A lot of critics right now, including Ebert, are really high on the movie CRASH, whose thesis is that everyone in L.A., despite loving their family, is racist. If you thought that was “important,” you’ll love Lars von Trier’s MANDERLAY, in which we learn that everyone in America is racist.
MANDERLAY is the sequel to DOGVILLE, in which Nicole Kidman learned that small-town Americans appear to be friendly but are actually small minded assholes, so she brought in her gangster daddy (James Caan) to kill everybody. MANDERLAY sees Kidman replaced by Bryce Dallas Howard (THE VILLAGE) and Caan replaced by Willem Dafoe, but it’s still shot on an empty soundstage with partial sets and black outlines. Grace (Howard) and her pops are driving through the South when they come across a plantation called Manderlay, where no-one seems to have noticed that slavery has been abolished.
Tangent: When I hear the word “Manderlay,” I think of my trip to Vegas with my friend Paul, and his common-man English-accented assertion that “Mandalay Bay is totally gay.” When I asked why, he responded, “I dunno.”
Anyway, Grace feels all empowered after Dogville, so she decides she’s going to fix things for all the poor black people. Making the job appear easier, plantation owner Mam (Lauren Bacall) dies rather swiftly, so Grace takes over, frees the slaves, and gives them employee contracts. Dad warns her that the blacks aren’t ready to be free, and soon takes off, leaving her half his goons for protection.
Without a schedule enforced on them, many of the slaves are confused, and Grace tries to introduce them to democratic voting, while toiling on the land herself. Over the course of the movie, she will deal with such hazards as disease, harsh weather, and racism. I won’t spoil things too much the way DOGVILLE was for me, but at times it feels like a minimalist GONE WITH THE WIND.
Von Trier, who has never been to America but loves to bash it, seems to be taking equal opportunity political potshots. On the one hand, he mocks the “Bush doctrine” of imposing democracy at gunpoint on people who wouldn’t necessarily have chosen it and may not be ready for it. On the other, he’s mocking limousine liberals who think they know what’s best for the underclasses, even if those underclasses disagree.
And I was with him all the way up until the end. This is not gonna be a plot spoiler — my issue comes after the story is wrapped up, and narrator John Hurt makes a sarcastic comment about how there was (and is) no racism in America, and any problem that black people have is due to their rejection of the nation’s outstretched hand. We segue immediately into a montage of KKK members, neo-Nazis, poor blacks, and George W. Bush, to the strains of David Bowie’s “Young American.”
I’ll leave the issue of Bowie abuse to Gregory Weinkauf. I’ll also note that former ’60s radical Andy Klein responded to the end credits by saying “Do I deserve that?”
Okay, first of all, to imply that there’s been no change in racism in America since slavery is nonsense. Secondly, as much as I hate Bush, the man has appointed two black secretaries of state, which is more than any of his predecessors can claim.
Thirdly, von Trier’s as condescending as he depicts Americans — every black person in MANDERLAY either wants to remain a slave, or is an aspiring criminal. He offers no answers; just mocks those who try to find them. The interracial sex scene (in which Bryce does full frontal nudity, if anyone’s interested, and given her family pedigree she certainly didn’t have to) is as stereotypical as it gets in depicting a white male fear of his woman being swept up by the sensual, big-dicked noble savage.
I get the sense that von Trier is looking and hoping to piss off Americans. If only he were more committed to telling a good story. I was with him 99%, but the stupid last-minute USA bashing pissed me off.
Howard, though, continues to prove herself. This performance is totally different from her work in THE VILLAGE, which featured that awful twist ending but also has one of the best “Mars/Venus” exchanges ever committed to film, when she asks Joaquin Phoenix “Why can you not say what is on your mind?” and he replies “Why can you not stop saying what is on yours?” Every straight couple has wondered such things.
If any of my non-white readers see MANDERLAY, I’d love to hear an opinion.
Bowie abuse is definitely ourt of order – like some idiot that used heroes over footage of Hitler rallies –
I have never liked Von Trier and suspect I wouldn’t like this movie
and by the way – the whole world is full of racists – the worse verbal racism I have ever witnessed was in a Race Equality Board’s management committee!
by Muslim men against West Indian women – outrageous, sustained and constant for years in many areas…
Man, dis guy sounds like such a hack… though I guess not for 99% of the movie? Still, ain’t this pretty much the same movie as Dogtown? Sounds rather eerily similar…
Isn’t Mandalay Bay the hotel that just introduced a topless swimming pool for guests that they hire naked ladies to hang out at? Not so gay.
I have read that Lars von Trier has never been to America because he is afraid to fly on an airplane or ride on a boat, which says all I need to hear, really.
(That said, I do like “Dancer in the Dark,” and think Dogme 95 was a lot of fun as a concept).
I haven’t seen this movie yet, but I wouldn’t characterize Von Trier as a hack.
Whoah, there’s Boyer, chiming in with his little rings at the same time as me. Doppelganger.
I also like Dancer in the Dark, as well as Breaking the Waves.
Agree with Dogme nice in concept.
Cool review, Luke. I’ll probably love this movie. I think Von Trier is one of the best filmmakers around and I loved Dogville. That movie also ended with a very similar montage. Didn’t bother me. Don’t know why not. And let’s not forget that Bowie also has a song called “I’m Afraid of Americans.”
Maybe the Dogville montage didn’t bother me because it came at the end of a ficitonal film. As opposed to Michael Moore’s “documentaries” like Bowling For Columbine, whose thesis is “America is bad, mmm-kay?” That does get on my tits.
Shitheel — the problem is that the photo-montage is non-fictional, and this movie is more of a direct accusation of racism than Dogville.
As for Michael Moore, I give him greater leeway because he is American, he lives here, and he has tried to help the working class in his earlier movies and TV shows where he went after corporate crooks (and his next one, where he takes on the health care bureacracy). Plus he’s right about Canada being awesome.
Dogme 95 – interesting concept, exactly ONE great movie (Festen “The Celebration”).
Though the jackass movie was basically a Dogme film.
Hey, not trying to start a fight… Movies That Make You Think aren’t on my mental map, personally. I read books to think…
I just mean that this movie, from what I’ve heard of it, sounds identical to the last one. Bad town. Saintly woman. Edgy sex scene. Weird setting. Americans are bad. Ends with montage.
Sounds pretty hackish. But I know less than nooooothing….
Well, it is kinda identical, David, like The Two Towers and Return of the King were kinda identical. They’re parts of a trilogy featuring the same characters.
And von Trier is definitely an interesting film-maker. However, he also seems to be an asshole.
I guess I give Michael Moore less leeway because he’s American. He should know better. In Columbine, when he asks why there’s so much more gun violence in America than in Canada, he’s being intentionly obtuse. That’s an incomplete question. If he really wants an answer to such a question, he would have to ask: why is there more of EVERYTHING going on in America? Good and bad. Yes we have a higher crime rate, but we are also making more music, writing more books, producing more films (all per capita). But this doesn’t fit into the “America is bad” thesis. It’s like in college when I’d be writing a paper. I’d have maybe a half-hour left and think of some huge contradiction to my thesis. Well, then I could spend the rest of the night dealing with that contradiction, or I could keep with my thesis and be done in a half hour and then be free to go shoot up smack, worship satan, and sodomize my roommate. It’s laziness.
Plus I consider Von Trier a true artist. Most people only became aware of him around the time of Dogme. What they don’t realize is that he made many great films before this. He only started Dogme after he had mastered traditional filmmaking. That’s what made Dogme so interesting. It was like how Picasso started heavy experimentation only after he mastered classical painting. And it’s just interesting to me how foreigners perceive America (especially if it’s being done in the form of good art – this is also why I take no offense to Bowie’s “I’m Afraid of Americans” – the guy’s a great musician.) Von Trier could make a film whose thesis is “Chris Sivertson sucks donkey balls” and I’d probably still be intrigued, because he uses the medium so well.
And yes, most filmmakers are assholes.
There’s more comedians and hot girls from Canada.
Which, come to think of it, might explain the gun violence thing.
Well, it is kinda identical, David, like The Two Towers and Return of the King were kinda identical. They’re parts of a trilogy featuring the same characters.
Well, not as scene for scene identical… unless you’re misleading me! LIAR!!
Did I mention that I really only like movies with explosions? Well, I guess I try to watch something smart once in a while. But not ‘pretending chalk outlines are buildings’ smart. I watched 3.5 minutes of Dogtown and quietly snuck away…
But I guess it’s okay if you LIKE THAT KIND OF THING. I mean, I guess lots of people do.
“Breaking The Waves” gave me an annoying migrane and a nauseating stomach ache. My then-girlfriend kept falling asleep during the film. We both left during the middle of it in total disappointment.
On the other hand, I have to give props to those who attempt to make film projects based on the Dogme 95 manifesto.
Or, as I call it, ‘The I’ll make boring, weird, hackish movies’ manifesto.
But that’s just me. Hee!
I’m working up a treatment on the “Chris Sivertson sucks donkey balls” thesis as of this exact moment; I don’t know that I’ve ever heard a more compelling idea!
On a tanget: anybody heard anything about this latest movie Harmony Korine was supposedly shooting in Iceland or something like that?
I realize this site isn’t Backstage West or anything, but does anyone know how I might be able to submit a headshot and resume for the role of “Donkey Balls” in the aforementioned project?
Last thing I saw from Korine was the amazing music video he made for a song from Bonnie Prince Billy’s “Greatest Palace Hits” CD – it’s hosted somewhere online.
Stone – did I ever loan you my “Ken Park” DVD, the last movie Korine wrote? Remind me to to that if not.
Forget headshots…I’d like to submit a money shot.
Ben, since when are you a Harmony Korine fan?
Put the headshot in an envelope, write nothing on it but “Return to Sender”, drop it out the window, and you’re quite likely cast.
“Ben, since when are you a Harmony Korine fan”–
I personally would not forgive Ben were he not. He seems to be one guy I can count on.
And, no, I’ve not seen Ken Park yet, but I’ve imagined it time and again. I didn’t know you had that. I want to see. And that Bonnie Prince Billy video was great, I saw it recently. Nearly gave me a very quiet but almost deadly seizure.
People we must have a group “motel, glimpse” screening soon. I’m afraid something was missed.
I didn’t realize that Ken Park was available on DVD. I love Abel Ferrara and Bryce Howard’s vagina.
And I love Lee and Ready.
Geogre W. Bush is the best president ever!
news on “mister lonely”, for anybody interested:
News on the production via Screendaily:
Geoffrey Macnab in Santa Monica 02 November 2005 04:00
Colourful details have emerged of Mister Lonely, the latest feature from Tennessee and London-based maverick Harmony Korine (Gummo, Julien Donkey Boy). 60s icon Anita Pallenberg is to play the Queen Of England, Denis Lavant will portray Charlie Chaplin, Samantha Morton is Marilyn Monroe and Diego Luna will play a Michael Jackson impersonator
“I am trying to do things I haven’t done before. It’s my most ambitious film. I really want to push myself visually,” Korine told Screen International. The $9.5 million production, his first feature since 1999, is due to shoot in the north of Scotland, France and French Guyana. Celluloid Dreams is handling international sales and has already closed a deal with Gaga for Japan.
The plotline is outlandish, even by Korine’s standards. This is a yarn about a young American lost in Paris, eking out a living as a Michael Jackson lookalike. By co-incidence, he meets Marilyn Monroe. He follows her to a commune in Scotland, joining her husband Charlie Chaplin and her daughter Shirley Temple. Fellow residents include The Pope, The Queen of England, Madonna and James Dean. The drama is also partly set In a Brazilian forest where a community of missionary nuns bring aid to the locals.
Korine co-scripted with Avi Korine. Executive produced by Nadja Romain for Love Streams, the film is co-produced by Korine’s new production outfit, O’Salvation, Agnes b’s Love Streams Productions and ARTE (France) The cinematographer is Marcel Zyskind.
The director describes O’Salvation, launched earlier this year, as “an outlet to make films away from the system or the machine.” The company has already produced Blackberry Winter by Brent Stewart and Aluminium Fowl by James Clauer.