in complete silence. Needless to say, the story and music and ending added up to make a fantastic movie. It was so impressive to me, that the very next day, I watched it again. The style is still somewhat odd to me, but it's grown on me. Not for everyone, but if want something that's experimental or emotional or both, check it out.

oxy milk Lars Von Trier's "Dancer In The Dark" is set in an isolated working class milieu, where we follow Selma (Björk), a Czech immigrant who's eye sight gradually deteriorates throughout the film. In the first 20 minutes, we instantly understand our protagonist's primary interests and ambitions: Gene (her son) and music. These two things carry her forthwith throughout the film, music especially, even when the odds gradually go against her. Dancer In The Dark is a story of betrayal and injustice, themes that were explored in Trier's previous film "Breaking The Waves". Selma's viscera manifests in her determination to sacrifice for what she loves, namely her son, so much show that she was willing to sacrifice her own life to ensure that the congenital eye disease that will inevitably effect her son will be cured with the money she saved. Despite the atrocities our protagonist witnesses, she maintains a sense of elation through her affinity with music. Riddled throughout the film are elaborate dance scenes which play out like musical dance numbers. Unfortunately, the songs aren't great and are tedious. They abruptly get in the way of the scenes that are taking place. The dance numbers and songs end up being the film's weakest point, excluding the song before 107 steps (which unfortunately is not on the official soundtrack for the film), in which our protagonists finds peace in singing to the sound of hymns coming from a church. This scene, aside from the last scene, is possibly the most powerful scene in the entire film. The jerky camera that is experienced for a great deal of the film is kept extremely still, and the audience is allowed to see our protagonist's emotional ascent from sorrow to euphoria. I can't say this for all the songs unfortunately. Like my aforesaid remarks, they are tedious and feel like left overs from Björk's debut record. Despite my gripes with the song, they do serve another purpose other than just killing time. As the atrocities of the film only worsen, the audience, like Selma, are just longing for the next musical dance number to appear to escape from the trauma, and thus these songs are effectively used as a comforting tool to distract the audience from remembering that even more atrocities await. This applies to Björk's character as well--a mere distraction. While acknowledging this, these songs last way too long and aren't enjoyable enough to justify their length. Speaking of the camera, the cinematography is consistently good despite the camera that jerks around on more than one occasion. It's not as bad as a Michael Bay film, however the awkward editing (which is most likely an artistic decision on Von Trier's part) becomes distracting at points. All the performances are generally well done, namely Björk's and Catherine Deneuve's. However, these actors don't shine until the latter half of the film. In the first 20 minutes, the jagged editing are especially present and Björk scolding Gene was especially laughable, however this is redeemed by her fantastic performance for the last 40-50 minutes or so. The final scene is a grotesque and agonizing scene, as the audience suffers as much as our protagonist. We see our beloved protagonist struggle for survival, find peace, and then meet their inevitable doom. This film may not live up to Von Trier's other masterpieces (Riget/Kingdom, Breaking The Waves, and Europa come to mind.) However, this film remains as a powerful naturalistic drama. This film isn't hard to like, alas it is hard to love.Rating: 7.5/10