It is as if the dead child, Nic, were taking a last reproachful look at his parents. The next scene is the funeral, the couple filmed, in a shot reminiscent of the trapped hero’s view from the coffin in Dreyer’s Vampyr, through the hearse window. Recalling Don’t Look Now, it begins with a child’s death while mother and father (simply credited as “she” and “he,” played by Charlotte Gainsbourg and Willem Dafoe) have sex. Antichrist’s concerns are contemporary-gender, ecology, science-and its accomplishment, easy to recognize so long as one is not too distracted by the gore, is to explore these philosophical themes cinematically.Īntichrist is also a carefully plotted thriller. There are comparisons to be made with the current vogue for “torture porn” horror, but a better initial reference point is a group of 1970s films: The Night Porter, In the Realm of the Senses, and Salò, all of which relate sexual violence to mid-century fascism. Rob White: Antichrist is already making headlines because of the explicitness of its sexual violence (especially two acts of genital mutilation). For ease of reference, a synopsis is provided at the end. SPOILER WARNING: Please be aware that the piece assumes familiarity with Antichrist and does contain major plot spoilers. This web-exclusive exchange between Film Quarterly editor Rob White and philosopher Nina Power is meant as a first attempt at the in-depth debate that this major film deserves.
Dense, shocking, and thought-provoking, Lars von Trier’s Antichrist is a film which calls for careful analysis.
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