A daring treatise on lust, jealousy and solitude
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| Nymphomaniac (Vol. 1 & 2) (2013) - By Lars von Trier |
Our Combined Rating (for Vol. 1 & 2): 8.5
Genre: Drama
Genre: Drama
Cast: Charlotte Gainsbourg, Stellan Skarsgård, Stacy Martin
Country: Denmark | Germany | France | Belgium | UK
Language: English
Combined Runtime: 241 min | 330 min (extended cut)
Color: Color
Summary: A self-diagnosed nymphomaniac recounts her erotic experiences to the man who saved her after a beating.
Nymphomaniac (Vol. 1 & 2) is a 2013 Danish drama film
written and directed by Lars von Trier. Before going any further it's imperative to demystify the movie's title. According to the dictionary definition,
“Nymphomania is the uncontrollable or excessive sexual desire in a woman.” So, basically, a nymphomaniac is a woman who has abnormally excessive and uncontrollable sexual desire, in other words, a female sex addict. Nymphomaniac got released internationally in form of two separate volumes of roughly two hours each. However, Lars von Trier also premiered an extended cut of the
first half of the film, Nymphomaniac: Vol. 1, with 30 minutes of extra footage
at the 64th Berlin Film Festival, which garnered rave reviews.
This film critique doesn’t analyze the two volumes separately but as a whole. For,
these are not two different films but one film split up into two parts for
commercial reasons. Nymphomaniac (Vol. 1 & 2) stars Charlotte
Gainsbourg, Stellan Skarsgård, Stacy Martin, and Shia LaBeouf in pivotal roles.
The movie also features cameos from Uma Thurman, Willem Dafoe, Connie Nielsen and
Christian Slater.
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| Stacy Martin as the young Joe in Lars von Trier's Nymphomaniac |
Lars von Trier's Nymphomaniac—a
bold and daring cinematic treatise on lust, jealousy and solitude—proves to be
a devastating life-changing experience that makes us question the nothingness
of our existence. As a work of art, it refines ours senses and haunts our
imagination with its ribald motifs and breathtaking imagery. In Nymphomaniac,
Lars von Trier essentially presents, in form of eight sprawling chapters (5 in Vol. 1 and 3 in Vol. 2), the
bizarre tale of a self-diagnosed nymphomaniac, named Joe, recounting her erotic
experiences during the different phases of her life. Lars von Trier
borrows random ideas from varied disciplines—be it forbidden ones like female
libertinism and sexual fetishism; obscure ones like fly-fishing and plant
taxonomy; or quotidian ones like mathematics, literature, philosophy,
music and religion—and blends them seamlessly, not only demonstrating his
remarkable range as an artist but also reasserting his credentials as a
filmmaker par excellence.
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| Charlotte Gainsbourg as the middle-aged Joe |
Nymphomaniac is the final part of Lars von
Trier's "Depression Trilogy", having been preceded by Antichrist (2009) and
Melancholia (2011). Lars von Trier, in his characteristic style, handpicks a rather
controversial subject and then gives it the most unconventional treatment. The
result is an end product that's dark, diabolical, and deviously clever. The
movie despite its serious outlook has an undercurrent of dark humour that harks
back to von Trier's earlier works. The movie's characters serve as a
conduit to evoke the viewers' deepest emotions, unveiling the shrouds of their
ignorance and bringing them face-to-face with their innermost conflicts and
insecurities. Nymphomaniac: Vol. I, which presents Joe’s younger years, unfolds
at a whirlwind pace and seems to underline the unrestrained joys of female
libertinism. It’s a sheer delight to watch a newcomer (Stacy Martin) portray Joe’s
youthful years so passionately and with an air of effortless ease. Nymphomaniac:
Vol. II, which has a rather somber feel thanks to a drastic tonal shift with
respect to Vol. I, shows the middle-aged Joe (played by Charlotte Gainsbourg) finally come to term with the limitations,
hardships and hypocrisies of a mortal's life as she ends up paying the price for
her frenzied modus vivendi.
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| Christian Slater (right) as Joe's father in Nymphomaniac |
Lars von Trier is unarguably the most influential filmmaker to have emerged out of Denmark since Dreyer. His singular works of cinematic art often come across as mysterious, bizarre, and often inscrutable to the average audience. Nymphomaniac is easily Lars von Trier’s most accessible
work till date. But, make no mistake! It’s not your run-of-the-mill cinematic product.
Is it pornography? According to Wikipedia, “Pornography is the explicit
portrayal of sexual subject matter for the purpose of sexual arousal.” Now, there’s
no denying that von Trier’s film is quite explicit in its propagation of sexual
content. But, does it serve the purpose of sexual arousal? The film evokes pathos, horror and revulsion but not an iota of sexual
gratification (unless you are a pervert). Credit must go to Lars von Trier for concocting a film that in less accomplished hands could have slumped into the realm of artsy porn. Vintage von Trier, Nymphomaniac is not merely an erotic tale of a female sensualist, but is also a scathing satire on the tortured human relationships in our fast-paced world.
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| Uma Thurman (left) in Lars von Trier's Nymphomaniac |
In Nymphomaniac, Lars von Trier makes some very
interesting choices especially with regards to acting: be it using two
actresses to play the same character; using a Hollywood star like Shia LaBeouf,
who is not particularly known for his acting, to play a pivotal part; or casting
Uma Thurman and Willem Dafoe in cameo roles. Legendary Spanish filmmaker Luis Buñuel once used two different actresses to play the lead character of Conchita
(that too for the events that take place on the very same day) in That Obscure Object of Desire (1977). Buñuel
had done it to highlight the different sides of Conchita’s personality and probably to heighten the movie's surrealism. But, Lars von Trier is neither a surrealist nor does Joe seem to share Conchita's dichotomy. Any reasonable director would have been contented with just one actress playing the part of
Joe. All it would have required is a little bit of makeup and hairstyling to take care of the age differences between the two Joes. But,
Lars von Trier has never been the one to be bounded by reason. He once again leverages on his creative freedom making an artistic choice that ultimately pays off. Both Stacy Martin and Charlotte
Gainsbourg play their respective parts with awe-inspiring brilliance. While Martin’s Joe epitomizes
the exuberance of youth, Gainsbourg’s Joe embodies the troubled spirit of a maimed
beast robbed off its freedom. Come to think of it, it just seems impossible to imagine Martin play Gainsbourg's part and vice versa.
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| Stellan Skarsgård (right) as Seligman in Nymphomaniac |
In Nymphomaniac, for some uncanny reasons, Lars von Trier
chooses to make his male characters either dumb or effeminate and the female characters
smart and transgressing. Lars von Trier questions the elevated
status of love vis-à-vis other human emotions: Joe tells Stellan Skarsgård’s
character, Seligman, who rescues her, “For me love was just lust with jealousy
added. Everything else was total nonsense. For every hundred crimes committed
in the name of love, only one is committed in the name of sex.” Lars von Trier
creates a very interesting character in Seligman—an intellectual who
chooses to stay a virgin all his life. According to Seligman, humanity is
divided into two groups: the people who cut the fingernails of the left hand
first (the light-hearted people who have a tendency to enjoy life more because
they go straight for the easiest task and save the difficulties for later), and
the people who cut the fingernails of the right hand first. Seligman himself belongs
to second category as oppose to Joe who being a true pleasure-seeker falls in the
first category. While Seligman and Joe come across as exact antithesis of each
other, there’s much in common between the two of them. The two are tied together
by some strange bond. Is it pity or envy? In the end, Nymphomaniac poses the all-important
question: Whether to to live a life of our own choosing or to let others chose a life for us?
Overall, Nymphomaniac proves to be an endlessly
fascinating work of cinema that brilliantly balances style with substance. At
the same time, it’s not an easy film to watch by any stretch of imagination and
can pose serious impediments to the uninitiated viewer. Lars von Trier’s unconventional
choice of using pre-recorded classic music proves to be a brilliant one and reminds this
critic of the great Stanley Kubrick. Nymphomaniac features a lot many memorable
sequences. The one featuring Uma Thurman in the role of a distressed wife is
definitely a cut above the rest. Then there’s the movie’s shocking finale that’s
bound to leave the viewer cold. Amidst a plethora of disturbing scenes the
movie does offer few moments of respite thanks to the occasional bursts of
humor. Joe’s messed-up erotic encounter with two black men inside a hotel room is
by far the most hilarious. The movie also features a levitation sequence that’s
highly reminiscent of Andrei Tarkovsky's 1975 film, The Mirror aka Zerkalo (the
seventh chapter of Nymphomaniac is also named as “The Mirror”). Lars von
Trier also pays tribute to Bond films; Joe names the eighth chapter “The Gun”
after Walther PPK automatic, the gun that was issued to James Bond after his
preferred pistol Beretta had got jammed. Joe's morbid sexual behavior and the underlying
sexual fetishism remind one of Bunuel's remarkable 1967 film, Belle de Jour. In
one of the scenes, Lars von Trier cheekily pays homage to the opening sequence
of Antichrist. Thus, Nymphomaniac, in so many ways, is Lars von Trier's tribute to cinema, a solemn expression of his love and appreciation for the medium. In Nymphomaniac,
Lars von Trier seems to have blatantly depicted almost all forms of human sexuality:
be it heterosexuality, pedophilia, homosexuality, bisexuality, nymphomania, or
sexual fetishism. This makes Nymphomaniac a very challenging film to watch for
an average viewer. But, courage and patience have their own rewards, and in this
case, plenty. Highly Recommended!
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| Shia LaBeouf as Jerôme in Lars von Trier's Nymphomaniac |
Readers, please feel free to share your opinion by leaving your comments. As always your valuable thoughts are highly appreciated!
Nymphomaniac (2013) Trailer
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