The latest European DVD releases: of mind-boggling, mysterious and murderous
Recent years have seen divisive Danish director Lars Von Trier gouge into a new vein of controversy -firstly with his existential horror flick Anti-Christ (which disturbed viewers with its now-notorious genital mutilation scenes) -and more recently with ill-advised comments about Hitler, which saw him banned from the Cannes film festival.
The Kingdom (Second Sight), which was made in 1994, is a welcome opportunity to re-examine the early part of Von Trier’s career, before the notoriety swallowed him whole. Originally conceived as a money-spinner for Von Trier’s production company Zentropa -which went on to achieve a degree of notoriety by producing a selection of hardcore pornographic movies aimed at women -The Kingdom is effectively a surrealist ghost story set inside a labyrinthine Danish hospital. As the narrative unfolds, the hospital spews up an increasingly bizarre array of supernatural incidents, beginning with the spirit of a girl rendered vegetative during a botched operation -only to have her spirit linger within the walls of the hospital.
Von Trier’s mini-series feels like a mind-boggling mash-up of Twin Peaks-esque oddball mystery and mundane Holby City-style medical bureaucracy -blended together by a paranoid mental patient. Fans who found Anti-Christ’s gratuitous excesses hard to swallow will enjoy the opportunity to explore The Kingdom, as despite its occasionally unpleasant subject matter, Von Trier’s playful lightness of touch is in evidence throughout, and the auteur blends absurdist soap opera moments with grisly splurges of body horror to compelling effect.
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This new box set collects both series of the show together for the first time (a third series was written by Von Trier but cancelled following the death of key cast member Ernst-Hugo Jaregard), augmenting the full-length broadcast version with a pair of fascinating documentaries. The visuals may be seriously dated, but Von Trier’s warped imagination is way ahead of its time. Welcome to The Kingdom.
With a Spanish director (Jaume Collet-Serra, director of Orphan), a Berlin setting and an eclectic transatlantic cast, US-German co-production Unknown (Optimum) is an appropriately exotic Euro-thriller.
Suave Dr Martin Harris (Liam Neeson, Taken) is in Berlin to give a presentation at a prestigious biotechnology summit. No sooner has he arrived, Harris is forced to set off in pursuit of his lost luggage, and becomes embroiled in a car accident that almost takes his life. When he regains consciousness, Harris is disturbed to discover that his wife Liz (January Jones, Mad Men) no longer recognises him; even more disturbingly, another man has assumed his identity. Treated with contempt by disbelieving authorities and trailed by a team of enigmatic assassins, Harris finds himself on the run in a strange city. Aided by a pair of unlikely allies -taxi-driver Gina (Diane Kruger, Inglourious Basterds) and private eye Jurgen (Bruno Ganz, Downfall) -Harris immerses himself in a perplexing search for the truth.
Understandably keen to hitch a ride on Liam Neeson’s coat-tails after his unexpectedly popular turn in violent Parisian rampage movie Taken, Unknown makes no bones about its crowd-pleasing intentions, and hits the spot more often than not. With a twisty plot, a healthy dose of intrigue and plenty of thrills and spills, Unknown is a worthwhile mainstream thriller, even if its lacks the propulsive charge of Taken.
Further, a late twist bestows the film with a clarity that was lacking earlier in the movie. The dependable Neeson is backed up by solid performances across the board -with the exception of the strangely muted January Jones -whose presence seems to grow more peripheral as the movie progresses. Despite its cryptic Hitchcock-esque aspirations, Unknown rarely rises above the level of popcorn-chomping action movie. Fortunately, that isn’t actually a bad thing, and Unknown should easily find a receptive DVD audience.
Evil Rising (Matchbox Films) is the second feature from acclaimed Finnish director Antti-Jussi Annila, who previously earned plaudits for the unconventional Finnish-Chinese co-production Jade Warrior in 2006.
Once again, Evil Rising uses Nordic mythology as its jump-off point, this time examining the aftermath of the brutal war between Russia and Sweden, which ground to a halt in 1595 after decades of vicious bloodshed. During the uneasy peace that follows, representatives of both countries are charged with drawing up the new borders of Finland -the country that divided the two warring factions -a gruelling task that leads them deep into the desolate countryside.
The film follows two brothers, the hot-headed Erik (Ville Virtanen) and contemplative Knut (Tommi Eronen), who find themselves trudging across Northern Europe in an effort to draw up boundaries. When Erik murders a man who he suspects of being a Russian sympathiser, Knut locks the man’s daughter in a storage cellar -ostensibly for her own protection, but all too aware that she is likely to die a slow, torturous death.
Not long afterwards, the brothers find themselves holed up in a sparsely inhabited village situated in the middle of an uncharted swamp. As their stay drags one, Erik and Knut become haunted by visions of the girl, whose presence seems to affect the whole village.
Unexpectedly, their only chance of salvation seems to lie in an ancient sauna at the heart of the village, a building where it is believed a man can wash away his sins without asking for forgiveness Evil Rising is a bleak, disturbing chiller that effectively melds gruesome Euro-horror viscera with a self-assured art-house poise. Director Annila builds up an undercurrent of anxiety throughout, and the measured pace intensifies the bloody, sporadic bursts of violence. Impressive stuff.
- Interview: Billy O’Brien and William Todd-Jones - March 2, 2017
- The Childhood of a Leader: the birth of a terrifying ego - February 10, 2017
- Hold your breath: Don’t Breathe, and more reviews - January 26, 2017
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