Karry Best movie of this year hands down!

Alicia I love this movie so much

Spidersecu Don't Believe the Hype

Beanbioca As Good As It Gets

Maz Murdoch (asda-man) As a Lars Von Trier fan I thought it was about time that I took a look at his first three feature film and bought the 'Europe' or 'E' trilogy on Amazon (other retailers are available thank you please). Although Lars himself isn't a particularly likable character, his films are wonderfully distinguishable. Breaking the Waves and Dancer in the Dark are amongst my all-time favourites, and I find myself consistently drawn to his 'Depression' trilogy which imagines Charlotte Gainsbourg in various levels of mental distress. After watching The Element of Crime, it's clear to see how far Lars has progressed as a filmmaker.The Element of Crime is like watching one of The Simpson's being pulped to death and put into a blender, an incoherent yellowy mess. It opens with some interesting surreal imagery depicting a horse being pulled out of some water. It left me hoping for a nightmarish Lynchian journey and whilst it was certainly odd, I found myself wanting to float to actual dream land rather than compelled to watch the one presented on screen.I couldn't tell you what the film was about. The back of the DVD calls it a neo-noir about a cop tracking down a serial killer and that's about the gist I got as well. Some English bloke drives around in a beaten-up tin car and pointlessly encounters people. The dialogue is completely illogical and never makes sense, this means that you can't feel any sort of connection to the characters or care about what they're doing. The film is entirely interested in bizarre visuals and fancy camera movements.There's no denying the strong sense of style. The cluttered mise-en-scene and strange lighting creates a stark atmosphere, however this simply isn't enough to sustain a 100 minute movie. I'm afraid to see what Epidemic and Europa now have to offer, I can only hope that they're an improvement on this boring mess.

William O. Tyler Director Lars Von Trier's first feature length film, The Element of Crime, follows a former cop named Fisher, played by Michael Elphick, who is remembering the last case he worked on using unconventional methods to track down a serial killer known as the Lotto Murderer. As Fisher returns to the investigation, searching through his memories, everything is extremely eerie and surreal. The entire film, in fact, is like watching a dream. This world that he remembers is a dystopian film noir, complete with a femme fatale, a monochromatic styling, crazy plot twists and everything else the genre is known for, but all in Von Trier's unique style.First and foremost, this film is a visual feast. Perhaps it is even too much of a feast, as often is the case with first time experimental filmmakers, but there is definitely something to watch in every shot with such incredible cinematography. Brilliant shots, like looking down at a mirror so that you see both a face and feet all at once, jump at every edit. Color is very important, despite the fact that it is mostly a sort of sepia tone. It's a different take on the black and white noir style to have the entire film in a yellowish, orangish tint, and this coming before it became an overused Hollywood trick. Blacks and shadows are just as important as the colors, creating depth as light sources themselves live and move through the frames and every once in awhile a highlighted blue object will appear to add contrast and shake up your visual interest.Heightening the dreamlike state, the film unfolds in such a melodic way that it becomes hypnotizing. The editing keeps the ambiance flowing through from scene to scene. Often the dialogue of the film will purposely contradict itself, creating a little bit of confusion and causing a step back. It's like watching poetry where the feeling you get and the rhythm in which it's presented is just as important as what's actually happening, even if they don't always match. This is how the brain works, going back and forth sorting out our issues until we're finally resolved in the end.The Element of Crime is very similar to and even on par with another film noir with a science fiction slant, Jean-Luc Goddard's Alphaville. Both are mysterious and atmospheric, as any film noir should be, but these are different. They are heavier and darker in mood. The low, grumbling voice over heard throughout both creates a tension and an uneasy spine tingle that is not often found within the genre. Likewise, it's not hard to see where this movie may have influenced others. The City of Lost Children definitely seems to have taken some visual cues from here.You can see all of the early details that would come to be staples for the director in his career, including the overlaying fantasy aspects that makes his films otherworldly while still based in realism, as well as his love of trilogies, one of which, the Europa Trilogy which shows crisis situations set in a futuristic Europe, is started by this film. Von Trier spared no expense, or thought, on this endeavor and it really payed off and paved the way for a great artistic career. What a way to come full fledged into the industry with a debut feature like The Element of Crime.

dfwforeignbuff Forbrydelsens element 1984 the Element of Crime Von trier give us another like this one. Excellent 1984 Film noir I love this film and have seen it several times because it is so intrinsically different from any movie I had ever seen. I wish I had seen it on the big screen. It did show at the Inwood Theater in Dallas 1984 while I was living there,. I agree with some reviewers that the film does have some problems and faults but they do not bother me (the film is all style and tone but the plot is almost incomprehensible. the film is stylistically dazzling and mind boggling). I watched the film the 1st time and immediately watched it again because I could not believe what I saw the first screening. I don't recall every seeing such a dreamy dreamy dark surreal setting for a movie. really its just a hard boiled detective film in an extremely different package. Also called Forbrydelsens element 1984 it won a the Technical Grand Prize at the 1984 Cannes Film Festival. be sure and read the film walrus review of this film " film walrus---let me mention the most frequently cited complaints about The Element of Crime: its cold, emotionless surface, devoid of humanity and wickedly inaccessible.: I love this film it is one of my favorites. Anybody who has watched it with me has been speechless. I am surprised that is has not been on a film revival and reprinted new 35 mm print (or digital) and shown at festivals or mid night movies. for a debut film this film is astonishing.

Bene Cumb Lars von Trier is famous for his different approach in topics and with camera, and The Element of Crime is his first feature film, where his visions and working mode are visible already. However, having seen this film, I should admit that my wishes and purpose to watch topical films are different; well, either cop or criminal might have different considerations and all psychology stuff can be shown as well, but not together with deviating the viewers from a logical ending where unknown events become known and offender or offenders are revealed. In the film in question, the cop Fisher (decently performed by Michael Elphick) is eager to find out the truth, but his condition as "under an influence" and references to the past make the total film too slumberous and arid. Family dramas, for instance, are more watchable through distress and tardiness.However, it is definitely a film with a difference and admirers of Von Trier would enjoy it.