I had never seen a Lars von Trier film before Antichrist, nor had I heard of the cult following or generally twisted context of his work. So when I started watching Antichrist, it only took the first 20 seconds to know I was in for a ride. Literally my thought train as the movie started went as so: “Hmmm, mmmmhmmm, mmmhmmmmm…Oh, well then. Let’s party.” You’ll know it when you see it. So I was on to my first von Trier film.


From what I have read online, people are decidedly divided into obsession and revulsion for Lars von Trier’s work, there exists no middle ground. Well, I am going to stubbornly stand in the middle with a slight slant towards the film instead of away. Let me put it bluntly: Antichrist is not for everyone, but if you are curious and have strong nerves you should see this film. The cinematography is amazing and it leaves you terrified in ways you did not know terror operated. There is one scene that is a simple shot of forest buzzing by a car; it unnerved me like nothing I had ever watched. The characters and acting are amazing, and despite all of the objectionable content the last scene is a pensive one that oddly brings it together. Willem Dafoe and Charlotte Gainsbourg (in the film simply He and She) are convincing, dynamic, and at times demonic. Everything is creative, and as you watch you really feel the confusion and frustration that He goes through.

But there is, to say the least, objectionable content in the movie. I have never been so vocal in a horror movie, but I could not contain myself in some cases. I can understand the need for symbolism but some of the content seems too far towards pure shock value. The audience is too busy fighting the urge to run to notice what’s going on in the movie. In addition to this I could not help but think that the ending scenes of the film relied more on gore and absurdity than the beautiful shots in the beginning. Then again, there is certainly a progression that is followed through the chapters and some sketches in the His notebook.

In the end, despite my belief that this movie deserves both fair viewing and a fair warning, most people know if they are going to stick through to the credits before they start. Some may say you need an open-mind to watch this. The truth is this movie is an open-mind of a terribly creative, inspired man. It’s exploration of the most intense of human emotions is strong from beginning to end, and as long as you don’t mind the detours through BLOODY HELL, you’ll probably enjoy this movie…just be warned.


Rating: You know more or less what you’re getting yourself into in the first few minutes, but that won’t stop you from screaming.

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, October 13th, 2009 at 4:09 pm and is filed under Movie Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.