Review of The Five Obstructions (2003) by Julian W — 21 Dec 2010

The penultimate film screened in the Lars von Trier course I took, this is a really fascinating, direct look at the obsession with mimicry and the simulacrum present in von Trier's previous work. It is, above all, a look at a supremely insecure auteur putting on a character with which to present his work to an expectant public, and the interface of that character with another director who seems wholly unconcerned with such frivolities. von Trier is as much a performer as the actors in the films he creates; his films cannot be comprehensively critically evaluated without looking at the singular creative force behind them, as auteur theory postulates. Here he turns the camera on himself, playing himself, playing an artist at odds with another artist, and the results are mind-boggling to say the least. We are meant to assume that he sees himself in Jorgen Leth in some capacity, especially as outlined by the final letter that he has Leth read, but more subtly in his attempts to "scar" Leth with the challenges he imposes upon him. Telling is von Trier's frustration when Leth rises to those challenges every single time.

I think The Five Obstructions is valuable for how it reduces the concept of the auteur to a mere person, with his own foibles and defects. It doesn't necessarily divorce him from the art he creates; think of this somewhat as reality television for filmmakers, taking a pair of talented individuals and pitting them against each other in a series of challenges. The only catch here is that there is no reward, short of psychological fulfillment or defeat. Ultimately, the game is in von Trier's hands, and the way he plays it should hold considerable fascination for anyone interested in a thorough dissection of the personal process of filmmaking.