Antichrist 撒旦的情與慾

The story of “Antichrist” is a tangled mess of sex, evil and death, with Von Trier making a stab at allegory and old-fashioned horror, but ultimately failing on both fronts. The two central characters are called He and She, portrayed by Willem Dafoe and Charlotte Gainsbourg. They are a couple broken by the death of innocence, specifically their toddler Nic, a beautiful boy played by Storm Acheche Sahlstrom. Nic has fallen in what appears to be nothing more than a tragic accident, but there are dark forces and demons gathering.

There is a Botecelli beauty to the film that can be seductive. But the artistry that made Von Trier — a founding member of the Dogme 95 movement that has captivated European cinema elite for years — so compelling as a filmmaker with a great deal to say is nowhere to be found here. The mesmerizing provocation of “Breaking the Waves,” with Watson's conversations with God a powerful indictment of religion in the hands of a rigid mankind, feels like exploitation in “Antichrist,” with the couple wandering aimlessly through a random universe in which logic has ceased to exist. It feels neither avant-garde nor experimental — just misguided.

There is a prologue to get us into the story; then, using a technique he's fond of, Von Trier moves the action along by dividing the film into chapters, which in “Antichrist” he's titled Grief, Pain and Despair (if three chapters starts to feel endless, keep in mind that "Dogville" had nine).

She is nearly comatose in the wake of her son's death, and haunted by nightmares. He begins trying to deconstruct the feelings that are paralyzing her in hopes of helping her heal. Like a modern-day inquisition, they sit in the shadows of their house and parse through the devastation of their loss. She's on the rack; he's tightening the screws.

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