Review of The Five Obstructions (2003) by Plinius D — 15 Sep 2009

The idea behind The Five Obstructions is a pretty magnificent one. Director Lars von Trier challenges one of his idols, Jorgen Leth, to re-make five times a 12-minute short film that he created in 1967. Each time, though, von Trier will add a new set of obstructions to the task, all in some grand effort to... I don't know, break Leth down mentally and/or artistically. Doesn't that sound wonderful?

Unfortunately, the finished product doesn't provide as much of a treat as the synopsis would lead you to believe.

Maybe the reason for this is that there is very little shown of Leth's torment. We get the impression that each of the obstructions that von Trier presents are certainly very difficult to get around. In the first obstruction alone, it is declared that Leth's film must include no shots that are more than 12 frames (about 1 1/2 seconds) long, that it must not use any sets, and that it must be shot in... Cuba.

That's pretty radical, and the finished product is absolutely gorgeous. But aside from a few cuts to Leth in various hotel rooms with the date scrolled across the bottom of the screen, we the audience do not really get any idea of what the production was like. We don't see how Leth worked around the 12 frames rule or even how he approached it in the first place. We don't see anything, save for a few moments of him swimming in a pool and wondering aloud how to finish the film. It just... leaves out everything that is important.

And so it goes. For the second obstruction, von Trier commands Leth to go to the most miserable place on Earth. Leth chooses a red-light district in Bombay, a place which he describes early on as being like a nightmare. But then he films there, no problems. It seems easy for him, and The Five Obstructions doesn't bother with trying to assert just how dangerous and/or frightening the situation was. It doesn't try to let us into Leth's mind, to give us some idea that the prospect of creating each of these new films is a difficult or trying task for him. We hardly get to see any of the creation of the films - the bulk of the movie consists of Leth and von Trier grinning at each other and watching clips from the five finished films.

Don't get me wrong, each of Leth's creations are pretty spectacular. In fact, I'd say that they all pretty much outshine the rather banal original (which is included as a special feature on the DVD). The final "twist" in the movie doesn't really add up to much, though, and the fact that it ends immediately following the final showing felt off. The theme that von Trier was getting at didn't come together, and so the whole exercise ends up feeling kind of pointless.

Which is a crime, because the premise is so fantastic. But the execution leaves so much to be desired, and the documentary that is The Five Obstructions doesn't really bring things full circle the way that it would like you to believe. So the movie is so-so. Interesting, but definitely not fulfilling. Oh, but it could have been. It could have been.