Rating: 
Summary: We should dance in the dark
Review: Lars von Trier (the director)brings to us a dramatic history of Selma :A simple woman who came to America to get your son's eye opperacion. Selma is a person who live in two different worlds. In one she's a simple worker with a eye problem and in the other, she's the central star of a musical.
Well, if you want to whach it, be prepair to see a intense movie a litlle bit different of the convencional .Recorded in digital cameras, this masterpiece looks like unprofessional.. but just looks. The direction, the musics, the coreography, the acts,the best of all this things are here.
Björk (Icelandic singer ) shows to the word all her pottencial as an serious actress,but not leaving the thing she knows how to do best : sing. Amoust all the songs in this musical were sang by Björk. If you don't like her music style, think again before not listen to it.
The support cast should be not leave behind. This is a great opportunity to see good actors making good apeerances.
Dancer in The Dark is a great movie, showing to all of us the real quality of today's cinema, proving that a movie still can be good runnig from Hollywood's paramether and just using a beautiful story, a good cast and a nice direction.
Rating:
Summary: A Hugely Misinterpreted Film
Review: In order to understand what von Trier was trying to do with this film, it's probably necessary that the title should not simply be taken literally. The "Dancer in the Dark" in question is also the light from the projector dancing on the movie screen. The narrative here seems somewhat controversial, but it's nearly disposable. The story is an excuse for Von Trier to pay tribute to "The Passion of Joan of Arc", probably the best Danish film ever made. Selma's story is ultimately a tribute to the power of cinema.Selma loves musicals (perhaps the most cinematic of all genres), and through her perseverance in her belief that "nothing dreadful ever happens" in a musical, she comes to be rewarded. Von Trier allows us to understand her plight & sympathize with her, but also creates a plot that's clearly meant to be seen as narrative construct (as opposed to a plausible chain of events). In the film, "reality" is shown via shaky handheld digital Dogma-esque camerawork, but the "fantasy" sequences use a color palette that makes them appear even more real than the "real" scenes. The wonderful acting convinces us that these characters are real, but at the same time, they are all played by characters that are cast against type making us ever aware of the artificiality of the film. Furthermore, all of the characters voice their opinions on film musicals. What von Trier's doing here is making us realize what Selma surely realizes. Although films are just films, they contain a very real ability to create an alternate reality filled with genuine emotion. While I personally find all this film theory exceptionally interesting, the great thing is that we can surely look at the film from a strictly melodramatic / musical perspective, and it still works quite well. Bjork's performance is absolutely incredible. It basically achieves its goal of being an equal to Falconetti's in "The Passion of Joan of Arc". The musical score is innovative, complex, and well integrated into the story. The plot's got a great deal of emotional heft to it, but never descends into mindless sentimentalism. Dancer in the Dark is the best film by a director that has several masterpieces under his belt already. It's the best film of its year (2000), and deserved the Palm D'Or it won at Cannes. It sums up the cinematic experience better than nearly any film, and could hold its place as the best film of the new millennium for quite some time.
Rating:
Summary: WOW!
Review: I always knew that Bjork was an amazing singer/songwriter. What I didn't know was that she could act as well. Bjork plays Selma, a single immigrant mother who works in a factory and lives in a trailer on her friends property. She loves musicals because they are very uplifting. To her, musicals have a sense of happiness her real life doesn't posess. Selma often daydreams about being in a musical to escape her real crisis. She is going blind, and so is her son. Selma needs to save money so that her son can have an operation to stop him from going blind as well. She sacrafices her sight, among other things, for him. Selma is a very pure character. That's why her situation is so sad, she doesn't deserve the pain. Selma is like a big child, she is seemingly care free, despite her troubles. She is noble and would never break a promise. Selma is a genuinely good person.
As her sight and situation worsen, she has her dancing dream sequences more frequently. These dances are accompanied by Bjorks music. Her songs fit perfectly with the tone of the movie. It's very hypnotic. This has to be the sadest movie I've ever seen. I cried for the last hour of the movie. Everything in the film just meshes so well. It's perfect. I especialy like the way everything is very life-like. Nothing is ridiculously over the top, even her dreams. She is still wearing the same clothing, and everything is very mellow. Also, the realistic way of filming with a handheld camera makes the viewer feel like they are really there, and that this is really happening. In the beggining I was very dizzy, but my headache was worth it. At the end of the movie I had another headache from crying so hard.
Rating:
Summary: do not go away yet!
Review: this is a fantastic film and brought tears to my eyes!
it is not your typical film and do not go in with any expectations
Rating:
Summary: Bjork is so cute!
Review: This movie is absolutely astounding. Its very sad but it is amazing. Bjork has to be the cutest person ever. he plays her part honestly. The use of cinematography for her day dreams gives the film a really neat effect. Anyone who appreciates quality films should see this.
Rating:
Summary: One of the most amazing movies EVER.
Review: This movie just blew me away. Bjork has done an amazing acting job and made the story believable with the help of her costars Catherine Deneuve and David Morse. Lars von Trier has created a masterpiece. The music was amazing and the story was one of the best I have seen in a long time. This is one movie that I would recommend you go see immediately. It will forever stay in your mind.
Rating:
Summary: there once was a girl named Bjork...
Review: No matter how you end the lymeric, once you see this movie you will think of Bjork in a different light. We all see the bizzare in Bjork; the photographer punching, the swan dress - she is always good for a ripple in the media without overt or tasteless tactics. Bjork's public persona is as unique as her professional one. As a performer and musician there is no one like her. As a whole Bjork is about juxtiposition. The outsider from the icy edge of the earth who has the music world spinning on her axis. Extreeme? You tell me. I hear Bjork-esque dittys playing as "new sound" 10 years after she records something. As pop gets more and more media based - that gap closes - but Bjork is always first. The facts of Bjork's carreer and persona are evedent in "dancer" only with scrutiny. Bjork approaches the character of Selma with such an unusual and yet perfect interpretation - just like Bjork's approach to everything else. You can not immagine any other way to do what Bjork does after she is finished with something - hell, even the swan dress - Bjork is Bjork. In "Dancer" Bjork is Bjork come Merril Streep. That's right. The quirky girl from the land of fire and ice is an actress too. Bjork's preformance in "Dancer" is so riveting, so real, so thourough - you would think Bjork is moonlighting blind factory worker living in small town USA. (which explains the swan dress) Bjork does not try to inject more than she is able into the roll. Bjork infuses every nuance with a crackle / an energy - something very electric - but no hoaky accent attempts or sad readings - she is the character - Bjork interprets the part with all of the complication and genius she draws up in the recording studio. If Bjork were not an international pop star - you might think she were some amazing character actress. You would be right - and like everything Bjork - to say she did something different and beautiful and startling and edgy and satisfying - would be a true statement - and like everything Bjork - she leaves you wanting more. Bjork will not commit to any more acting. Bjork is fleeting. See Bjork do what Cher approached and Maddona could never touch in their diva turned actress moments. If you were Moonstruck with Cher, you'll be vaporized by the meteor called Bjork.
Rating: 
Summary: A study in contrasts
Review: Contrary to what you might hear from critics, who hailed and eviscerated "Dancer in the Dark" with equal gusto, Lars von Trier's musical melodrama has plenty to love-and plenty to hate. It's not easy being on the fence with such a consistently polarizing film, but in this case, the fence is the only place to be. Undercutting genuine pathos with unnecessary manipulation, "Dancer in the Dark" is hardly an outright success-but it bears the mark of a bold cinematic vision, even if said vision is given a rather misguided execution. Selma Jezkova (Icelandic pop singer Björk) is a young Czech immigrant, slow-witted but warm and idealistic, who is painstakingly saving up for her son, Gene, to have an operation to reverse an inherited eye disease. She herself is slowly going blind, which ultimately causes her to drop out of the lead role in an amateur production of "The Sound of Music." Fortunately, Selma has her own musicals to take refuge in-lavish staged numbers, engineered from the sights and sounds of the factory where she works. And as her eyesight worsens, she retreats further into these brief eruptions of her own vivid imagination, much to the chagrin of her best friend (played by none other than Catherine Deneuve). Then something horrible happens-but of course, you expect it to. The melodramatic signposts are there from the opening frame, and that isn't really a problem in and of itself, although "Dancer in the Dark's" detractors have been quick to point out how cheap and contrived it is. They're missing the point. Von Trier flaunts his cheap trickery, flaunts every contrivance; he never once asks the audience to accept the film as plausible. To criticize it on those grounds, therefore, is too simplistic. Unfortunately, "Dancer in the Dark" can also be faulted in the simplistic department. In "Breaking the Waves," von Trier guided another tortured female protagonist to undeserved tragedy; that film, though it had its problems, hinged upon deeper questions of spirituality, faith, and what God requires of man (or a woman, rather), and Bess, played by Emily Watson, had a God-given reason for subjecting herself to punishment. "Dancer's" Selma has only the constrictions of the plot to justify her plunge into tragedy; she's an easy symbol, a paragon of virtue in a cruel and unjust world. She does it all out of love for her son-but von Trier appears to be oblivious of the fact; after Gene's been introduced, we rarely see him again. Ultimately, he's just a fulcrum for the film's plot machinery. It's a testament to Björk's truly miraculous performance, however, that Selma, though she may be a mere pawn to von Trier, comes across as a beautifully realized and enormously sympathetic creature. At times, von Trier's jittery hand-held camerawork becomes truly, unforgivably excessive-obtrusive, unnecessarily drawn-out closeups abound in the final scenes-but Björk, through the sheer intensity and abandon of her performance, makes them emotionally devastating all the same. You know a film's doing something right when it relies so unabashedly on manipulation and manages to move you all the same. As for the musical numbers-which are filmed in vivid colors and with steady cameras, to emphasize the contrast between the moldiness of reality and the fire of imagination-they're not as effective as they should be, for a simple reason that's held true for all musicals, classical or postmodern. The songs aren't all that great. Neither is the film's composition-the choreography is as sloppy as the "Sound of Music" rehearsal scenes, and von Trier's choice of angles and edits is startlingly inept. Finally, on a sheer thematic level, Selma's musicals don't really give us much psychological insight-so she likes to sing, and she likes to dance with the world around her. That's fine, but it's hardly compelling enough to hammer home as many times as "Dancer in the Dark" does. The wonderful exception is "I've Seen It All," a lovely, quavering tune that's as hummable as anything ever to come out of a movie musical. That this song (which undeservedly lost the Oscar to more Academy-friendly Bob Dylan) emerged from this muddled juxtaposition of raw beauty and embarrassing missteps is, perhaps, enough of a good reason for "Dancer in the Dark" to exist.
Rating: 
Summary: Another stellar film from the Dogma director von Trier
Review: The film received plaudits at Cannes and deservedly so. Not many films these days tackle so much with candor and integrity as Lars von Trier's films do. As a Dogma director, von Trier stubbornly wields a handheld and refuses cheesy soundtrack, but he inserts musical set scenes that are beautiful and fascinating to behold. It also gives Bjork a chance to let loose. Bjork's performance is impressive to say the least. She puts her shrill idiosyncrasies as a music perhormer on hold, and gives a measured, pitch-perfect performance as a woman who is losing her vision, her life and her grip on the reality. Lars von Trier likes to tackle big, metaphysical themes, and he's most adept at blurring the line between reality and the metaphysical realm. He was more expressionistic in his earlier post-modern flicks such as 'Zentropa'. But with his allegiance to Dogma, he has cut down on the lavishly produced qualities. The sister film of 'Dancer...' is the film that preceded it: the excellent 'Breaking the Waves,' which also deals with a downfall of a good, pure-hearted woman. However, whereas 'Breaking the Waves' weaved the Christ metaphor onto the story of its heroine effortlessly, in 'Dancer in the Dark', the mechanisms of the storytelling become conscious entities, and seem like artifice that intrude upon the arc of the story. The musical numbers, as beautiful and exuberant as they are, take us out of the realm of Selma's world too suddenly. Not enough subtlety. It is worth mentioning the stories that von Trier tell are emphatically melodramatic in nature. In this film, a blind mother tries to save her son, but through injustice of the world, faces death herself. It is a testament to Mr. von Trier's craftsmanship that this story, which can turn into a ball of kitsch in the hands of a lesser man, is told without a trace of sentimentality. It's a haunting film that won't leave you unaffected.
Rating:
Summary: ABSOLUTELY SPECTACULAR
Review: Lars v. Trier does an amazing job directing "Dancer In The Dark." The film is definetely a drama, but it includes great music by Icelandic phenomenom Bjork. It is a very depressing film, but it leaves you thinking differently than before. Seeing "Dancer In The Dark" let me experience filmmaking like it should be. This movie is not a feel-good, and it often left me in tears, but the whole experience is so spectacular. The acting by Catherine Denueve and Bjork is powerful and incredible; Bjork gives an amazing performance especially, because this is her feature film debut. The ending to "Dancer In The Dark" is upsetting and depressing, but it is just such a great movie, don't miss it! Along with the movie, there is a soundtrack that is also worth crediting. Although it is only 33 minutes in length, the music is a creative mix between pop and classical. The soundtrack includes the Oscar and Golden Globe nominated "I've Seen It All" performed by Blork. Other songs include the "Cvalda" mix and the beautiful "A New World" Please, buy " Dancer In The Dark" and the soundtrack (look for it under Bjork or Soundtracks at your local store)and be completely enthralled by this amazing work of art.
|
