The Five Obstructions (2003)
Moderate coarse language, moderate sexual references
With The Five Obstructions, notoriously mischievous director Lars von Trier performs yet another cinematic experiment. This time around, the Danish prankster tries to outwit his mentor, director Jorgen Leth, forcing him to remake his classic 1967 short, The Perfect Human, five different times, with a series of increasingly outlandish guidelines. His goal is to break down the abnormally stable Leth, teaching him a valuable life lesson in the process. In the first film, von Trier sends Leth to Cuba and sets his first seemingly insurmountable rule: make a film that consists of shots that are no longer than twelve frames at a time. Miraculously, Leth uses his forced limitations to create a beautiful work, which obviously irks von Trier. Next up, von Trier challenges Leth to return to Bombay - which he calls the "most wretched place on Earth"- - n order to confront some demons from his past. Once again, the clever mentor rises to the challenge. Frustrated and sensing defeat, von Trier's next challenge is deceptively simple: Leth must remake his film with no limitations whatsoever. He travels to Brussels and succeeds once again. After a foray into animation, von Trier creates the final obstruction, a film in which von Trier admits defeat and pays tribute to his mentor. The Five Obstructions is a thoughtful, entertaining meditation on the filmmaking process.
| Status: | Normal |
|---|---|
| Run time: | 90mins |
| Origin: | BELGIUM |
| Aspect Ratio: |
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Member Reviews (10)
10 Member
Reviews
Art S.
says
Although von Trier isn't always my cup of tea, I decided that I would entertain his prankster mode by watching The Five Obstructions wherein he challenges one of his film mentors to remake one of his short 60s films under various difficult constraints and conditions (obstructions). The film is thus a documentary of sorts, intercut with shots from the original and the new short films. It's fun for a while but the obstructions become increasingly idiosyncratic (the rotoscoping looks great, however, as it later did in A Scanner Darkly), and to be frank, I fell asleep during von Trier's own contribution at the end. The final obstruction!
The Pict
says
This movie is the epitome of decadence. The directors enjoy themselves in luxury while discussing subtle points of "art", at the same time exploiting the condition of the most "miserable" people in the world (their own words) without the slightest compunction. If you think that is great and groundbreaking, go for it.
E..
says
Watched only the first two obstacles; too experimental for me; cinematographic exercises for the sake of mere exercises; who cares? All what I have learnt is that they drink vodka before noon and eat nice caviare with bone spoons (not metal spoons!) and smoke good cigars. Good for them.
Stephen Hamacek
says
I found this a fascinating and insightful look into the mind of Lars von Trier, and especially a wonderful introduction to his mentor. This might be a film that appeals more to those with an interest in film making themselves, and personally I found it beautiful, artful and rewarding.
Jordan
says
An engrossing and interesting documentary, with a surprisingly poignant ending. By the final scenes, you have really got to know Jorgen Leth and the 5 films are very entertaining, and all brilliant in their own right.
JB
says
I really liked this film, but I saw it a few years ago with zero expectations or knowledge of the film. It's certainly a documentary more than anything, and you get more curious as it goes along about how the next 'obstruction' will be overcome. It's interesting if you're into filmaking because you get to see 5 versions/interpretations of the same short film plus all the talk surrounding the making of them.
David
says
Interesting look at non mainstream cinema. More a documentary than film but worth a look to see how Lars von Trier thinks - outside the square - and who brought us the classic; Dogville.
Chris D.
says
This is just silly. Rather than tell someone his opinion of them, he made them make a series of odd films.
Barbara S.
says
Stefano B.
says