Lars Von Trier delivers his “Antichrist”
In Competition: Von Trier's "Antichrist," with Willem Dafoe and Charlotte Gainsbourg
Today’s in-Competition presentation of Antichrist is the occasion for the Danish director and veteran of many Cannes Festivals Lars von Trier to return. In 2000, Von Trier walked away with the Palme d’Or for Dancers in the Dark, and in 1996, he obtained the Grand Prix du Jury for Breaking the Waves. Europa garnered a Prix du Jury in 1991. To round out the history of the awards, Element of Crime (1984) was given the Grand Prix de la Commission Supérieure Technique.
"I would like to invite you for a tiny glimpse behind the curtain, glimpse into the dark world of my imagination: into the nature of my fears, into the nature of Antichrist," Von Trier dares us. A grieving couple retreat to ’Eden’, their isolated cabin in the woods, where they hope to repair their broken hearts and troubled marriage. But nature takes its course and things go from bad to worse."
"Two years ago, I suffered from a depression," continued Von Trier. "It was a new experience for me. Everything, no matter what, seemed unimportant, trivial. I couldn’t work. Six months later, just as an exercise, I wrote a script… The work on the script did not follow my usual modus operandi. Scenes were added for no reason. Images were composed free of logic or dramatic thinking. They often came from dreams I was having at the time, or dreams I’d had earlier in my life. Once again the subject was “Nature”, but in a different and more direct way than before. In a more personal way… In any case, I can offer no excuse for Antichrist. Other than my absolute belief in the film – the most important film of my entire career!"
