Dancer in the Dark

2000 · 140 min · EN · R · 7.8 (2,097 votes)

Dir. Lars von Trier · Starring Björk, Catherine Deneuve, David Morse, Peter Stormare, Joel Grey, Cara Seymour · Music Björk

“In a world of shadows, she found the light of life.”

DramaCrime

Selma, a Czech immigrant on the verge of blindness, struggles to make ends meet for herself and her young son, who has inherited the same genetic disorder and will suffer the same fate without an expensive operation. When life becomes increasingly difficult, Selma learns to cope through her love of musicals, dreaming up little numbers to the rhythmic beats of her surroundings.

VIBE

A profoundly melancholic and emotionally devastating experience, punctuated by moments of dreamlike, almost naive musical escapism. It's a raw, gritty portrayal of sacrifice and injustice, where the beauty of inner fantasy clashes tragically with a harsh, unforgiving reality, leaving an indelible, sorrowful mark.

melancholicheartbreakingdreamlikeunsettlingtragicpoignantslow-burnDogme 95 aestheticmusical dramagritty realismdreamlike sequencesexperimentalsacrificeescapisminjusticemotherhoodpoverty

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factory workerindividualimmigrantblindness and impaired visiondancingeye operationsmall townnaivetyhereditary diseaserobberycourtmusicalfemale friendshipmurderdebtpolice officertrailerdaydreaming