Review of The Five Obstructions (2003) by Jarrod W — 10 Aug 2007

I probably couldn't have picked a worse introduction to Lars von Trier, but this movie was is a pure wonder. To give this 5 stars is perhaps selfish and defeats the purpose of reviewing a movie, since this sucker is for very select (no, not 'better') tastes.

But alas, this semi documentary goes beyond being a film; see it, and you'll know what I mean. It's a blast watching Von Trier push his idol filmmaker Jorgen Leth nearly as far as he can, as he tries to get him to reach his breaking point, and experience "change" through this filmmaking excercise.

I urge everyone to give this a try, and watch it with an open mind, all the way to the end. If the synopsis sounds interesting, just see how much further this movie ventures. Call Lars pretentious, a psudo-psych babbler, mistaken for genious, etc.

Bottom line, he has made something great here, and while it may not be perfect in some aspects, the conception of this idea merits major applause. Beautiful!