Rating: 
Summary: "Always take the good with the evil ..."
Review: Lars von Trier is a director who is incredibly keen on taking extreme left-hand turns in terms of his filmmaking. Before "The Kingdom" was first aired in 1994 to rave reviews and amazing success in its native Denmark, as well as achieving cult supremacy the world over (anyone who's seen the follow-up series is officially in my good books!), Trier had made "The Element Of Crime", "Epidemic" and "Europa" (or "Zentropa", the name of his production company), which his producer / friend Vibeke Windelov has described as "intellectual and cold". Then he came to prominence in anglophone territories with his affecting, emotionally involving/manipulative (which do you prefer?) 'Golden Heart Trilogy'; "Breaking The Waves", "The Idiots" and "Dancer In The Dark". "The Kingdom", however, is a true original in the Trier filmography, mixing the typical blacker-than-oblivion humour of Trier with an effectively spooky ghost story that has to be seen to be believed.Trier's humour can be felt within the whole spiritualism-versus-modern medicine spectrum on which the many characters of the show populate, as highlighted in the hilarious Ernst-Hugo Jaregard as Stig Helmer's ongoing conflict with Kirsten Rolffes' Mrs Drusse, who passes her time either patrolling the immense hospital for ghosts or leading seances with her fellow patients. In essence, Helmer is the comedy character of the show, whether he's sternly lecturing his girlfriend about the follies of voodoo or staring open-mouthed at the full-blown inanity of the "Operation Morning Air" logo. It's a credit to the phenomenal Jaregard that, whether he's taking credit for other doctors' discoveries, bungling operations, screaming at the skies and treating his girlfriend like scum, Helmer remains a wonderful comic monster (think Pauline the Restart Officer from "The League of Gentlemen" TV show with grey hair and without the balloon-size pink lips). The horror element of the show can be attributed to the often-unmentioned Morten Arnfred, who co-wrote and co-directed this behemoth alongside Trier. Stripped of Trier's acute comedy, "The Kingdom" would easily hold its own as a significant spookshow, albeit a traditional one given some fresh twists. Amid several nods to Nicolas Roeg's "Don't Look Now", Arnfred and Trier handle the scares with an assured hand and some low-key special effects, and are aided substantially by Rolffes as the fiercely dedicated 'ghostbuster'; no way would Hollywood have a 70-year old heroine at the forefront of a horror film, but Rolffes cuts a stern, likeable rug throughout, whether she's interviewing her possessed fellow-patients or getting drenched in icky ectoplasm. And, mindful at the massive duration, Arnfred and Trier have devised the creepiest Greek chorus for some time in the two retarded dishwashers. Not only that, but they have an effective ghost in the figure of Annevig Schelde Ebbe's tortured Mary and the most stomach-churning cliffhanger in TV history (warning: prospective mothers may wish to turn their attentions away for the last few minutes). Everything about "The Kingdom" smacks of class, with well-drawn characters and effective performances populating a hospital unlike anything American TV would even dare to cook up. Sure it's long and the language barrier will be a problem for some, but divert your prejudices elsewhere and lap up this horror-comedy classic. Just remember what Trier tells us peaking through his fingers come journey's end ("Always take the good with the evil...") As for the DVD, a Region 1 version does exist, as well as a Region 2 double-disc edition, which comes complete with the Lars von Trier-documentary "Tranceformer", otherwise seen on the Criterion Edition DVD of Trier's debut film, "The Element Of Crime". And, the bad news, Jaregard and Rolffes (and one of the dishwashers too) have sadly passed away, so "The Kingdom 3" isn't likely to be arriving anytime soon.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful
Review: Very little I can say about this without appearing to be a one-man Lars von Trier marketing team.
I saw the first series of this purely by accident quite a while ago, and was completely bowled over by the experience. It has just about everything that you could want - hauntings, unexpected pregnancy, several unscrupulous doctors (one of them being prepared to go to extreme lengths to get his hands on a dying patient's liver), racial intolerance, and above all else, the feeling that there is something else going on that you just can't quite put your finger on. To top it all off, the only person who seems to understand what is really happening, is the guy who washes the dishes in the canteen. I think that it's fair to say that this is not for everyone. However, if you enjoy the style of David Lynch, or indeed the other creations of Lars von Trier, then you'll get more out of this than most. Only two complaints - why is this not on DVD; why is the second series impossible to find in any format (in the UK anyway). Happily this is now only one complaint, since this was recently released in the UK on DVD :) Now, if they'd just get the 2nd series released. Watch this and you'll be thinking about it for weeks afterwards.
Rating:
Summary: VHS version is better than the DVD
Review: The Chinese DVD release is poor, with an impossible subtitle translation. Some sections of the DVD are not even subtitled at all. Lars Von Trier's speeches at the end of the episodes are not subtitled. There also seems to be some sections missing. Additionally, the DVD is not broken up into the four episodes. The VHS is superior in every way, with its increased visual and audio quality, and a superb translation.
And cheap!
Even if you haven't seen it, get it. It's guaranteed to change your life.
Rating:
Summary: we all want the dvd, right?
Review: I am writing this just to add my voice to the choir of the ones wating for the dvd... Lars you rock, you are the man!
Rating:
Summary: we all want the dvd, right?
Review: I am writing this just to add my voice to the choir of the ones wating for the dvd... Lark rocks!
Rating:
Summary: Oh, Lars, you wicked little boy!
Review: The largest hospital in Denmark is "Rigshospitalet", nicknamed "Riget" (English translation: "The Kingdom") and Von Trier and his superb crew have managed to capture this flagship of the not so great Danish health system (trust me on this one) to perfection, and in such a clever way that both Danes and non-Danes will derive immense pleasure and pain from circa 4 1/2 hours of sublime black humor comedy/drama/melodrama/gothic ghost story. As a Dane from Copenhagen settled in the US, I thank Thomas Vinterberg (Celebration) and Von Trier from the bottom of my heart for exposing aspects of Denmark that an audience only familiar with Hollywood's glossy sugarcoated version (starring Danny Kaye) of the very complex life of Hans Christian Andersen would otherwise most likely never see. (The Danny Kaye movie was every national tourist board's wet dream, and although Danes were originally mortified at the idea of Hollywood interpreting Andersen's life, the song Wonderful Wonderful Copenhagen ended up doing more for tourism in Denmark than the they ever hoped for.)The four episodes, here presented on two VHS tapes each about 2 hrs. long, orginally aired on Danish TV, made me laugh, tugged at my heart and gave me delightful goosebumps - what more could a film buff ask for? There are several delightful insider jokes that only Danes will get, but it doesn't ruin anything for all you non-Danes.
Apropos non-Danes - a few notes: 1) The cast is jammed with actors unfamiliar outside of Scandinavia (you know, that big blob of chilly countries north of Germany), but who are all very well known and popular there - veterans of both Danish film and stage as well as younger actors who in 1995 were just starting their careers. Ghita Norby, a veteran, plays Rigmor, (the doctor who wants Swedish Dr. Helmer to move in with her) can be seen in Bille August's Best Intentions (Screenplay: Ingmar Bergman) 2) Rigshospitalet is on the same block in Copenhagen North-East where Smilla did some of her detective work in "Smilla's Sense of Snow", the sublime novel by Peter Hoeg, filmed and unfortunately utterly butchered by Bille August in 1996/97. Finally, I'd like to point out that you gotta love a movie in which the protagonist is a woman in her 70s - how often do you see THAT, especially in American movies? Lars, you rock so very hard baby! Love that wicked smile you give us as the credits
roll... Apropos Hans Christian Andersen, check out the sublime biography by British author Jackie Wullschlager which came out last year - it will tell you much about Andersen and Denmark that the tourist board will never tell you....
Rating: 
Summary: Outrageously Funny and Horrifying
Review: Here is more inspired lunacy from Lars von Trier, director of "Breaking the Waves", "Zentropa", and "Dancer in the Dark." It's a horror film *and* a spoof of the horror genre at the same time, and both parts work very well indeed. A television mini-series about a haunted hospital, its most obvious debt is to "Twin Peaks." But you can also find traces of "The Shining", "Rosemary's Baby", "Carrie", "Night of the Living Dead", "Re-Animator", and even "Ghostbusters." The four-hour plus running time gives von Trier the space to develop lots of details and characters so the film has a dense, satisfying "novelistic" quality. The hand-held camera and semi-documentary style give versimilitude to the most outrageous events. Like other von Trier films, this one is so melodramatic that it eventually goes way over the top. But the writer/director is so talented you follow him all the way. Contains one of the most stunning cliffhanger endings I've ever seen. Plus, von Trier himself appears at the end of each tape to give some fiendishly amusing commentary. Horror buffs (and fans of the bizarre) shouldn't miss this.
Rating:
Summary: Don't wait until the tv series
Review: Don't wait until Stephen King and the networks get their hands on this one. This is one of the finest examples of odd/macabre cinema you will find. Von Trier's masterpiece, it's nothing like "Dancer in the Dark" or "Breaking the Waves". I'm just dying to see part II as this one had me hanging on the edge of the couch, literally!
Rating:
Summary: A baptism of fear awaits...
Review: The common description of "ER meets Twin Peaks" doesn't do this justice. The Kingdom works on many levels, though I think my favorite scenes involve the interactions between the characters, especially those involving the Dane-hating Dr. Helmer, who is a joy to watch. The Kingdom is funny, scary, and disturbing at the same time. The final scene is not for the faint-hearted. I'm anxious to check out the sequel.
Rating:
Summary: A great way to spend a Saturday
Review: The description for this movie "it's Twin Peaks meets ER", although somewhat cheesy, is also very true.. though I wouldn't say it's "ER on acid" :). I was absolutely hooked to the screen when I watched this. It was funny, haunting, and intriguing. I loved the characters! It was like Twin Peaks, only--in my opinion--a lot more fun.
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