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C+ |
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| Story: |
C+ |
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| Acting: |
C+ |
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| Direction: |
C+ |
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| Visuals: |
C+ |
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Lacks The Power of "Dogville"
by KevinC (movies profile)
Jan 10, 2007
Lars Von Trier's "Manderlay" picks up where "Dogville" left off. Though the protagonist has changed the setup of the films are closely similar. Both films are told in eight chapters. Both films feature John Hurt as a frequently present and pleasant sounding narrator. Both films with historical slideshows set to David Bowie's "Young Americans". Both films deal with small towns whose inhabitants committ hanous acts because of their own democracies. Both films are shot on barren soundstages where dictations such as "The Old Lady's Garden" and "The Town Bench" are used to dictate what would reside in these barren spaces.
The style is very intimate and in the case of "Dogville" caused some incredibly severe tension. "Manderlay" doesn't pack the punch of its predecessor. It is considerably shorter but feels longer. Having seen "Dogville" I expected to be shocked. I also expected incredible ensemble acting. This film has very weak characters in comparison to "Dogville". Truthfully, I was so disappointed that I wanted to turn it off after the first hour. I persisted through it and found that the second hour was a little more exciting than the first.
The issue in this film is racism. Grace decides to assume leadership of Manderlay, a small town in Alabama, when she discovers that slavery is still in place there 70 years after its abolishment. In the end we come to see that the town would have been happier in slavery. There a few intense moments where extremely violent actions take place but there is nothing as horrific as the treatment of Grace in "Dogville". The film might have been better if Nicole Kidman played the role again. Not because Bryce Dallas Howard was bad. She wasn't. I just feel that Kidman would have given Grace the weight of the first film. I really don't understand Von Trier's casting decisions. He keeps the same narrator and closing credits and the films are so similar that they could be played back to back with nothing to seperate them except that Grace and her father are played by different actors. Also the use of Lauren Bacall and a few of the other actors from "Dogville" was odd because their playing different characters in two films that are so similar.
There is going to be a third part of Grace's cross country crusade to find that evil is inevitable. I don't think there should have been a second one. "Dogville" was amazing. "Manderlay" stunk. |
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