8.7/10
"Europa", originally called "Zentropa", is Lars Von Trier's concluding film in his Europa Trilogy. The first film was "The Element of Crime", which I saw and loved; and the middle child was… More
8.7/10
"Europa", originally called "Zentropa", is Lars Von Trier's concluding film in his Europa Trilogy. The first film was "The Element of Crime", which I saw and loved; and the middle child was "Epidemic", which I haven't bothered seeing. Yet.
I'm a proud supporter of Lars Von Trier, and I will see any film that he chooses to make or be involved in. This is because I have faith in a man as smart as himself; and he always delivers something new. He has come a long way, from making grade-C pornography to stuff like this. I imagine that he still likes the side of him that can produce pornography; but I'm glad he's moved on and made movies as good as "The Element of Crime" or even this.
"Europa" is an experience, much like Von Trier's debut film. It premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, where it lost the Palme d'Or, causing Von Trier to angrily flick off the judges. I imagine he would have done the same thing if it had won the award. Von Trier invites and even enjoys criticism, and he's made a name for himself even outside of his outlandish, surreal, sometimes explicit films. But I like him anyways, and he will always be influential to whatever work I carry out, through film, in the near future.
I'm getting off task. The story is what I should be talking about by now, isn't it? I guess, but you won't always get what you expect, and if you expect anything out of "Europa" when you decide to watch it, then my friend, you're doomed.
Leo (Jean-Marc Barr), and American, moves to Germany to find work and show the Germans that not all Americans are sneaky, sleazy liars. He then begins work as a sleeping-car-conductor for the Zentropa railway. It is there that he meets the lovely young woman, Kat (Barbara Sukowa), who seduces and manipulates him.
And manipulation itself plays a large role in the film's central plot. Leo is soon accidentally drawn into a terrorist conspiracy of some sort. The enemy has planted a bomb in one of the trains that goes through Leo's railway. He has been tricked. And now, he must stop what he unknowingly started.
I guess I admire and appreciate the story that is told here. It is existent, but its own confusion may be why it didn't earn Von Trier that Palme d'Or for its year at Cannes. As with EVERY SINGLE OTHER Lars Von Trier film, it's not for everyone. It requires a certain audience. It thrills and fascinates with the look of each shot; and it is lovingly crafted. Some might find it just "good". Some might find it just "meh". And some might even hate it. However, I know that I'm not alone when I say that it's a fascinating work of art. Von Trier has never been pretentious or overly-indulgent to me and he never will be. He's not pretending to be an artist; he is one.
The film is stylized skillfully to feel like a more modern noir film, and it definitely works miraculously. I am a believer that black-and-white will always be king, and I guess...so does Lars Von Trier. His film is indeed accompanied by mostly black-and-white visuals, with occasional colors showing up to give the film its surrealism. But then again, we know Von Trier well; and we understand that he also sets up his shots carefully so that he can make them count. He understands all too well that people will see "Europa" for the sake of its mere existence, but there's really no other reason other than that to pursue it. I can't say I recommend it, at least not to everyone, but if you are like me, and you see Von Trier as a filmmaker that deserves attention for his efforts, then it's most-definitely a must-see movie.