Wikipedia

Antichrist(film)

Not to be confused withThe Antichrist (film).

Antichrist(stylized asANTICHRIS♀) is a 2009art horror film[5]written and directed byLars von Trier.It starsWillem DafoeandCharlotte Gainsbourgas a married couple who experience the accidental death of their infant son, after which they retreat to a cabin in the woods to grieve, where the man experiences strange visions and the woman manifests increasingly violent sexual behavior andsadomasochism.The narrative is divided into a prologue, four chapters, and an epilogue.

Antichrist
Theatrical release poster
Directed byLars von Trier
Written byLars von Trier
Produced byMeta Louise Foldager
Starring
CinematographyAnthony Dod Mantle
Edited by
Music byKristian Eidnes Andersen
Production
companies
Distributed byNordisk Film Distribution(Denmark/Sweden)
Les Films du Losange(France)[2]
MFA+ Film Distribution (Germany)[2]
Lucky Red (Italy)[2]
Gutek Film (Poland)[3]
Release dates
  • 18 May 2009(2009-05-18)(Cannes)
  • 20 May 2009(2009-05-20)(Denmark)
  • 10 September 2009(2009-09-10)(Germany)
Running time
108 minutes[4]
Countries
  • Denmark
  • France
  • Germany
  • Italy
  • Poland
  • Sweden
LanguageEnglish
Budget$5 million
Box office$7.4 million

Written in 2006 while von Trier was hospitalized due to a significant episode ofclinical depression,the film was largely influenced by his own struggles with depression andanxiety.Filming took place primarily in Germany during the late summer of 2008, and was a Danish production co-produced by companies from France, Germany, Italy, Poland, and Sweden.[6]

After its premiere at the2009 Cannes Film Festival,where Gainsbourg wonBest Actress,Antichristimmediately received polarizing feedback; critics generally praised its artistic execution, but remained strongly divided regarding its substantive merit. Other awards won by the film include theBodil Award for Best Danish Film,Robert Award for Best Danish Film,Nordic Council Film Prizefor Best Nordic Film, and theEuropean Film Awardfor Best Cinematography. The film is dedicated to Soviet filmmakerAndrei Tarkovsky.

Antichristis the first film in von Trier's unofficially titledDepression Trilogy.It was followed in 2011 byMelancholiaand then byNymphomaniacin 2013.[7]

Plot

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Chapters
Prologue
One: Grief
Two: Pain (Chaos Reigns)
Three: Despair (Gynocide)
Four: The Three Beggars
Epilogue

An unnamed couple have sex in theirSeattleapartment while their unsupervised infant son, Nic, climbs up to the bedroom window and falls out of it to his death. The mother collapses at the funeral and spends the next month in the hospital crippled withatypical grief.The father, a therapist, is skeptical of the psychiatric care she is receiving and takes it upon himself to treat her personally withpsychotherapy.She reveals that her second greatest fear is nature, prompting him to tryexposure therapy.They hike to their isolated cabin in the woods, calledEden,where she spent time with Nic the previous summer while writing a thesis criticizinggynocide.During the hike, he encounters a deer that shows no fear of him and has a stillborn fawn hanging halfway out of her.

During sessions of psychotherapy, the woman becomes increasingly grief-stricken and manic, often demanding forceful sex. The area becomes increasingly sinister to the man; acorns rapidly pelt the metal roof, he wakes up with a hand covered in ticks that have become swollen with his blood, and he encounters a self-disembowelingred foxthat tells him "chaos reigns." In the dark attic, the man finds the woman's thesis studies, which include violent portraits ofwitch huntsand a scrapbook in which her writing becomes increasingly frantic and illegible. She reveals that, while writing, she came to believe that all women are inherently evil. The man reprimands her for this and, in a frenzied moment, they have violent sex at the base of an ominous dead tree where bodies are intertwined within the exposed roots. He suspects thatSatanis her greatest hidden fear.

Upon viewing Nic's autopsy and photos the woman took of him while they stayed at Eden, the man becomes aware that she had been systematically putting Nic's shoes on the wrong feet, resulting in afoot deformity.She attacks him in the shed, accuses him of planning to leave her, initiates sex with him, and then smashes a large block of wood onto his erect penis, causing him to lose consciousness. She then masturbates him until he ejaculates blood. She drills a hole through his leg, bolting a heavygrindstonethrough the wound, and tosses the wrench she used under the cabin. The man awakens alone; unable to loosen the bolt, he hides by dragging himself into a deep foxhole at the base of the dead tree. Following the sound of a crow he found buried alive in the hole, the woman locates and attacks him before partially burying him.

Night falls. Now remorseful, the woman digs up the man but cannot remember where the wrench is. She helps him back to the cabin, where she tells him that only "when the Three Beggars arrive" can he die. The woman recounts that she saw Nic climbing up to the window on the night of his death, but did not act, displaying her perceived evil. In the cabin,she cuts off her clitoris.The two are then visited by the crow (symbol of despair), the deer (symbol of grief), and the fox (symbol of pain), referred to as the Three Beggars. A hailstorm begins, and it was earlier revealed that women accused of witchcraft had been known to have the power to summon hailstorms. When he finds the wrench under the cabin's floorboards, she attacks him with scissors, but he manages to unbolt the grindstone. Finally free, he strangles her to death, then burns her body on apyre.

The man limps from the cabin and eats wild berries, as the Three Beggars look on, now translucent and glowing. Reaching the top of a hill, under a brilliant light, he watches in awe as hundreds of women in antiquated clothes come towards him with their faces blurred as they walk past him through the forest.

Cast

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  • Willem Dafoeas an unnamed married man, credited as "He." Dafoe also voiced the fox that says “Chaos reigns.”
  • Charlotte Gainsbourgas an unnamed woman married to the man, credited as "She"
  • Storm Acheche Sahlstrøm as Nic, the couple's toddler son who dies in the beginning of the film

Analysis

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Nature and religion

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Film scholar Magdalena Zolkos interpretsAntichristas an "origins story", citing its unnamed characters and setting—a woods called Eden—as primary reasons.[8]Zolkos's interpretation of the film aligns with that of scholar Joanne Bourke, who cites the film as a retelling ofAbrahamic origins"framed as a question."[1]The couple's entrance into the woods and arrival at Eden "initiates a cinematic restaging of the myths of origins."[9]The woman's statement made to her husband—that nature is "Satan's church" —suggests a "triadic nexus of nature, demonic force and the death of the child."[10]Zolkos characterizes this nexus as being made of three "separate, psychic events: the inscrutable and threatening surroundings of the forest; her readings in the history of religious misogyny; and an accident when she loses the child in the woods a year before his death."[10]

Zolkos also notes the film as a "story of parental loss and the mourning and despair that follows."[1]

Depression and mental illness

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While the film interweaves multiple themes in Zolkos's reading, she suggests that the film is fundamentally a "very personal and revealing film—interwoven withidiomsand images that document von Trier's struggle with serious psychiatric disorder, and highly informed by his experience of cognitive behaviour and exposure therapy,shamanismandJungianpsychoanalysis. "[11]Von Trier himself commented on the experience of making the film as being a "fun" way of working through his own depression.[12]Von Trier considers the film the first of his "Depression Trilogy", followed byMelancholia(2011) andNymphomaniac(2013).[13]

Scholar Amy Simmons notes that the film's aesthetic components "transcend categories, and as such, his work cannot be reduced to any one message."[14]She considers the film a "genuinely radical and unflinching account of human relationships."[15]Robert Sinnerbrink interprets the film (along withMelancholiaandNymphomaniac) as engaging with human responses topsychological trauma.[16]He explains: "In each case, there is a central female protagonist whose melancholic responses to this central trauma open up a space of subjective but also aesthetic-expressive engagement... InAntichrist,it is evident in the woman's intense anxiety and depressive withdrawal expressed through the neo-romantic landscape and supernaturalist elements of the forest to which she and her partner have retreated. "[17]

Production

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Development

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Lars von Trier, the director and screenwriter ofAntichrist,in 2011

Von Trier began writingAntichristin 2006 while being hospitalized for depression.[18]Von Trier conceived the film as ahorror film,as he felt it allowed for "a lot of very, very strange images."[19]He had recently seen several contemporary Japanese horror films such asRingandDark Water,from which he drew inspiration.[19]Another basic idea came from a documentary von Trier saw about the original forests of Europe. In the documentary the forests were portrayed as a place of great pain and suffering as the different species tried to kill and eat each other. Von Trier was fascinated by the contrast between this and the view of nature as a romantic and peaceful place. Von Trier said: "At the same time that we hang it on our walls over the fireplace or whatever, it represents pureHell."[20]In retrospect he said that he had become unsure whetherAntichristreally could be classified as a horror film, because "it's not so horrific... we didn't try so hard to do shocks, and that is maybe why it is not a horror film. I took [the horror genre] more as an inspiration, and then this strange story came out of it."[19]

The title was the first thing that was written for the film.[21]Antichristwas originally scheduled for production in 2005, but its executive producerPeter Aalbæk Jensenaccidentally revealed the film's planned revelation: that earth was created by Satan and not byGod.Von Trier was furious and decided to delay the shoot so he could rewrite the script.[22]

In 2007, von Trier announced that he was suffering from depression, and that it was possible that he never would be able to make another film. "I assume thatAntichristwill be my next film. But right now I don't know, "he told the Danish newspaperPolitiken.[23]During an early casting attempt, English actors who had come toCopenhagenhad to be sent home, while von Trier was crying because his poor condition did not allow him to meet them.[24]

The post-depression version of the script was to some extent written as an exercise for von Trier, to see if he had recovered enough to be able to work again. Von Trier has also made references toAugust Strindbergand hisInfernoCrisis in the 1890s, comparing it to his own writing under difficult mental circumstances: "wasAntichristmyInfernoCrisis? "[21]Several notable names appear in the credits as having assisted von Trier in the writing. Danish writer and directorsPer FlyandNikolaj Arcelare listed as script consultants, andAnders Thomas Jensenas story supervisor. Also credited are researchers dedicated to fields including "misogyny", "anxiety", "horror films" and "theology".[25]Von Trier himself is aCatholicconvert and intensely interested inChristiansymbolism andtheology.[26]

Production was led by von Trier's Copenhagen-based companyZentropa.Co-producers were Sweden'sFilm i Väst,Italy's Lucky Red and France's Liberator Productions, Slot Machine and Arte France. TheDanish Film Institutecontributed with a financial support of$1.5 million and Filmstiftung Nordrhein-Westfalen in Germany with $1.3 million. The total budget was around $5 million.[27]

Pre-production

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Props for the more violent scenes were provided by the company Soda ApS, and made in their workshop inNørrebro,Copenhagen.Plaster castswere made of Willem Dafoe's leg and the female "porno double's" vulva. A plastic baby with authentic weight was made for the opening sequence. Pictures found usingGoogle Image Searchhad to serve as models for the stillborn deer, and a nylonstockingwas used ascaul.The vulva prop was constructed with its inner parts detachable for easy preparation if several takes would be needed.[28]Czech animal trainer Ota Bares, who had collaborated with parts of the crew in the 2005 filmAdam's Apples,was hired early on and given instructions about what tasks the animals must be able to perform. The fox, for example, was taught to open its mouth on a given command to simulate speaking movements.[29]

To get into the right mood before filming started, bothWillem DafoeandCharlotte Gainsbourgwere shownAndrei Tarkovsky'sMirrorfrom 1975. Dafoe was also shown Von Trier's own 1998 filmThe Idiots,and GainsbourgThe Night Porterto studyCharlotte Rampling's character.[30]Dafoe also met therapists working withcognitive behavioral therapyas well as being present at actual sessions ofexposure therapyand studying material on the topic.[31]

Casting

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Dafoe at the Toronto International Film Festival, 2009
Gainsbourg at the Cannes Film Festival, 2009

Dafoe, who had previously worked with Lars von Trier inManderlay(2005), was cast as "He" after contacting von Trier and asking what he was working on at the moment. He received the script forAntichrist,although he was told that von Trier's wife was skeptical about asking a renowned actor like Dafoe to do such an extreme role. Dafoe accepted the part, later explaining its appeal to him: "I think the dark stuff, the unspoken stuff is more potent for an actor. It's the stuff we don't talk about, so if you have the opportunity to apply yourself to that stuff in a playful, creative way, yes I'm attracted to it."[31]The voice of the talking fox was also supplied by Dafoe, although the recording was heavily manipulated.[20]

In casting the role of "She", actressEva Greenhad been initially approached for the female lead. According to von Trier, Green was determined to appear in the film, but her agents refused to allow her. The unsuccessful casting attempt took two months of the pre-production process. Eventually, Gainsbourg expressed interest in the role, and by von Trier's words she was very eager to get cast: "Charlotte came in and said, 'I'm dying to get the part no matter what.' So I think it was a decision she made very early and she stuck to it. We had no problems whatsoever."[32]Gainsbourg recalled upon first meeting von Trier that she had "known his films", but knew "very little about the man himself", and noted his presence as being "filled with anxiety" upon their first meeting.[33]She also initially expressed worry over the film's more emotional sequences, particularly surrounding her character'spanic attacksand anxiety, as they were not things she had experienced in her own life.[33]

Filming

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The forests ofRhein-Sieg-Kreisin Germany stood in for mountainous regions inWashington state,U.S., where the film is set.

Filming took 40 days to finish, from 20 August to the end of September 2008. The film was shot in theGerman stateofNorth Rhine-Westphalia.Locations were used inRhein-Sieg-Kreis,part of theCologne region(including rural areas in Nutscheid)[34]andWuppertal.It was the first film by von Trier to be entirely filmed in Germany.[35]The fictional setting of the film, however is, near Seattle, USA. The film was shot on digital video, primarily usingRed Onecameras in 4Kresolution.The slow-motion sequences were shot with a Phantom V4 in 1,000 frames per second. Filming techniques involveddollys,hand-held camerawork and computer-programmed "motion control", of which the team had previous experience from Von Trier's 2006 filmThe Boss of It All.One shot, where the couple is having sex under a tree, was particularly difficult since the camera would switch from being hand-held to motion controlled in the middle of the take.[29]

Von Trier had not recovered completely from his depression when filming started. He repeatedly excused himself to the actors for being in the mental condition he was, and was not able to operate the camera as he usually does, which made him very frustrated.[24][30]"The script was filmed and finished without much enthusiasm, made as it was using about half of my physical and intellectual capacity", the director said in an interview.[21]Gainsbourg recalled that von Trier provided little direction during the shoot, but characterized the filming process as freeing and allowing room for both herself and Dafoe to experiment with varying performance styles.[33]

Post-production

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Except for the eyes and ears, the fox's face was computer-generated.

Post-production was primarily located inWarsaw,Poland, andGothenburg,Sweden. Over the time of two months, the Poles contributed with about 4,000 hours of work and the Swedes 500.[29]The film features 80 shots withcomputer-generated imagery,provided by the Polish company Platige Image. Most of these shots consist of digitally removed details such as the collar and leash used to lead the deer, but some were more complicated. The scene where the fox utters the words "chaos reigns" was particularly difficult to make. The mouth movements had to be entirely computer-generated in order to synchronize with the sound.[36]The sex scene in Chapter Three during which numerous hands emerge from the roots of a tree was subsequently adapted into the principal promotional art for the film.

Music

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The aria "Lascia ch'io pianga"fromHandel's operaRinaldois used as the film's main musical theme.[37]The aria has previously been used in other films such asFarinelli,a 1994 biographical film about thecastratosingerFarinelli,[38]and was used again by Von Trier inNymphomaniacduring a scene referencing the sequence showing Nic approaching the open window.[39]Recorded in January 2009 at theKastelskirken(Citadel Church) in Copenhagen, the film's versions of "Lascia ch'io pianga" were performed byBjarte Eike[no](violin),Tuva Semmingsen(mezzo-soprano),Karina Gauvin(soprano) and Tempo Rubato ensemble.[40]

Kristian Eidnes Andersencomposed the unconventionalambient"score". Until 2019, it was Eidnes Andersen's only credit for a film's composition—aside from television or documentary work—though he had previously collaborated with von Trier as asound designeron several films. The musician and criticRobert Barrydescribed the score as the film's "in-between bits, the judders and rumbles and low howls drifting somewhere undecidable between composed music and sound design... the un-music, the audiable, the hum of the world."[40]

Soundtrack album

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Antichrist
Soundtrack albumby
Kristian Eidnes Andersen
Released6 September 2019(2019-09-06)
RecordedJanuary 2009
VenueKastelskirken,Copenhagen
Length17:25
LabelCold Spring

A decade after the film's theatrical run, its soundtrack saw a limited-edition vinyl release, issued on 6 September 2019 by the English record labelCold Spring.[41]The soundtrack album features both versions of "Lascia ch'io pianga" and selected extracts from Eidnes Andersen's score. Its runtime is relatively brief: only the first side of the vinyl LP has audio, while the other blank side is etched with the words "nature is satan's church" in a"Gothic" typeface.[40]

No.TitleMusicLength
1."Intro"Kristian Eidnes Andersen1:32
2."Lascia Ch'io Pianga Prologue"George Frideric Handel5:22
3."Train"Eidnes Anderson0:35
4."Foetus"Eidnes Anderson1:13
5."Attic"Eidnes Anderson1:32
6."Lascia Ch'io Pianga Epilogue"Handel2:33
7."Credits Pt. 1"Eidnes Anderson1:17
8."Credits Pt. 2"Eidnes Anderson3:21
Total length:17:25

Release

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The film premiered during the Competition portion of the2009 Cannes Film Festivalto a polarized audience response.[42][43][44]The film prompted several walkouts and at least four people fainted during the preview due to the explicit violence.[45]At the subsequent press conference, Trier was asked by a journalist from theDaily Mailto justify why he made the film, to which the director responded that he found the question strange since he considered the audience as his guests, "not the other way around." He then claimed to be the best director in the world.[46]Gainsbourg won the festival's award forBest Actress.[42]Theecumenical juryat the Cannes festival gave the film a special "anti-award" and declared the film to be "the most misogynist movie from the self-proclaimed biggest director in the world."[45]Cannes festival director Thierry Frémaux responded that this was a "ridiculous decision that borders on a call for censorship" and that it was "scandalous coming from an 'ecumenical' jury".[47]The "talking fox" was nominated for thePalm Dog,but lost to Dug fromUp.[48]

Ratings and censorship

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Two versions were available for buyers at the Cannes film market, nicknamed the "Catholic" and "Protestant" versions, where the former had some of the most explicit scenes removed while the latter was uncut.[49]The uncut version was released theatrically to a general audience on 20 May 2009 inDenmark.It was acquired for British distribution byArtificial Eyeand American byIFC Films.[50]In the United Kingdom, it had alimited releasebeginning on 24 July 2009, and in the United States on 23 October 2009.[51][52]The film was not submitted to theMotion Picture Association of America(MPAA), and released unrated in the United States,[53]as the filmmakers knew the graphic violence and sex would get an NC-17 rating. When it aired on TV it was given a TV-MA rating, which is the highest rating for TV Parental Guidelines.[54]In both Ireland and the United Kingdom,Antichristwas also released uncut, bearing an18 certificate.[55]David Cooke of theBritish Board of Film Classification(BBFC) commented on the decision to leave the film uncut, saying:

The film does not contain material which breaches the law or poses a significant harm risk to adults. The sexual imagery, while strong, is relatively brief, and the Board has passed a number works containing such images. This reflects the principle that adults should be free to decide for themselves what to watch or what not to watch, provided it is neither illegal nor harmful. There is no doubt that some viewers will find the images disturbing and offensive, but the BBFC's consumer advice provides a clear warning to enable individuals to make an informed viewing choice.[56]

The BritishAdvertising Standards Authorityreceived seven complaints about the poster, which was based on the original poster and shows the couple as they are having sexual intercourse. The organization decided to approve the poster, finding it to not be pornographic since its "dark tone" made it "unlikely to cause sexual excitement". An alternative poster, featuring only quotes from reviews and no image at all, was used in outdoor venues and as an alternative for publishers who desired it.[57]

On 3 June 2009 the film was released in France with a 16 rating. In 2016, the film was banned in France after the Catholic traditionalist group, Promouvoir, took it (alongside various other films) to court.[58]The ruling French court deemed that theCNChad made "a mistake" in their original decision to pass the film outright and, as a result of this verdict, the original CNC decision was withdrawn, and the film was subsequently banned from cinemas, TV and video within France.[58]This remained until July 2023, when the film was again passed in France, although this time, in a rare move, at the highest classification available (for use) within the country, 18. It is one of only 21 titles since 1975 to have received this most restrictive classification.[59]

Critical response

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In Denmark, the film quickly became successful with both critics and audiences.[60][61]Politikencalled it "agrotesquemasterpiece ", giving it a perfect score of 6 out of 6, and praised it for being completely unconventional while at the same time being" a profoundly serious, very personal... piece of art about small things like sorrow, death, sex and the meaninglessness of everything. "[62]Berlingske Tidendegave it a rating of 4 out of 6 and praised the "peerless imagery", and how "cinematographerAnthony Dod Mantleeffectively switches betweenDogme-like hand-held scenes and wonderful stylized tableaux. "[63]An exception was Claus Christensen, editor of the Danish film magazineEkko.Christensen accused the other Danish critics of overrating the film, himself calling it "a master director's failed work".[64]Around 83,000 tickets were sold in Denmark during theatrical run, the best performance by a von Trier film sinceDogville.[65]The film was nominated by Denmark forThe Nordic Council Film Prize,which it won.[66]Antichristwent on to sweep theRobert Awards,Denmark's main national film awards, by winning in seven categories: Best Film, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Cinematographer, Best Editing, Best Lighting Design and Best Special Effects.[67]

However,Antichristpolarized critical opinion in the United States. Onreview aggregationwebsiteRotten Tomatoes,the film has an approval rating of 54% based on 179 reviews, and an average rating of 5.60/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Gruesome, explicit and highly controversial; Lars von Trier's arthouse-horror, though beautifully shot, is no easy ride."[68]OnMetacritic,the film has an average weighted score of 49 out of 100, based on 34 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[69]Roger Ebertof theChicago Sun-Timesgave the film three-and-a-half stars out of four, saying:

Von Trier, who has always been a provocateur, is driven to confront and shake his audience more than any other serious filmmaker. He will do this with sex, pain, boredom, theology and bizarre stylistic experiments. And why not? We are at least convinced we're watching a film precisely as he intended it, and not after a watering down by a fearful studio executive. That said, I know what's in it for von Trier. What was in it for me? More than anything else, I responded to the performances. Feature films may be fiction, but they are certainly documentaries showing actors in front of a camera.[70]

In a blog post, he expanded on this, discussing the film's symbolism, imagery and Trier's intentions, calling him "one of the most heroic directors in the world" andAntichrist"a powerfully-made film that contains material many audiences will find repulsive or unbearable. The performances by Willem Dafoe and Charlotte Gainsbourg are heroic and fearless. Trier's visual command is striking. The use of music is evocative; no score, but operatic and liturgical arias. And if you can think beyond what he shows to what he implies, its depth are [sic] frightening. "[26]

Betsy Sharkey of theLos Angeles Timeswrote: "The story ofAntichristis a tangled mess of sex, evil and death, with Von Trier making a stab at allegory and old-fashioned horror, but ultimately failing on both fronts... You might think, given the He, She, Eden, etc., that the film isallegory.It is not.Antichristnever rises to the symbolic; instead, it looks like nothing more than a reflection of one man's unresolved issues with the sexual liberation of women. "[51]Duane Dudek of theMilwaukee Journal SentinelcalledAntichrist"Trier's most visually lush and technically rigorous film; it captures things at a molecular level and in a slow motion that all but brings the world to a halt... But paradoxically, this is his most unwatchable film, and many will find its violence and cruelty, including scenes ofgenital mutilation,repellent. I cannot recommendAntichrist,but in a culture that hemorrhages death and torture nightly on shows like24orC.S.I.,I can understand it. "[71]

Arguments for censorship were common in the British press, with much criticism rooted in the EU funding the film received.[72]Despite some controversy, the film was critically well-received in the British film magazineEmpire,where film criticKim Newmangave the film four stars out of five. He noted that "Trier's self-conscious arrogance is calculated to split audiences into extremist factions, butAntichristdelivers enough beauty, terror and wonder to qualify as the strangest and most original horror movie of the year. "[73]

Australia'sThe MonthlycriticLuke Daviesviewed it as "a bleak but entrancing film that explores guilt, grief and many things besides... that will anger as many people as it pleases", describing Trier's "command of the visually surreal" as "truly exceptional". Davies described the film as "very good and very flawed", conceding "it is not easy to understand the meaning or intention of specific images and details of the film" but still concludes that "there's something neurotic and reactionary in the controversy and near-hysteria surrounding the film."[74]

Film directorJohn WatershailedAntichristas one of the ten best films of 2009 inArtforum,stating "IfIngmar Bergmanhad committed suicide, gone to hell, and come back to earth to direct anexploitation/art filmfor drive-ins, [Antichrist] is the movie he would have made. "[75]

The film won the award for Best Cinematographer at the 2009European Film Awards,shared withSlumdog Millionaireas both films were shot by Anthony Dod Mantle. It was nominated forBest DirectorandBest Actressbut the awards lost toMichael HanekeforThe White RibbonandKate WinsletforThe Readerrespectively.[76]In a2016 international pollbyBBC,criticsStephanie Zacharekand Andreas Borcholte rankedAntichristamong the greatest films since 2000.[77]

Home media

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The film was given a DVD release inAustraliain early 2010; sale of the DVD was strictly limited inSouth Australiadue to new laws that place restrictions on films with an R18+ classification.[78]A notable feature of the Australian release was the creation of a critically acclaimed poster that made prominent use of a pair of rusty scissors that had the actor's faces fused into the handles. The poster received much international coverage at the end of 2009 and was used as the local DVD cover. The film was released onDVDandBlu-rayin the United States throughThe Criterion Collectionon 9 November 2010.[79]

Accolades

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Organization Category Recipients and nominees Result
Belgian Syndicate of Cinema Critics Grand Prix Antichrist Won
Bodil Awards Best Danish Film Lars von Trier Won
Best Actress Charlotte Gainsbourg Won
Best Actor Willem Dafoe Won
Best Director of Photography Anthony Dod Mantle Won
Special Bodil Kristian Eidnes Andersen Won
Robert Awards Best Cinematography Anthony Dod Mantle Won
Best Director Lars von Trier Won
Best Editor Anders Refn Won
Best Film Lars von Trier Won
Best Screenplay Won
Best Sound Kristian Eidnes Andersen Won
Best Special Effects Peter Hjorth
Ota Bares		 Won
Best Actor Willem Dafoe Nominated
Best Actress Charlotte Gainsbourg Nominated
Best Costume Design Frauke Firl Nominated
Best Make-Up Hue Lan Van Duc Nominated
Best Production Design Karl Júlíusson Nominated
Nordic Council Nordic Council's Film Prize Lars von Trier Won
European Film Awards Best Cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle Won
Best Actress Charlotte Gainsbourg Nominated
Best Director Lars von Trier Nominated
Sant Jordi Awards Best Foreign Actress (Mejor Actriz Extranjera) Charlotte Gainsbourg Won
Zulu Awards Best Film Lars von Trier Nominated

Festivals

Festival Category Recipients and nominees Result
Cannes Film Festival Best Actress Charlotte Gainsbourg Won
Palme d'Or Lars von Trier Nominated
Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival Titra Film Award Won

Canceled video game

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According to a June 2009 article in the Danish newspaperPolitiken,a video game calledEden,based on the film, was in the works. It was to start where the film ended. "It will be a self-therapeutic journey into your own darkest fears, and will break the boundaries of what you can and can't do in video games," said video game director Morten Iversen.[80]Even the first concept he made was intended to be afirst-personpsychological horrorgenre, with a style ofSilent Hilland severalQuantic Dreamgames. Described as a "tie-in epilogue from the film, in which the player would have possibly reprise the role ofWillem Dafoe's character, who goes back to the lodge in the woods (called "Eden" ) to try to figure out the cause for the violent events seen in the movie. "The game was conceived to be played multiple times, to see all the different endings and events, as well as being planned to releaseEdenin 2010 for PC, Xbox Live Arcade and PSN.[81]

In the meantime,Edenhas been officially cancelled along with the studio Zentropa Games will be shutting down in the same year due to economic issues.[82]Iversen said, "Even after receiving 100,000 Euro in aid they just couldn't manage to keep it going. It seems that the games industry in Denmark is coming to a crushing halt as now 4 developers have closed in the last 12 months." There was just no budget to continue development. Over the years it became increasingly clear that there simply was not enough money. "[81]

References

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  1. ^abcZolkos 2016,p. 141.
  2. ^abc"Antichrist (2009)".Box Office Mojo.Retrieved29 August2020.
  3. ^"Antychryst (2009) Lars von Trier".
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Works cited

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  • Haynes, Bruce (2009).The End of Early Music: A Period Performer's History of Music for the Twenty-First Century.Oxford: Oxford University Press.ISBN978-0-19-518987-2.
  • Simmons, Amy (2015).Antichrist.New York: Columbia University Press.ISBN978-0-9930717-1-3.
  • Sinnerbrink, Robert (2016). "Provocation and perversity: Lars von Trier's cinematic anti-philosophy". In Jeong, Seung-hoon; Szaniawski, Jeremi (eds.).The Global Auteur: The Politics of Authorship in 21st Century Cinema.London: Bloomsbury Publishing USA. pp.95–114.ISBN978-1-5013-1265-6.
  • Zolkos, Magdalena (2016). "Violent affects: Nature and the feminine inAntichrist".In Butler, Rex; Denny, David (eds.).Lars von Trier's Women.London: Bloomsbury. pp.141–158.ISBN978-1-5013-2245-7.
edit
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