‘Splendid Palace’ will show a retrospective of Danish director Lars von Trier’s films

From April 13 to 30, in the “Splendid Palace” cinema, it will be possible to watch all 15 feature films of the Danish director Lars von Trier and, with the help of lecturers, get to know in detail the development of the director’s handwriting, philosophical ideas and artistic means of expression.

As “Delfi” informs the representatives of the cinema, the films will be shown in the chronological order of their production.

All of Lars von Trier’s film works have now been restored and digitized, so it is a good time to introduce the Latvian audience to the director’s full spectrum of creativity. Some of the films will be shown in Latvia for the first time, according to the organizers.

Lars von Trier (1956) is considered one of the most scandalous and controversial European film directors in his work and personality. He is one of the authors of the purist film movement “Dogma 95”, the inventor of the principles of “automavision” cinematography, received more than 100 awards and worked with world-famous actors: Charlotte Gainsbourg, Bjork, Willem Dafoe, Charlotte Rampling, etc.

“We are honored to include a cinematic event of an unprecedented scale in the cinema’s centennial program: to show all the films of Lars von Trier. Trier is an innovator of the cinematic language, worked in various film genres, interpreting and even deconstructing them. He has had a huge impact on European cinema as a whole, including every moviegoer, including me. In any movie from Trier, you want to leave the movie theater at least twice, but you can’t turn away,” comments film critic and artistic director of “Splendid Palace” cinema Daira Āboliņa.

The synergy of theology, philosophy, art and music is part of the conceptually complex artistic handwriting of Lars von Trier, Āboliņa states. In the language of cinema, the director explores the demise of old Europe (European trilogy films), religion and faith (“Spread the Waves”, 1996), the ethical limits of society and the understanding of freedom (“Idiots”, 1998). The creative spectrum of the Danish film director is extremely wide, from the comedy “The Boss of Everything” (2006) to the film “Melancholia” (2011), which Lars von Trier himself describes as a beautiful film about the end of the world.

“In his works, Lars von Trier challenges the audience to look into the inner tragedy and absurdity of man, fear and animalistic desires – the cataclysm of human existence. The lives and personalities of his film characters are psychologically challenging, often violent, yet sensual and powerfully revealing in their weakness,” the organizers write.

The retrospection cycle will be opened on April 13 at the “Splendid Palace” cinema with the 1984 film – “Crime Element”. The speaker of the first evening will be film critic Daira Āboliņa. Some of the films are also planned to be shown in Talso and Cēsis.

The films will be shown in the original language with English and Latvian subtitles.

Retrospective cycle films:

“Crime Element” (1984);
“Epidemic” (1987);
“Europe” (1991);
“Split the Waves” (1996);
“Idiots” (1998);
“Dancer in the Dark” (2000);
“Dog Villa” (2003);
“Five Limits” (2003);
“Almonds” (2005);
“The Boss of It All” (2006);
“Antichrist” (2009);
“Melancholy” (2011);
“Nymphomaniac I” (2013);
“Nymphomaniac II” (2013);
“The House That Jack Built” (2018).