Taking refuge among the decent citizens of the small town of Dogville, the lovely Grace learns the truth of the saying that “nice guys finish last”.
The sleepy life of Dogville, a former mining town whose inhabitants are feeling the effects of the Great Depression, is stirred up by the dramatic arrival of a young stranger. The lovely Grace is on the run from gangsters and Tom Hanson (the first person she meets) offers her refuge. Because Tom is a local moral authority his fellow citizens agree to let Grace to stay for a while; in return for harbouring her the young woman offers her services. Although out of initial shyness few take advantage of her offer, when it appears that Grace is wanted by the police the locals become bolder and begin to require more and more work in order to compensate for the risk they are taking. The young woman, who gradually becomes a servant and even a slave when she tries to escape, discovers how relative are the decency and integrity of these God-fearing people. No one, however, suspects the secret that lies behind her escape from the gangsters. Lars von Trier said he took inspiration from the song “Pirate Jenny” from Brecht’s The Beggar’s Opera. A stylisation typical for Brechtian theatre is one of the building blocks of this remarkable, much talked about film – one of the greatest film experiences at this year’s Cannes festival (despite leaving without an award).
178 min / Color, 35 mm
Director Lars von Trier
/ Screenplay Lars von Trier
/ Dir. of Photography Anthony Dod Mantle
/ Editor Molly Malene Stensgaard
/ Producer Vibeke Windelov
/ Production Zentropa Entertainments ApS, co-production / koprodukce: Danish Film Institute, DR, Slot Machine, Arte France Cinema, France 3 Cinema, Canal+, Euroimages, Isabella Films, CoBo Fund, NPS, 4 & 1/2, Egmont Entertainment, Memfis, Film i Vest
/ Cast Nicole Kidman, Stellan Skarsgaard, Paul Bettany, Harriet Anderson, Lauren Bacall, Jean-Marc Barr, Blair Brown, James Caan, Patricia Clarkson, Jeremy Davies, Ben Gazzara, Philip Baker Hall, Siobhan Fallon Hogan, John Hurt
/ Contact Zentropa Entertainments ApS, Danish Film Institute, TrustNordisk, SPI International Czech Republic
Lars von Trier (b. 1956, Copenhagen) studied at the Danish Film School. He made over 50 commercials, music videos and TV movies before coming out with his first screen feature The Element of Crime (1984) awarded the Technical Prize at Cannes. He shot Epidemic in 1987 and Europa three years later, the latter awarded at Cannes with the Jury and Technical Prizes. Another great success came with Breaking the Waves, which in 1996 took the Grand Prix at Cannes, and Best Actress (Emily Watson) and Best Film at the European Film Awards. He competed again at Cannes in 1998 with The Idiots (Idioterne), shot in accordance with his Dogma 95 manifesto of film purity. The director also received praise for The Kingdom (Riget), conceived originally as a television series with elements of science fiction. Dancer in the Dark took the Palme d’Or at the 2000 Cannes IFF.
Zentropa Entertainments ApS
Filmbyen 24, DK - 2650, Hvidovre
Denmark
Phone: +45 36 868 920
Fax: +45 36 868 789
E-mail: [email protected]
Danish Film Institute
Gothersgade 55, 1123, Copenhagen
Denmark
Phone: +45 337 434 00
Fax: +45 337 434 01
E-mail: [email protected]
TrustNordisk
Filmbyen 22, 2650, Hvidovre
Denmark
Phone: +45 368 687 88
E-mail: [email protected]
SPI International Czech Republic
Branicka 1950/209, 140 00, Praha 4
Czech Republic
Phone: +420 261 216 318
Fax: +420 261 221 375
E-mail: [email protected]
Udo Kier
Actor
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