The Asphalt Jungle

The Best of 2009 - #4

February 15th, 2010 by Raj Ranade

Chaos and order reign.

Fareed:

Antichrist (dir. by Lars von Trier) - So many elements of Lars von Trier’s “Antichrist” shock. As a horror film, it is a virtuoso directorial performance by the Danish auteur that shows his ability to articulate different degrees of terror. His film uncovers the terrifying grotesquerie of everyday nature and, more surprisingly, the uncanny frisson inherent to the beautiful. For all its nuance, the film pushes the very horror genre to stark extremes, taking the words “torture porn” very literally. Sexuality and violence become intertwined throughout the picture so that the viewer can no longer distinguish between the pleasure of sex and sadism.

In many ways, it is the uber-horror film. It deserves praise for illustrating that much of the horror genre is so profoundly mediocre - all sound and no fury. Lars von Trier’s “Antichrist” has another layer, that has too often been ignored in the critical discourse about the production, Even as it vigorously uncovers the machinations of the horror genre, it more devastatingly indicts von Trier’s own artistic philosophy. It was this element of retrospection and possibly repulsion that made the film stand out when I first watched it in May.

“Underneath the exploration of the genre, lies a film that poignantly meditates on his artistic failures. In his last film, the comedy “The Boss of It All,” Von Trier poked fun at his decision to move towards realism with the Dogma 95 movement. His disenchantment with the artistic manifesto manifests itself here in the tension between the scientific psychologist and the fragile wife who embraces the unknown. As they grapple with each other, Lars Von Trier delivers a damning indictment on the movement he created suggesting that any philosophies that claim to be more real are pathetically misguided. Beyond these aesthetic questions, Von Trier confronts the perception that he is a misogynistic filmmaker. By creating a work so deeply vested with the wild and untamed female, the filmmaker explores the troubling ramifications of using femininity as the object of aggression and lust.”

Like so many of Von Trier’s films that so viciously transmute the female, there is a fascinating contradiction at the heart of “Antichrist.” Instead of providing an undeveloped sketch of troubled femininity, Charlotte Gainsbourg gives the best female performance of the year - no other performance comes close.  As a woman slowly becoming undone by the death of her child, the actress gains a role of remarkable complexity. While the very genre of horror would allow for it, Gainsbourg’s performance lacks a hint of caricature as she moves effortlessly from a position of vulnerability to one of dominance, from broken mother to sexual aggressor. “Antichrist” confirms that no filmmaker directs actresses better or provides them with stronger roles.

In the last image of the film, Von Trier seems to lament his possible lack of insight into the female condition. The rich horror of the film as well as the stunning and furious work of Gainsbourg, however, further cements Von Trier as one of the world’s most brazen, skillful, and, above all, insightful filmmakers.

Raj:

A Serious Man (dir. by Joel and Ethan Coen) -  Joel and Ethan Coen’s “A Serious Man” starts out with antiquated inscrutability and ends with apocalyptic incomprehensibility. Along the way, the only thing we learn about the confusing divine will that is the focus of the film is that there really is nothing to be learned. Looked at another way, this knowledge is in fact everything there is to be known. Needless to say, this film is not exactly a popcorn picture.

Indeed, “A Serious Man” is second only to one other to-be-named film in its brilliant execution of a thoroughly audacious premise.  Remember - after their “No Country for Old Men” Oscars and “Burn after Reading” box office glory, the Coens were the toast of Hollywood. That’s exactly why their decision to ignore any commercial imperative and instead shoot a film about the religious struggles of a put-upon Minnesotan Jew is so satisfyingly perverse, and also why their total success here is so exhilarating.

It sometimes feels like the brothers are just taunting us with their ability to make the unlikeliest formal decisions work through sheer force of will. Can the Coens make a dentist’s story about Yiddish engravings on teeth into one of the most exhilarating cinematic moments of the year through deft editing and the sharp usage of a well-chosen Hendrix song? Can they revive a played-to-death Jefferson Airplane song and make it not just exciting but also a full expression of their film’s philosophy? Can they draw more impressive performances from a cast of no-names than they could from the all-stars in “Burn after Reading”? The answer is yes every time, and their filmmaking brilliance results in a work that elicits laughs and sorrow in equally affecting amounts.

But it’s the philosophical exploration that the Coens manage here that has lingered in my mind since seeing the film (repeatedly). The nuanced treatment of religion here is fascinating - as I wrote earlier: “The Coens aren’t against religion, exactly. Sure, the mockery of Jewish customs and figures is scathingly hilarious, but it clearly comes from a place of affection, and a riotous scene at the end of the film between the community’s wisest rabbi and Larry’s son seems to suggest the enduring power of religion to connect with young, troubled souls. But for the Coens, God is an unsympathetic overlord, even if He does make sure that no wrongdoing goes unpunished and that everyone eventually gets his deserved comeuppance.” The Coens are indeed saying that the order of the universe is mystifying, complex, and sometimes cruel. But these filmmakers who are so often accused of nihilism do seem to believe that there is an order – a somewhat beautiful notion in the midst of a mordantly comic litany of pain.

Entry Filed under: Best of 2009