Häxan (1922)

There's a sadness coming over me when I watch Benjamin Christensen's Häxan (aka Witchcraft Through the Ages), a sadness that a movie that wants to celebrate enlightenment and fight superstition and stupidity still is more relevant than ever. Now, in 2012, stupidity is on the same level as when poor women got burned alive for being witches, we're just not burning people on the same scale anymore. Our, the "modern" society have other methods to take care of minorities.

What is Häxan? Häxan is a documentary-drama that goes from the dark ages up to our time, which here means the early twenties. Christensen first examine old art, mostly engravings, who tells the story about those who was accused for dealing with the devil, being witches and the perverted idiots accusing them. In the end our hero, the director, makes direct comparisons with today and what might have caused people to think that innocent women was possessed by the devil. That's it and it's friggin' brilliant.

Häxan is such a strong movie in every possible way, from the graphic visuals - everything from babies being sacrificed, lots of different demons and devils, witches and wonderful, dark (everything was shot in darkness, with no sunlight at all - except the obvious scene with the airplane of course) cinematography. This is gothic horror: churches and cathedrals, shadows and fire. It has both a decadent and amusingly twisted atmosphere, not necessary negative in the portrayal of the occult, almost an admiringly view at the outsiders. At first Christensen seems to tell us how fantastic the twenties is, but then tells us how it actually differs very little from what we've just seen. There's always witches, no matter society or culture. What matters now is how much money they have.

Häxan is both - I would like to say atheistic, but it's not - a deeply critical deconstruction of the church and the clergy who used it power to control and destroy those opposing their view, but the movie stands firmly behind the poor people, those who can't defend themselves with money or fancy relatives. Sure, there's some stuff that feels less impressive, like the description of hysterical women with nervous problems - but I'm pretty sure Christensen would accept today's view on the matter. He just lived in a society where this was the latest, the best and the freshest take on the complexity of the human mind.

If Häxan had been made not it would have been even scarier. Today we have religious nuts running for president in the US, we have religions killing millions of peoples in war, there's an increasing level of racism and homophobia and science is treated like shit. Häxan is a worrying example of how times hasn't changed at all, except being a twisted and nasty horror movie.

This is obviously one of the best movies ever made and it's still a movie that shocks and disturbs the viewer, not only because of it's graphic nature and mocking of religions, but also because it's closer to our time than we ever thought.a 

Skytten (1977)

In 1976 Mannen på Taket was released in Sweden, and it’s still considered one of the best Swedish movies ever made – and it’s my favourite so far. A gritty, raw, political and tension-filled cop-movie about a man taking revenge on society for the death of his wife and the loss of his child. I have no idea if that movie inspired the Danes to make Skytten, but there is some similarities – but still very different movies in style and message.

Peter Steen is Niels Winther, a controversial journalist that one night, in a TV-debate, says that it could be necessary to use force to stop storage of nuclear waste in Denmark. These words get stuck in the head of one man (Jens Okking) who decides to make reality of this. He first shoots some warning shots, but when he no one notices this he takes down a dog… but when he still don’t get any attention he goes even further… At the same times he sends tapes with messages to Winther, who of course gives these tapes to the police, who starts to interfere with his and his wife’s life in more ways than they could wish.

I would say that Skytten (English title is The Marksman) is very different from Mannen på Taket. The visuals looks fantastic, the camera work is perfection – but less gritty and experimental compared to Bo Widerberg’s classic from the year before. It’s also harder to understand Jens Okking’s reason for doing what he does, but I guess he’s just mad – or very, very naive. It’s also not clear which side the movie stands on, when it comes to the political message about nuclear waste in Denmark. For me that’s a bad thing, because I think a movie like this need to make a standpoint – or at least be a bit stronger showing each sides reasons. The ending is both bleak and powerful, with several questions left unanswered – which I love.

But fuck the comparison with the Swedish masterpiece, because Skytten is still a great thriller! It’s one of those edge-of-the-seat thrillers with some truly shocking moments. When they first victim was shot I literary jumped out of the sofa! Skytten never stays away from showing some stuff that a normal Hollywood-movie never would do. The blood flowing over beautiful summer-Copenhagen is violent and in-your-face.

The highlight of the movie is Jens Okking as the marksman. He’s an excellent actor, one of those that feel completely natural on screen. He never shows any emotions here, no silly faces or stupid dialogues to show what kind of person he is. It’s in the eyes, just in the eyes. I want to watch Lars Von Trier’s Riget again just to be able to watch Okking once again roam the corridors of Rigshospitalet.

The Danish DVD is of brilliant quality, the movie looks like it was shot yesterday. Just Danish subtitles, which is a pity for you who’s not familiar with the Scandinavian languages. I hope it will come a English-friendly DVD or Blu-Ray some day…

Reptilicus (1961)

As a fan of monster movies you learn to accept a lot. But I can say, with out being especially sad or ashamed, that Reptilicus is one of the more boring monster movies out there. At least the first fifty minutes, which is sloooooow and filled with not so funny scene with famous Danish comedian Dirch Passer. But after that first monster attack it picks up in speed and delivers some very cheap action-sequences. The puppet and miniatures are to small to even remotely be effective and it's badly edited with footage of soldiers shooting in random directions.

BUT Reptilicus also has one of the most stunning stunt scenes I've seen in a Scandinavian movie, and I'm surprised that reviewers never bring this scene up. What we have here is a lot of people in panic, running to a bridge. The foreman at the bridge is getting nervous, maybe because the monster is behind them, and starts to open the bridge - and people can't stop because of the pressure behind them (yes, just like that scene in Roland Emmerich 2012, but this one is a lot more effective). It's an amazing scene, and I have no idea how they got those Danish daredevils to go ahead and do this! Maybe a lot of beer? It don't seem to have done at all with visual effects or cutting around to a lower bridge. What you see is what you get.

Anyway, here's some screenshot of the best sequence in Reptilicus, and it still impresses me:

Antichrist (2009)

My relationship with Lars Von Trier has been very turbulent over the years. I adore, love, worship The Kingdom, I actually like Europa, Dogville is a fine movie... and so on. But I never understood The Idiots - but I've decided to watch it again to see what the fuzz is about, and I think that Dancer in the Dark is one of the worst movies I've ever seen. Both boring, pretentious and with some very, very bad acting (and Björk should get near a camera again). But I like the guy anyway. But Antichrist restored my faith in the man!

It's like walking into a dream filled with symbolism, some very obvious and a lot much more obscure. From the first scene in ultra-slowmo where Gainsbourg and Dafoe have graphic sex and the tragic accident to the long scenes of dialogue that follows. Dafoe trying to figure out and analyse his wife grief and the beautiful hypnos-trip to Eden, the cabin in the forest. And the stunning and violent finale that has some of the most painful things I've seen in a movie, and most original to.

But the violence is such a small part of Antichrist. There's a couple of seconds with stuff that can seem be controversial and/or graphic, but this story is mainly a drama about loss, about religion, about gender and a very complicated relationship. But when it's gore/violence it's quite hard, and makes even a tough guy like me to almost cover my eyes (or actually, more cover my ears). Von Triers knows how to create talk around his movies, and I see him as an arthouse-version of William Castle. There's always a gimmick, and I think it's beautiful to mix that sense of commercial thinking and thought-provoking art.

Von Triers style of directing is very typical, but maybe more stylish and "normal" than a lot of his other recent movies. It's neither static or mega-shaky. It's inbetween, and it was probably for the best regarding this movie. It will be very interesting to see his next movie, Melancholia, a sci-fi movie - which I guess will surprise everyone that's expecting a normal sci-fi. But the main stars of Antichrist is Charlotte Gainsbourg and Willem Dafoe, both making marvelous performances. As common with Von Triers movies, the female character has the most complicated part, and there's no difference here. Gainsbourg goes through every emotion there is, often within seconds, and there's no doubt she's a real person. Not a single frame indicates that where talking about a movie character here. A problem that every swedish movie have for example. Dafoe makes an excellent part where he have to be more less visually one-emotional. He must pretend to have everything under control all the time, even when shit hits the fan at the end.

This is far from a horror movie, even if it has some moments that could belong in one. But it's a drama, a strong drama, and a brave one to. It's nice to see movies that just dosen't fuck around, and shows life, death, love, sorrow as it is.

Antichrist is a highly original movie, and probably one of the best movies I've seen in 2009.