The cinematic medium of aesthetic expression has come to gain the strongest footing in the hierarchy of artistic works across the entire world in the present times. Stalwart filmmakers and their quintessential works have come to gain the accolades of the world’s audience as well as the scholarly film critics. Lars von Trier is surely one of the most acclaimed directors in the history of cinema. The filmmaker has left a mark on the realm of cinema with his unique style and portrayal. It is truly intriguing to note how Lars von Trier uses the cinematic techniques and elements to subvert melodramatic illusionism in the narratives of his film. For the purpose of discussion, delving deep into the cinematic language and portrayal of the films, Melancholia and Dogville would enable one to understand the consistent style of the auteur in subverting the melodramatic illusionism with the resonating reality of life and existence portrayed uniquely.
In the film Melancholia, one does not find exaggerations of emotional responses, action or occurrences in the course of the narrative. The filmmaker makes sure that the entire narrative grips the audience with its aesthetic portrayal with all the symbolic representation and quintessence of cinematic elements coming together in every scene. Lars von Trier uses the background ground with all its surmounting effectiveness to leave a lasting mark in the minds of the audience as it works to catapult the affective appeal of the narrative of the film. The emotions of the respective characters find vent through the musical notes- something that is a signature style of the acclaimed director. However, the auteur makes sure that this cinematic element gets meshed with the other technicalities to bring out the maximum effect. Most of the time, the actors are captured in close up shots or mid shots. The main purpose of this style of cinematography is to highlight the emotions and expressions of the actors on the screen.
If one refers to the works of Brecht it can be comprehended that “where the popular culture dimensions of his epic theatre help to distance Brecht’s work from any l’art pour l’art tradition, the desired effect wholly distinguished it. The crucial point of epic theatre as Brecht imagined it was its potential socio-political impact.” (Loren & Metelmann 20) Truly, if one relates the works by Lars von Trier with the ideology of Brecht, it would be understandable that the films are very much socio-politically relevant. Just as Brecht thought of ways in which his theatre would be relevant in stirring the institutions, the work by Lars von Trier too delves into the social institution of marriage and explores its intricacies along with the ways in which it complicates one’s emotions. The film, Melancholia, uses symbols to represent the mental states or psyche of the various characters of the narrative. The title of the film in itself is symbolic of the mental state of the female protagonist of the narrative apart from being representative of the planet that is shown to approach earth and finally collide with it. The film’s narrative engages the audience with the linear presentation of the tale. The film involves the casting of well-known actors, but that never impedes the potential of the film’s portrayal as the stardom of the actors never comes to overshadow their presence on the cinematic screen. Another noteworthy thing in this film is the use of the mise-en-scene by the filmmaker. Lars von Trier uses the landscapes not only to add exquisiteness to the scenes, but the landscapes represent the innate message of the film as well. (von Trier n.p.) The indoor scenes too are shot aesthetically with a very prim and proper ambiance. The films main ambition is to explore the latent emotions and thoughts of the characters and delve into the interpersonal relationships. The cinematic techniques come together to communicate the message with utmost effectiveness.
Now, just as Melancholia subverts the institution of marriage and explores relationships, Dogville is another film by the director that can be seen as the final surfacing of the feisty and brave feminine character having stopped to repress her emotions. “Though historic specificity will generate the particular character of any work of art, it does not necessarily limit the applicability of artistic concepts such as ostrannenie to one specific time, nor to one specific form.” (Loren & Metelmann 22) This is very much true in the case of Lars von Trier’s work in context. The film portrays the ills of patriarchy and investigates the animalistic nature of human in the garb of being civilized. This thematic context is universal across space and time as per the societal structure that has become institutionalized. The portrayal of feminine repression and the impositions or exploitative nature of the males of the society on the females is perfectly shown in the film. Just as the director has used the cinematic techniques in the other film, in Dogville too he excels in utilizing his auteur style. Talking of the iconic mise-en-scene of this film, one needs to note that the entire film is shot within a studio with colored lines demarcating houses, roads and the entire village of Dogville. Intriguingly, the houses have no walls whatsoever letting the audience have a holistic view of all the actions that take place in the foreground, mid-ground as well as the background of the scenes. (von Trier n.p.) Thus, the audience comes to be omniscience in getting to know about the characters and their lives.
In fact, the unique portraiture leaves no room for any excess drama or emotional exaggeration in this film at all. As the story progresses, the audience gets engaged even more to the tale of the female protagonist. Now, it needs to be noted that Lars von Trier makes sure that the stardom of the female actress never gets a chance to overshadow the character’s skin. The audience finds the character to very vulnerable and feminine as she faces all the torture and quietly endeavors to bear with all of it. The film subverts the dominance of patriarchy as the same character exudes rage and vengefulness by the end of the narrative. For most of the time, the audience can see the other supporting characters in action in the background or mid-ground as the main characters are portrayed in the foreground. Here, Lars von Trier has endeavored and succeeded in creating an entirely new cinematic aesthetic transforming the way the cinematic elements are used in a film.
Two scenes from the mentioned films are very much similar in nature. If one thinks of the scene in Melancholia where at the end Justine waits in the cave as the planet advances toward earth, there would be visible resemblance with the scene at the end in Dogville where the female protagonist sits in the car with her father. The director uses close up shots focusing on the respective expressions of the actors. Here, both the actors have become stoic after their experiences. There is apt use of lighting to show the expressions. Both the scenes are not showing any mid-ground or background as one can find in other parts of the films. No background sound is used either in the scenes in context. The editing is very stirring as these scenes are preceded by climatic sequences in the film, and these scenes are meant to present to the audience the ultimate resolutions of the respective filmic narratives.
It has to be reckoned that both the films that have been discussed look to explore new ways of expressing the message of the filmmaker. While in Melancholia one finds the abundant use of symbolism shown via the mise-en-scene along with the music, in the other film one sees an entirely new aesthetic that has never been tried before by any other filmmaker in the history of world cinema. As a result, Lars von Trier succeeds in subverting the melodramatic illusionism in the films. Rather, his films portray realism with an entirely new perspective that is deeply philosophical and artistic in nature. Hence, both the cinematic works have been immortalized in the history of cinema and still enjoy immense popularity all over the globe. Lars von Trier is correctly deemed to be one of the very best filmmakers of the world in the present times as the realm of cinema expects more such path-breaking and iconic films from the auteur.
Works Cited
Dogville. Dir. Lars von Trier. Perf. Nicole Kidman, Lauren Bacall. Canal+, France 3
Cinéma, 2003. Film.
Loren & Metelmann. Irritation of Life. PDF.
Melancholia. Dir. Lars von Trier. Perf. Kirsten Dunst, Charlotte Gainsbourg. Zentropa,
Memfis Film, Slot Machine, 2011. Film.
