2025

An egomania. A melancholiac. An obsessive-compulsive enfant terrible. A provocateur. He is Lars von Trier, the notorious Danish filmmaker who ambitiously added the ‘von’ to his name alluding to Erich von Stroheim and Josef von Sternberg, and who said that his every film is basically to irritate and provoke his mother, because she only told him the man he thought was his father was not on her dying bed. He also likes to say that everything in life scares him except filmmaking – it’s the only way to harness his demons, and shed light on his heart of darkness.

Ostentatiously violating narrative conventions, fearlessly subverting social norms, and audaciously confronting extreme sex and violence, his highly stylised, experimental cinema swings violently between opposite poles, sparking debate and controversy all over the world. Embodying both beauty and hell alongside nihilistic despair, his works are admired by many, yet detested by even more. Cannes has been the scene of his greatest victories (winning the Palme d’Or) and his worst defeat (being expelled for proclaiming himself a Nazi). After all, is he a genius, a trickster, or just a man desperately searching for life's meaning?

A founder of the Dogme 95 movement, von Trier advocates for ascetic filmmaking, preserving the values of traditional storytelling against the overreliance on technology. Despite defining the ten commandments, he only has The Idiots adhering (mostly) to the rules. But one Dogme oath he sticks to is the use of handheld camera, for offering him dangerous freedom.

Theme obsessive, his works are mostly conceived as a triptych – the Europe Trilogy stylishly explores chaos and alienation in history and modern world; the Golden Heart Trilogy examines naivete and conscience against moral conventions; the America Trilogy austerely scrutinises civilisation, democracy and all manners of human brutality; the Depression Trilogy delves into grief, despair, and isolation.

For all its anarchic spirit, his films with explicit scenes of rape, hypersexuality, abuses and self-mutilation are criticised as misogyny and dehumanisation. Ironically, he admits his female characters are his alter egos of sorts – he was the self-mutilating Emily Watson in Breaking the Waves, the forgiving Björk in Dancer in the Dark, the victimised Nicole Kidman in Dogville, the depressive Kirsten Dunst in Melancholia, and the enraged Charlotte Gainsbourg in Antichrist. He is a gift and a curse to actresses – they suffer under this control freak, but are often rewarded at the end of the battle – three of them are crowned Best Actress at Cannes.

‘If you want to provoke, you should provoke someone who is stronger than you, otherwise you are misusing your power.’ So is von Trier’s cinematic philosophy. For those who are strong enough to accept his challenge, welcome to the universe of contradictions.

‘Dogme 95 is a rescue action!’ So proclaimed by its founders.

Created by Danish directors Lars von Trier and Thomas Vinterberg in 1995, the manifesto deliberately mimicked François Truffaut's ‘Une certaine tendance du cinéma français,’ the Cahiers du Cinéma article that kickstarted the French New Wave in 1954. Over and beyond, it reflects their ambition – to launch a movement that returns filmmaking to its root: the pursuit of cinematic truth.

A backlash against big-budget productions and technical manipulations prevalent in the mainstream cinema, the Dogme 95 manifesto, known as the ‘Vow of Chastity,’ set forth ten severe back-to-naturalism commandments that reject the trickery of filmic illusions, while emphasising authenticity, realism and the power of storytelling. These rules, including shooting on location, using only natural light and handheld cameras, aim to create a more honest and immersive cinematic experience.

The success of Vinterberg’s Dogme #1, The Celebration, and von Trier’s Dogme #2, The Idiots, at Cannes put the movement on the international scene. While each achieves significant impacts for its improvisation and provocation, neither is chaste in attitude (both directors admitted to breaking some rules in their own films). The movement is no lack of criticism for being gimmicky and pretentious, and the claims such as ‘I swear as a director to refrain from personal taste!’ sound more like a publicity stunt than a bona fide artistic statement.

A rejection of a post-modernist stance, Dogme 95 adores an attitude of irony and playfulness. Its advocation of ascetic aesthetics, that ensures the audience is aware of the film’s artificiality, and that the filmed subject is in no way presented as reality in itself, bespeaks a mistrust of art as the representation of a given reality.

Having delivered 35 films under the Dogme brand, the movement was dissolved in 2005, on the 10th anniversary of its founding. Despite criticisms and controversies, its impact cannot be denied. Its philosophy of simplicity and authenticity still inspires independent and low-budget filmmakers, and resonates in the ongoing debate about the nature of filmmaking – and even beyond cinema. From ‘Dogme design’ to ‘Dogme fashion’ and ‘Dogme cuisine,’ the Dogme 95 legacy, through acquiring a new form of ‘reality’ in itself, has called for its own resurrection.

(Note: Dogme 95 argues against the artifice of cinema and technical cosmetics. The resolution and visual quality of its films may, therefore, be deliberately done to achieve a level below the mainstream standard. Kindly note that it’s part of the movement’s ideology.)

Acclaimed as ‘The Sun of Italy’ for her wild beauty, Sophia Loren is Italy’s most significant living actress, and perhaps the last surviving star of Hollywood’s Golden Age. In a career spanning eight decades, she has worked with some of the greatest directors – from Francesco Rosi to Stanley Donen and Charlie Chaplin, starring in over 100 films with many of cinema’s most iconic leading men, from Marlon Brando to Gregory Peck.

Rising above her poverty-stricken origins in postwar Naples, Loren started her career as an actress at the age of 15. She has since enthralled the world with her earthy charisma and enormous talents, thanks to the support of film producer Carlo Ponti, whom she fell in love with at 16 and eventually married through overcoming many obstacles. The love of her life for over half a century, Ponti was also the architect of her career, producing many of her biggest international hits, and building her reputation as a universally celebrated movie star.

Equally adept at portraying prostitutes or socialites, Loren wielded a versatility that few of her contemporaries could match. Regardless of the role, her performance was always grounded in a disarming authenticity, full of intelligence and maturity that enamored her to audiences from a myriad of different backgrounds. Amplified by her infallible natural beauty, Loren projected an irresistible package of beauty, brains and endless talent.

Too Bad She’s Bad is where Loren and Marcello Mastroianni launched their onscreen courtship. This breezy sun-soaked comedy also saw the beginning of their fulfilling relationship with Vittorio De Sica, the accomplished actor and influential neo-realist auteur, who went on to team with the dynamic duo in some of the most extolled Italian dramas, including Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow, Marriage Italian Style and Sunflower – all set to cement their status as one of the all-time great screen couples.

At the age of 25, Loren made history by becoming the first to win the Academy Award for Best Actress for a performance not in the English language with De Sica’s Two Women, which also won her a Cannes Best Actress award. In the years since, she has been anointed with almost every major acting award going. In 1991, she also received an Honorary Oscar for ‘a career rich with memorable performances that has added permanent luster to our art form.’

This selection features some of the most enduring performances by the formidable actress – now 90, she hopes to never retire, and made it clear that legacy is the last thing on her mind.

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