Who's
In It: Emily Watson and Stellan Skarsgard Who Directed It: Lars
Von Trier
Year of release: 1998
Breaking The Waves (1998) - Reviewed
by: Nick Goodwin
Danish
film maker Lars Von Trier is a director governed by a very distinct set of ideals.
Not only does he bring a very specific north European style and structure to the
films he makes, but he also comes loaded with his very own set of film ideologies
and philosophies.
Grounding
himself within a group of like minded directors, Lars Von Trier is a pioneer of
an ideal known as Dogme.
Casting
itself in the same vein as the Italian Realists of the 1930's and the French New
Wave of the 1950's Dogme directors of the late 1990's sought to reinvent the approach
and methodology of modern day film making. Tired of the Hollywood standard these
directors aimed to break the mould established by an American system and instead
direct almost improvised pieces, with unplanned cinematography and no limitations
to theme and content. From this period of filmmaking we were privy to many iconic
movies including Lars Von Triers 'The Idiots' and Thomas Vinterbergs 'Festen'.
However,
it was a film made prior to the finalisation of these dogme philosophies that
stood out as the precursor to this new way of thinking in film making and that
sparked an interest in the new faction of Scandinavian film makers.
Breaking
the Waves, released in 1996, is the ultimate in movie misnomers. Laid somewhere
between a touching, heartfelt love story between two contrasting characters and
a tragic tale of gritty sexual desire brought about by catastrophic events, this
film sets its roots on several emotional levels and in doing so should appeal
to most on many.
Set
deep within the confines of an overtly religious and increasingly disapproving
community in the north west of Scotland, Breaking the Waves focuses primarily
on the blossoming relationship between Bess, a virginal islander with a distinct
if unapparent mental instability and Jan, a burly Scandinavian oil rig worker
and outsider to the close knit community.
Opening
on the day of their wedding the initial premise of the film is that of heartfelt
romanticism and the sexual awakening brought about by an ever increasing love
between a couple. However, as touching as this air of romance is, it is brought
to a crashing halt by a sudden, catastrophic incident leaving Jan, helpless and
paralysed. Not wanting to become a burden to his newly beloved and ever aware
of her new found interest in the opposite sex Jan instructs his wife to perform
various degrading acts with strangers in order to help him feel he is fulfilling
his husbandly duties and to aid his recovery. It is only when Bess's already troubled
mental state cannot comprehend her own actions and the conflict of obeying her
husband and betraying her wedding vows of commitment and monogamy reach critical
mass that trauma and eventual desperate tragedy climax this film in stunning and
emotional scenes.
Stylistically,
Breaking the Waves is a beautiful piece of cinematography. Chapterised by some
outstanding set ups, the visuals within the film merely accentuate the feelings,
emotions and thoughts that run deep within the characters. The titled scenes come
across like beautiful watercolours and give broken logic to a complex and varying
tale, whilst the hand held "wedding video" feel to the first quarter
not only highlights the events ensuing but also give way to the first signs of
Dogme film directing with an extremely naturalized and realistic feel to the action
and its surrounding events.
Interspersed
with this extremely evident visualistic approach is a very definite backdrop of
sound that gives the film an added dimension and an almost ethereal quality. Juxtaposed
within this ever changing, tragic love story a wall of 1970's rock anthems create
a feel of frozen time and of a dated society.
Breaking
the Waves is a complicated tale and it is only through the versatility and emotional
development of the leading actors as they play out their roles that the story
is given a believable and emotional depth. Both Emily Watson and Stellan Skarsgard
are enthralling in their growth as events ensue and you are drawn in as a viewer
to this unfortunate chain of events. They grow emotionally in front of your eyes
and you feel an almost sorrow as events take their tragic conclusion. This thoroughly
incomprehensible chain of events is given a feel as if it has happened to your
next door neighbour or to someone you know and without a doubt you are brought
in to feel a part of the community, judgmental, saddened and eager for the next
piece of gossip as it circulates about the unfortunate pair.
Regardless
of the seemingly shocking content of this film, its roots are laid out very specifically
with Lars Von Triers ideologies. This film is not out to stun its audience with
scenes of a graphic nature and this film is not out to wow audiences with a varying
array of film techniques and off the cuff film making aimed at drawing a younger
audience. All the style and thought that go into Breaking the Waves merely culminate
in Lars Von Triers ultimate goal, to take as realistic an approach as possible
to a believable story without the confines of a standardized system. Breaking
the Waves is a no holds barred look at how happiness and tragedy go hand in hand
and that love is the overall key to succumbing any ordeal that you may face.
Beautifully
prosaic and emotionally challenging Breaking the Waves gives its audience a true
and touching tale of love, loss and the bond that humanity can bring.
