The Idiots

Can you joke about stuff like that? Being mentally retarded, having hardons, rubbing mayonnaise all over a pair of tits? Sure. If you have a sense of humor and the ability to see past the cheap tricks our dear friend Lars Trier throws our way. If you are faint of heart or some kind of religious nut you should stay clear. Otherwise, enjoy.

The build up for the last 5 minutes is just brilliant. And those last 5 minutes just gives it all. Very strong scene and it explains the purpose of the whole story. I say it again, brilliant!

I don't know what dogma 95 implies but suppose it has something to do with trying to be as realistic as possible. The movie looks like it is made with a simple video camera, including microphones and other cameras on the screen. Many shots were over-exposed. Also the actors sometimes played (or improvised?) so well that it looks like a documentary. And like often happens in a documentary, there is not a real plot or worked out characters. This is all well done, but it is also the problem I have with this film: most of the times as a spectator you can't forget it's not real. Often the events or the acting simply aren't convincing enough. On me it never had the impact that a good documentary can have. Von Trier should have lived for a couple of months in some kind of sect, institution or whatever and filmed really from the inside.

It is all in this film: each and every human asking about leading ones life, about being, about the possibility of living alone, inside an enclave, or within society. It is about freedom, happiness, and (maybe) impossibility of living freedom and happiness inside a society which gives people prosperity but cannot make them happy. It is a masterpiece of film because each and every question deals with our real lifes in late capitalism. And it makes me really sad meeting people who are not deeply touched by this film. How far away must they be from their inner idiots: i. e. their own real needs? I think this is the best film of the 1990's, and I am amused about, but do not give a damn about its envelope called dogma 95. Lars von Trier is the best living film director, I swear, and I am not a greenhorn with the film scene. Please forgive my bad english, I am just a german, and please please please watch this film.

This film will not be for everyone, but for those who like something other than the usual Hollywood stuff this is a treat. Although too long, this film is almost perfect and adheres to all of the 'rules' established by Dogma95. "The Idiots" starts as a comedy, but by the film's heartbreaking end it has turns into a powerful examination of the human condition. ...and society. Sad that it has taken close to two years to reach the US. As a matter of annoyance the US distributer has inserted censor tags over shots of male nudity.

Idioterne surely resides in the field of unconventional films, but, while this makes for a refreshing change, it's not an excuse for blurring the meaning and the object of the film. I did not find it an insightful look neither at our esoteric world nor at society. Of course it has its moments and in general it's worth seeing, but I wouldn't compare it with masterpieces of social and character study. I guess, just like it was an experiment for the protagonists, it was an experiment for van Trier. Both did not have clear results.

That is, the line between sane and insane. This is not easy to take. This is not easy to watch because you know deep down that you could do it yourself, if really needed. And yes, Denmark is a strange country, people are so free, maybe too free. This is not just a movie. I've always loved those. A quiet applause for the man, Von Trier. (clap clap)