Nymphomaniac: Vol. I (2013)

Genre

Drama

Director

Lars von Trier

Country

Denmark | Germany | Belgium | UK | France

Cast

Charlotte Gainsbourg, Stacy Martin, Stellan Skarsgård, Shia LaBeouf, Christian Slater, Jamie Bell, Uma Thurman, Willem Dafoe, Mia Goth, Sophie Kennedy Clark, Connie Nielsen, Michaël Pas, Jean-Marc Barr, Udo Kier, Maja Arsovic, Sofie Kasten, Ananya Berg, James Northcote, Jens Albinus, Felicity Gilbert, Jesper Christensen, Hugo Speer, Cyron Melville, Saskia Reeves, Nicolas Bro, Christian Gade Bjerrum

Plot

Self-diagnosed nymphomaniac Joe (Charlotte Gainsbourg) recounts the erotic story of her adolescence and young-adulthood to the man (Stellan Skarsgård) who saved her after a beating.

Opinion

Many people have defined the film truly repulsive, a waste of time, and nothing more than a porno, due to its high level of pornographic contents. That said, I don't see why films such as Blue Is the Warmest Colour, Don Jon and Shame had a different impact on public opinion.

Nymphomaniac: Vol. I is a brave, provoking and philosophical piece of art. Lars von Trier strips sex of its romance and overloads it with nothing but lust.

The highlight of the film, brilliantly written by Lars von Trier, is the very intense and philosophical dialogue between adult Joe, played by Charlotte Gainsbourg, and Seligman, played by Stellan Skarsgård.

The wonderful and unusual story is told with a superb photography, some provocative scenes, and other meaningful scenes, all accompanied by a music at irregular intervals, ranging from Bach's „Ich ruf zu dir, Herr Jesu Christ“, to Rammstein's „Führe mich“.

Charlotte Gainsbourg gives a shameless and extremely cold performance as Joe. Making her debut as young Joe, Stacy Martin is fantastic.

Quotes

Joe: Perhaps the only difference between me and other people was that I've always demanded more from the sunset; more spectacular colors when the sun hit the horizon. That's perhaps my only sin.

Joe: It's actually the souls of the trees we're seeing in the winter. In summer everything is green and idyllic but in the winter, the branches and the trunks all stand out. Just look at how crooked they all are. The branches have to carry all the leaves to the sunlight. That's one long struggle for survival.