ANTICHRIST LARS VON TRIER in Competition
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CONSPIRING WITH THE DEMONS SEASON FOR SHORT FILMS THAT THING CALLED ... Lars von Trier is back in Cannes. His highly antici- Dorte Bengtson’s animation The Sylpphid is selected A diva in distress, an adolescent in rage, a forbidden pated Antichrist featuring Charlotte Gainsbourg and for Cinéfondation, Rúnar Rúnarsson’s Anna is show- embrace. Difficult love in various forms fuels the stories Willem Dafoe is a Gothic horror tale that unfolds in a cased in Directors’ Fortnight, and Daniel Borgman’s by first-time feature film directors Martin Pieter Zandvliet, woodland scenery possessed by darkness. Lars and Peter is running in the short film competition. Morten Giese and Nicolo Donato. PAGE 3 PAGE 28 & 35 PAGE 16 l1l FILM IS PUBLISHED# BY THE DANISH66 FILM INSTITUTE / May 2009 ANTICHRIST LARS VON TRIER in COMPEtitiON PAGE 2 / FILM#66 / CANNES SPECIAL ISSUE l1l FILM#66/ CANNES ISSUE INSIDE #/.30)2).'ô7)4(ô4(%ô$%-/.3 3%!3/.ô&/2ô3(/24ô&),-3ô 4(!4ô4().'ô#!,,%$ô ,ARSôVONô4RIERôISôBACKôINô#ANNESô(ISôHIGHLYôANTICI $ORTEô"ENGTSONSôANIMATIONô4HEô3YLPPHIDôISôSELECTEDô !ôDIVAôINôDISTRESS ôANôADOLESCENTôINôRAGE ôAôFORBIDDENô PATEDô!NTICHRISTôFEATURINGô#HARLOTTEô'AINSBOURGôANDô FORô#IN¯FONDATION ô2NARô2NARSSONSô!NNAôISôSHOW EMBRACEô$IFkCULTôLOVEôINôVARIOUSôFORMSôFUELSôTHEôSTORIESô 7ILLEMô$AFOEôISôAôGOTHICôHORRORôTALEôTHATôUNFOLDSôINôAô CASEDôINô$IRECTORSô&ORTNIGHT ôANDô$ANIELô"ORGMANSô BYôkRST TIMEôFEATUREôkLMôDIRECTORSô-ARTINô0IETERô:ANDVLIET ô A HEARSE HEADING HOME / IN COMPETITION WOODLANDôSCENERYôPOSSESSEDôBYôDARKNESS ,ARSôANDô0ETERôISôRUNNINGôINôTHEôSHORTôkLMôCOMPETITION -ORTENô'IESEôANDô.ICOLOô$ONATOô ô 0!'%ô 0!'%ôôô 0!'%ô Lars von Trier’s Gothic horror filmAntichrist has created a buzz even before reach- l1l ing the red carpet. Writer Knud Romer, who appeared in The Idiots, in conversa- &),-ô)3ô05",)3(%$ô"9ô4(%ô$!.)3(ô&),-ô).34)454%ôô-#66!9ô tion with von Trier about the film’s extreme imagery. PAGE 3 ANTICHRIST LOVE-HATE RELATIONSHIP LARS VON TRIER IN COMPETITION The stories of von Trier’s relationship to his actors is the stuff that myths are made of. Von Trier’s approach has changed radically over the years. Charlotte Director Lars von Trier Photo: Christian Geisnæs Gainsbourg and Willem Dafoe are the two stars in Antichrist. PAGE 9 KINDRED SPIRITS “One of the most complicated tasks I have ever had.” Von Trier’s cinematogra- pher Anthony Dod Mantle, lately in sky-high praise for his work on Slumdog Millionaire, talks about his work and his collaboration with von Trier. PAGE 10 ZENTROPA FAMILY Zentropa has had international offices ever since Lars von Trier’s Breaking the Waves. Now the company is seeking to play a more active part abroad. PAGE 13 Deliver Us from Evil Photo: Per Anders Jørgensen DANTE’S INFERNO IN WEST JUTLAND A western mixed with Greek tragedy – Ole Bornedal’s Deliver Us from Evil about human nature driven berserk is hard to pinpoint genre-wise. PAGE 14 3 X FEATURE FILM DEBUTS FILM#66 / CANNES FILM presents three films by first-timers Martin Pieter Zandvliet, Morten Giese May 2009 and Nicolo Donato – three dramas fuelled by difficult love. PAGE 16 Applause Photo: Carsten Villadsen GUERILLA-STYLE FILMMAKING PUBLISHED BY Danish Film Institute EDITOR Susanna Neimann Nicolas Winding Refn was deliberately looking for harsh locations for his EDITORIAL TEAM Lars Fiil-Jensen, coming film Valhalla Rising, shot in the Scottish highlands. PAGE 22 Annemarie Hørsman, Vicki Synnott TRANSLATIONS Glen Garner PRODUCER ON THE MOVE DESIGN Rasmus Koch Studio AD Morten C. Bak Christian Potalivo, this year’s Danish Producer on the Move, has a passion for TYPE Cendia, Millton, Akzidenz-Grotesk good stories. PAGE 23 PAPER Munken Lynx 100 g PRINTED BY Schultz Grafisk ADVENTUROUSNESS AND FLEXIBILITY CIRCULATION 6,500 ISSN 1399-2813 (print version) Danish films had a great year at the boxoffice in 2008. Henrik Bo Nielsen, CEO ISSN 1903-7511 (online version) Valhalla Rising Photo: Dean Rogers of the Danish Film Institute, stresses the importance of an industry unafraid to COVER Lars von Trier’s Antichrist take risks. PAGE 24 Photo: framegrab BIGGER ISN’T ALWAYS BETTER / ANIMATION SPECIAL More available techniques, a growing talent mass and well-proven training FILM is published by the Danish Film Institute programmes are starting to show in Danish animation. FILM presents an area (DFI) prior to the festivals in Berlin, Cannes and Amsterdam. that is booming both artistically and commercially. PAGE 26 THE SYLPPHID / CINÉFONDATION / ANIMATION SPECIAL The Danish Film Institute is the national agency responsible for supporting and encouraging film “You can create the freakiest worlds in animation.” Selected for Cinéfondation is and cinema culture. The Institute’s operations Love and Rage Photo: Rolf Konow Dorte Bengtson’s graduation film The Sylpphid. PAGE 28 extend from participation in the development and production of feature films, shorts and documentaries, over distribution and marketing, THE APPLE & THE WORM / ANIMATION SPECIAL to managing the national film archive and the cinematheque. Anders Morgenthaler, who made a forceful debut in 2006 with Princess, is finishing his 2D-animated children’s comedy, The Apple & the Worm. PAGE 30 DANISH FILM INSTITUTE 2 X SHORT FILMS / IN COMPETITION & DIRECTORS’ FORTNIGHT GoTHeRsGADe 55 Daniel Borgman’s Lars and Peter is in competition, while Rúnar Rúnarsson’s DK-1123 CoPeNHAGeN K, DeNMARK T +45 3374 3400 Anna is selected for Directors’ Fortnight – two visually strong stories about the [email protected] emotional lives of a boy and a girl. PAGE 35 The Sylpphid. Framegrab ANTICHRIST / DIRECTOR LARS VON TRIER / INTERVIEW / FILM#66 / PAGE 3 Antichrist Photo: Christian Geisnæs A HEARSE HEADING HOME Over the years, Lars von Trier has brought BY KNUD ROMER fear and paranoia come rushing back when a hearse home six Cannes awards. Now the director overtakes me on the highway. is back with his Palme d’Or contestant “You look like a priest,” von Trier tells me, as The prospect of interviewing von Trier is a bit Antichrist about a grieving couple that we shake hands outside the screening room on unnerving. A master of irony and sarcasm, he can retreats to their cabin “Eden” in the the Filmbyen lot where I’ll be viewing his latest twist any conversation around and make it about woods, hoping to repair their broken work, Antichrist. The film is shrouded in secrecy you and your sorest spots. A few days later, I wait hearts and troubled marriage. Knud and so many security precautions that I feel like for him at Filmbyen, and they tell me he’s late. Romer, who appeared in von Trier’s The I’m attending a screening in the gold vault at the Above his office doors is written, in blood-dripping, Idiots in 1998, talked with the director Treasury. “Well, that’s because I’m here to save red letters: “Chaos reigns”. An hour later, they tell in early April, when he had just put the your immortal soul,” I quip. Ninety minutes later me he wants to do the interview at his house, 20 finishing touches on his Gothic horror tale. I leave my seat, deeply shaken. Driving home, the kilometres north of there. I’m so nervous I’m afraid PAGE 4 / FILM#66 / ANTICHRIST / DIRECTOR LARS VON TRIER / INTERVIEW I’ll have an accident. Coming up the narrow road to mentally ill woman to the point of death in order Knud Romer: You did a number of conceptual films his house overlooking a stream, I ram my car into a to produce images of sadomasochist desire and where you “obstructed” yourself. Now von Trier, the fence and some rocks on the parking lot and go to voyeuristically satisfy his sexuality. My paranoia is out maker of apocalyptic images, is back. Why did you do the wrong house before I finally hear a voice calling of control – frankly, I’m afraid I’ll be next! the first thing, and why are you back? to me from an open door, “Knud, over here!” I wasn’t, of course. It wasn’t the Antichrist I LvT: It’s all images to me – even if there are Von Trier is graciousness personified. His wife, met there in the basement but the filmmaker at chalk lines on the floor. But I … (hesitates) I Bente, has made waffles and herbal tea – the two most his most sympathetic and open – to the point of was feeling down, depressed – I really hit rock comforting things on earth. I cling to both, when nakedness, even – who lives life on the edge of bottom – and I doubted that I would ever be able I realise we’ll be doing the interview downstairs, an acute awareness of death in order to create the to make another film. But I went back to some in the basement, on two beanbag chairs, with von apocalyptic visual richness that makes Antichrist of the material from my youth. I was really into Trier dressed only in black socks, loose-fitting black such a masterpiece. An hour and a half later I regret Strindberg back then, especially Strindberg as a underwear and a black T-shirt. I’m suddenly unsure that I’m not a better interviewer. It’s my first time, person. He was amazing. And so I tried to do a film about what’s really going to happen – more so actually, and I talk too much. On the way out, I do – I never talked about this before, it’s hard to put because I intend to discuss how, like so many other what isn’t done: I, very gingerly, hug von Trier to into words – so I tried to do a film where I had to great filmmakers, he keeps making the same film show my thanks. Back in the car, my nervousness throw reason overboard a little bit. over and over again in different, increasingly radical and fear and paranoia drain away, and I overtake KR: ”Chaos reigns”.