233 replies to this topic

[Persona]

As Tyler1984 pointed out Here, von Trier's next film will be Planet Melancholia (apparently now shortened to simply Melancholia), and will begin shooting in the summer of 2010.

Oh, what the heck. Links:

The Europa Trilogy has only one threaded film at A&F: The Element of Crime (1984). The following two films in the trilogy are Epidemic (1987) and Zentropa (1991). I saw Epidemic in the theater four or five years ago and know I wrote about it, but can't find it. C'est la vie...

Medea was made for Danish TV in 1988 but is generally regarded in his film ourvre. No link, however, which is surprising. I know I either reviewed it or had a thread here at the forum, and I can find neither. (Perhaps by the grace of God, I know my review from years ago would've been horrid.)

Links to The Golden Heart Trilogy: Breaking The Waves (1996), The Idiots (1998), and no real A&F link to Dancer in the Dark (2000)...Breaking The Waves has pretty consistently made our Top 100 over the years.

Link to The Five Obstructions (2003).

Links to The Land of Opportunities Trilogy: Dogville and Someone Please Help Me With Dogville (2003), Manderlay (2005), and of course at this point there is no thread on the still-unproduced Wasington... Dogville is currently in our Top 100 at #72.

We don't know what happened to LVT's plans for a Dreyer/Gertrud doc, however I must include this link, as it is my Absolutely Most Favorite Time in life when I was told I was going straight to hell.

Link to The Boss of it All (2006), which I have yet to see.

Link to Advance Party, here referred to as The Advance Project, a von Trier influenced trilogy beginning with Red Road (2007). According to Wikipedia, the second film, Rounding Up Donkeys, directed by Morag McKinnon and written by Colin McLaren and Lone Scherfig, is completed and will be released in 2009. Plans for the third one are rumoured to be late 2009 filming.

Link to Antichrist (2009).

LVT only makes one promise regarding Melancholia: "No more happy endings!"

Edited by Persona, 11 February 2011 - 09:04 AM.

[Overstreet]

Starring Penelope Cruz! I smell an Oscar.

Edited by Overstreet, 09 February 2010 - 01:49 PM.

[Persona]

Now that is an interesting development.

LvT vs. Almodóvar in a cage match! Who wins?!

[Overstreet]

Well, crap... maybe not.

Quote

According to the Hollywood Reporter's Heat Vision blog, she's in negotiations to reunite with Nine director Rob Marshall and Blow co-star Johnny Depp in Pirates of the Caribbean 4.

Edited by Overstreet, 10 February 2010 - 04:48 PM.

[Peter T Chattaway]

Link to the actual Heat Vision blog post in question. (Go to the source, people! The source, I say!)

[Tyler]

Persona, on 09 February 2010 - 02:28 PM, said:

Now that is an interesting development.

LvT vs. Almodóvar in a cage match! Who wins?!

I'd bet LvT fights dirty, but he probably has all sorts of arbitrary rules that constrain him to fight in an unorthodox and occasionally nausea-inducing way, too. I'll put my money on Pedro.

[Persona]

Heh

[Overstreet]

Good lord.

Lars Von Trier Taps Dunst For `Melancholia'

I prefer this headline:

Lars Von Trier's newest leading lady is Kirsten Dunst. Congratulations and sorry, Kirsten Dunst

[Overstreet]

Update: More concern from Vulture:

Quote

After Penélope Cruz passed in favor of a nice Caribbean vacation, Kirsten Dunst stepped in to play the lead role in Lars Von Trier's upcoming Melancholia, a sci-fi disaster film in which — knowing the director's track record with actresses — she will presumably be maimed, hung, assaulted, or have ghastly things inflicted upon her genitals. Good luck, Kirsten!

Edited by Overstreet, 15 April 2010 - 06:57 PM.

[Persona]

I blame all of the recent events on the fact that I prayed for Lars during his depression when he swore he'd not make a film again, and now look. at. the. Great. Dane. GO!~

"science fiction disaster movie" Hmmmm. He couldn't just make a sci-fi film but had to add "disaster" (as if we didn't already know...)

[Persona]

Harry says Charlotte is back, too:

Quote

Melancholia is a sci-fi disaster film that will shoot July through September in Southern Sweden, with Charlotte Gainsbourg, Kiefer Sutherland, Charlotte Rampling, Alexander Skarsgaard, Stellan Skarsgaard and Udo Kier also attached to roles.

[Persona]

Pic of Kiefer in Sweden. They began filming earlier this week.

The blog quotes LvT as saying that the new picture looks like sh*t. "Maybe not quite as much as sh*t as the previous one."

Edited by Persona, 28 July 2010 - 05:36 PM.

[Tyler]

Persona, on 28 July 2010 - 05:33 PM, said:

Pic of Kiefer in Sweden. They began filming earlier this week.

The blog quotes LvT as saying that the new picture looks like sh*t. "Maybe not quite as much as sh*t as the previous one."

Is it a coincidence that the picture is formatted like a demotivational poster?

[Persona]

It's those freaking socialists.

Isn't it fun to read that article through the google translator?

"And the planned 45-minute news conference declined to just 20 as newspapers, web, television and radio from most of Europe gave ævred.

It quickly became clear that von Trier does not intend to tell what 'Melancholia' seems to be about, except that 'there is a wedding' and that 'there is a planet that whirls toward the ground .. . and - hmmm ...:

'Two sisters who removes from one another.

'Melancholia' is the studio has been described as a disaster movie, like 'Antichrist' up to the premiere was called a thriller, but was hardly in any conventional sense.

"But however as shit '
A comet will, more or less, collide with the planet, but not too many will die.

At the very least the film does not show too many die, it appeared."

[Persona]

Dunst On set: "There's poetry in the way he tortures women." (Translated from English to Danish and back to English through one of those weird translators again...)

Jesper Christensen added to cast... Story Here.

Edited by Persona, 13 October 2010 - 12:12 PM.

[Tyler]

1. Kiefer Sutherland.
2. Torture scenes.

The only logical conclusion is that Lars is actually directing the 24 movie.

[Peter T Chattaway]

Von Trier reveals end of new film
Film Director Lars von Trier has now revealed a bit of the plot of his new film “Melancholia” that is due to open in cinemas in 2011.
So far von Trier has been so tight-lipped that it was a genuine scandal this summer when the reclusive director invited the world press to the shooting in the Swedish town of Trollhättan and told them only that the film is about two sisters and a planet heading for earth.
The latter event happens at the very beginning of the film, according to Lars von Trier in a new book entitled “Geniet” (The Genius ) and authored by Politiken Journalist Nils Thorsen.
“In ‘Melancholia’ I start with the end. Because what is interesting is not what happens but how it happens! So we begin by seeing the world being crushed, then we can tell the story afterwards,” he says.
“In this way you don’t have to sit and form theories about what will happen, but can delve down into some other levels and become interested in the pictures and the universe – that’s what I imagine.” . . .
Politiken, October 14

[Persona]

We have a few release dates, although I don't know why they're so varied: Denmark (May), UK (July), France (November). Looks like I might have to fly to England this summer to see it with Matt.

Also Filmdates UK has an updated synopsis:

Quote

Lars Von Trier has been rather tight-lipped about his new film Melancholia. He famously pronounced no more happy endings! and has slowly detailed a plot about two sisters (Kirsten Dunst and Charlotte Gainsbourg), one of whom is preparing to marry Alexander Skarsgard. The elder Stellan Skarsgard is in the cast, along with John Hurt and Kiefer Sutherland.

Now weve got a lot more information, including basic details about the event that will open the film: the world being crushed.
In the book Genius, Lars Von Trier had a few things to say about Melancholia as quoted in Politiken:

In Melancholia I start with the end. Because what is interesting is not what happens but how it happens! So we begin by seeing the world being crushed, then we can tell the story afterwards In this way you dont have to sit and form theories about what will happen, but can delve down into some other levels and become interested in the pictures and the universe thats what I imagine.

Sounds like the movie will open with that big event and then well wind back to see things leading up to it. So well have a window seat as people freak out and try to deal with the planets impending doom.

And, as the director explains, Kirsten Dunst plays the depressive one fo the two sisters, who pushes everything away after being married. Politiken explains that after hearing her young nephews anxiety about the impending planetary collision, she positions herself in between the disaster and the boy and tells him about a special cave where he can be safe.

Some of the emotions in the film come from Lars Von Triers memory of childhood, when he was plagued with fears of nuclear war.

[Thom]

Hmm...England for von Trier, intercontinental adventure sounds about right for you next LvT viewing. Fortunately for me, I am certain this will have a Chicago release and I will see it opening night.

There is something about the raw and base uncovering of the human soul that turns a von Trier film from a gaper's delay to the reflective state that a funeral service brings about.

[Persona]

Thom, on 09 February 2011 - 07:23 AM, said:

Hmm...England for von Trier, intercontinental adventure sounds about right for you next LvT viewing. Fortunately for me, I am certain this will have a Chicago release and I will see it opening night.

There is something about the raw and base uncovering of the human soul that turns a von Trier film from a gaper's delay to the reflective state that a funeral service brings about.

That is a great way to put it. I just used the word "hypnotic" in describing the new "OtR" album, but I realize now that the reason I used the word in the first place is because I watched Zentropa last night.