Antichrist (2009)

Directed by Lars Von Trier

Starring Willem Dafoe and Charlotte Gainsbourg (Unrated - NC17 level content)

4 stars (out of 4) 

This movie runs about 1:45 and out of that length approximately 5 minutes are explicitly graphic. Those who rate this movie low only focus on those 5 minutes. As a complete body of work this movie is far more morbid in a psychological sense. 

I'd like to give a good summary of events in this movie but its nearly impossible, I'm still not sure what's going on and I just watched it. I'll do my best. On the surface, this movie is about a couple who lose a small child in what seems like a meaningless tragedy. The wife is extremely distraught so her therapist husband decides to have her face her fears. He does this by taking her to a cabin in the forest of Eden where she spent her last summer with her son. Upon arrival deeply buried emotions begin to surface and manifest as extreme confusion, anxiety, and eventually anger. All other emotions are spent, with anger being the only one sustaining her existence. She then begins the torture and mutilation of both her husband and herself. He prevails in the struggle for survival but to call him the winner would be a drastic overestimate of his condition.  

Beneath the surface this film is a pessimistic story of Adam and Eve. The characters are only credited as He and She and (besides the child) are the only faces seen throughout the movie. Its no accident that they end up in a place called Eden. This is the story of an anti-Eden, a place where there is a complete absence of humor, joy, innocence, bliss, peace and tranquility. He has unexplained visions throughout the film that are grotesque yet poignant. One can only presume the meaning, but I feel that they have to do with the temptation of Eve (She). Her victory over grief and anxiety comes at the expense of morality and I feel that she fell into the temptation of anger and self-loathing due to her part in her child's death. She did not kill her child but there is a huge plot twist near the end that I don't want to spoil, but it will certainly make you feel less sorry for She.

I think this movie is an artistic masterpiece. Its visually stunning and not just in the explicit parts. If you are offended by obscenities then please don't watch this, but if you can reconcile your conscience, you will find this one of the most thought-provoking movies you've ever seen. Lars Von Trier has created a film with unflinching violence in the vein of Gus Van Sant's Elephant. Watch this film without predetermined moral judgment and it will change you.