394 words on Films
Leif and me went to see Open hearts, or Elsker dig for evigt as they say in Danish, tonight. Another Dogma film, number 28 to be precise.
As most Dogma films it is somewhat sad and disturbing without appearing unreal. The story is easily told. Woman drives over man who is paralysed as a consequence. She tells her husband to calm the guy's girlfriend and he falls in love with that girl who is rejected by her paralysed boyfriend. Man gives up family for girl who might come together with her boyfriend again.
A nice and messy story that makes everybody involved reasonably unhappy. While I waited for Leif I overheard the ticket lady telling a colleague that people tend to look disturbed when leaving the film, so I expected something of Dancer in the Dark uneasiness. While things kept going wrong the story wasn't quite as unhappy, though.
The nice thing, besides Dogma films seeming to be very close to the people in them due to their style and technique, for me is that although bad things happen in them a lot - you don't really want to blame anyone for things. Neither you feel that anyone is some kind of innocent bystander. Everbody just behaves fairly normer - read: slightly flawed - steering everything into a big mess.
The following dialogue between the father and his son of about six years made the audience laugh:
Father: What do you want for your birthday.
Son:A horse.
FatherYou can't. Have a horse. Horses are for girls. As a boy you'll get something with motors in it.
Son:But perhaps I'm gay?
Father: You're too young for that. You can wait with your coming-out until you're twelve.
Son:Can I have a horse then?
[It's not a literal quote as it may have been mutilated by my bad memory and translation - but I'm sure you get the idea.]
And one more thing: The film played in Denmark, partially in a hospital which, I think, was called Reichshospital once. That would be the same hospital as in Lars von Trier's brilliant Riget mini-series that is set entirely in the 'Kingdom' of that hospital and the second part of which, according to Open Hearts' website has the same producer as Open Hearts and a couple of other Dogma films.