Dogville (2004)
Grade:A-
Go Nicole!
In his review of Dogville, Adam Cadre wrote something to the effect of knowing that he was watching a great film, but not quite being able to pinpoint why. I think I agree with him. But, here’s my attempt to define why this is a great film.
Firstly, let me make an argument against those who despised the movie (and there were a lot of critics who did). This film has been called an attack on American ideals (just watch the end credits) and director Lars von Trier has been very vocally anti-American. However, watching the film, I didn’t exactly see this. It was only at the end credits that everything clicked and what critics have said made sense. This is an attack on America, but I didn’t much mind it.
The film tells the story of Grace (Nicole Kidman, again fantastic in a difficult role), who we meet in the first half hour fleeing from gangsters. She arrives in the city of Dogville, where they agree to hide her in exchange for some help around the town. The 15 members of Dogville all agree to the plan and Grace sets out to help each family for an hour a day.
Well, things just go straight downhill from there. Wanted posters get put up requesting information about Grace. They increase here work load and cut her pay. This town eventually treats Grace so cruelly that the film is almost unwatchable.
So, I suppose Lars von Trier is commenting on the way that America treats its citizens? Or how America treats immigrants? I’m not sure. Perhaps this was the weakest part of a very strong film. I didn’t focus too much on the political message of the film because, frankly, I couldn’t discern it completely. The message is quite clear in the end credits, where different photographs of various suffering people are played behind the credits with David Bowie’s Young Americans playing.
So, as a political message, this film failed. My views weren’t changed.
From every other aspect, this film is a masterpiece. The acting is universally fantastic with Nicole Kidman sitting atop the heap of fine acting. She handles the final sequence so perfectly that we buy her actions and still feel sympathetic towards her character. Considering what she does in the final act of the film, this is no easy task. The rest of the cast is universally excellent, but von Trier has a great cast of actors to work with. Lauren Baccall, Paul Bettany, Cholë Sevigny, Patricia Clarkson, and others. They’re all very good.
The look of the film is wholly original as well. The entire film is shot on a stage with chalk outlines for buildings. People go in and out of buildings by opening and closing non-existent doors, and there are few props. Even the gooseberry bushes are a chalk outline. This didn’t feel like a gimmick, and I got used to the look of the film fairly quickly.
The film is three hours long. Boy did it feel long. The film didn’t drag anywhere, but rather kept a fairly slow pace for its entirety. The film sort of was on a steaty plateau of greatness for the first two and a half hours, then dipped a bit, then dipped a bit, then shot back up with the final sequence, then shot straight down when the metaphor of dog and dogville was pushed way too hard (including the last shot) and the credits just made for a confusing end.
Bottom Line:
Sure it’s anti-American, but who cares? Dogville effectively says its message and does so in a visually interesting way with talented actors at the top of their game, especially Nicole Kidman.
© 2004-2009 Ben Waldorf. Posted December 22, 2004. IMDB