Review of Manderlay (2005) by María A — 23 Sep 2011

Lars von Trier has abandoned his twisted version of entertainment to make an overwhelmingly political statement. As a film, it's not as good as dogville but the similarities between the two are endless. The political messages that this film puts across are not completely clear cut. For me the clearest was a dig at the US foreign military policy of using force to change the way a foreign community is run to suit their own style. This is shown as disasterous at the same time as pointing out the fact that America has failed to correctly manage it's own reforms in the past. The film is typically contraversial as it walks a thin line between being historical and racist, it also made the news by having a donkey slaughtered on set, fortunately this was cut.

This film is thought provoking and will spark many debates that are probably worth having, which is good. It's probably a too one-sided stab at the USA from a bloke who's never even been there and never will, that's not so good.