Directed by:
Lars von TrierCinematography:
Robby MüllerCast:
Emily Watson, Stellan Skarsgård, Katrin Cartlidge, Jean-Marc Barr, Adrian Rawlins, Udo Kier, Mikkel Gaup, Sandra Voe, Phil McCall, David Bateson (more)VOD (2)
Plots(1)
Set in the early 1970's amid a small tightly knit community on the remote North coast of Scotland, BREAKING THE WAVES tells the story of Bess, a young, naive and innocent girl and her profound experience of love. Bess, who has lived her life protected by her family: her mother, grandfather and recently widowed sister-in-law, Dodo; within the confined world of strict Calvinism, falls in love with Jan, a stalwart oil-rig worker and man-of-the-world. Jan in turn is captivated by Bess's innocence and the purity she radiates. Despite local opposition the couple marry.
For a brief and happy time the newly-weds live an intense love life but when Jan has to return to the oil-rig, Bess is distraught. The long nightly phone calls charged with emotion fail to quell her longing and she prays fervently to God for Jan's return.
The return is sooner than expected - an explosion on the rig seriously injures Jan and suffering potentially fatal brain damage and total paralysis he is flown back to hospital. In this state he realises that he will never be Bess' lover again. He finds it unbearable to think of Bess being deprived of sensual passion again. Despite her misgivings, he persuades her to go out and enjoy herself; to take a lover. In order to convince her and to make sure that she does this, he suggests that it will help with his recovery if she returns to his bedside to describe the events, encouraging her to detail the sex. But Bess, in her naivety, believes that Jan's health can be affected by her conduct and in her innocence she spirals into a world she does not understand.
Denied the support of her community Bess is abandoned and exiled. However, believing that her actions are helping her beloved Jan, she calls on her strength of conviction and ignores her own safety in the hope that a miracle will give Jan back to her. She plunges into the ultimate sacrifice, willing to risk her life for her husband and their love for one another. (official distributor synopsis)
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Reviews (7)
Lars von Trier pushes the envelope again, but unlike Dancer in the Dark, there is a reason for it and it is not an end in itself. Breaking the Waves is a whirlwind of emotions that often sends chills down the spine. And Emily Watson’s performance is perfection itself.
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I don't count Lars von Trier among my favorite creators, but it must be acknowledged that he knows how to tell powerful stories and how to evoke truly dark emotions from both actors and audiences. It seems to me that the film, despite what it's actually saying, has quite a few unnecessary minutes, but it's true that with another movie, I'd criticize the runtime more. An experience that you'll ponder over.
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For many years, I considered Breaking the Waves a film that you need to be more mature to understand, and as a super film that is not for everyone. I even allowed myself to see a mere theater production earlier, which handled the subject in its own way. But in the end, it's just a film for the discerning viewer, but far from being for the snob or hypocrite viewer. All proto-impressions aside, it's just a film, it won't hurt you - and of course, von Trier is only its author.
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Your typical Trier’s unpleasant cocktail of emotions. Breaking the Waves is such a relentless valley of tears that the viewer never has a chance to calm down; the misery only escalates. Emily Watson’s performance is breathtaking. And yet, I don’t think it’s enough for a full count, why? The answer is simple: because of Dogville, a film without a single weak moment that was a lot more crushing. This one is the light version of Lars’s best.
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Breaking the Waves is really a very deep and powerful story that depicts love and a love relationship from a slightly different perspective. An emotionally unforgiving epic about how hard it is (in the case of the main character, no doubt even harder than for "normal" people) to find love, but that is nothing compared to keeping love and being a dutiful wife at all costs. Her desperate efforts eventually lead Bess to the fringes of a hypocritical and would-be orderly society, to finally do "what is expected of her"...
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