Dogville

Reducing cinema to a crude minimum, von Trier’s daring exercise – the first of his America Trilogy – offers a Brechtian disquisition on hypocrisy and intolerance. Shot on a single set, the story unfolds when Nicole Kidman’s Grace comes to seek sanctuary in Dogville, a town outlined by chalk on the floor, only to find herself dehumanised by the ostensibly compassionate folks. Unmasking the xenophobia and vindictiveness behind America’s belief in its own goodness (by a European filmmaker who has never set foot in the US) is predestined to meet with hostility, yet its warning that isolationist mindset leads only to inhumanity resonates loudly in the post-9/11 world.

Danish Film Awards: Best Screenplay and Best Costume Design

Cannes Film Festival: In Competition