Directed by Lars Von Trier
2018, USA, 155 min

The Cannes premiere of Lars von Trier’s masterful provocation sparked both bilious outrage and begrudging admiration. In detailing the murderous exploits of unrepentant serial killer Jack a.k.a. Mr. Sophistication in graphic detail, the Peter Pan of enfants terribles also engages in some perverse but poignant self-reflection (if not outright character suicide). As he marches us to a dizzying climax featuring an astonishingly cinematic depiction of damnation, he once again displays his uncanny talent for eliciting performances completely dialed into his film’s disturbing frequencies: ungainly yet predatory, Dillon is deeply unsettling; Uma Thurman slyly underscores the film’s rampant self-awareness; and Riley Keough is heartbreaking in the narrative’s most harrowing stretch. – Vancouver International Film Festival