Falling
""You’re always there to catch me . . . when I fall."
Dancer in the Dark (2000)
Points
for Reflection
A Rhetoric of Film, chp. 5
- which of the various necessary roles involved in making a film appeals to you most?
- in light of the responsibilities Harrington defines for a second assistant cameraman (“loader”), does a modern production shot digitally require such an individual?
- can you identify the lingering influence of any of the major film movements on your favorite contemporary film directors? On Lars von Trier’s work?
- how does Neorealism differ from Cinéma Vérité?
- which gauge of film was being used most commonly in television and film in 1973, when The Rhetoric of Film was published?
- which do you prefer watching, a film dominated by: 1) hand-held shots without the use of Steadicam, 2) shots made with Steadicam, or, 3) shots made from fixed positions (tripods, etc.)?
- does von Trier ever employ oblique-angle shots?
- does natural outdoor light skew towards blue or yellow? What of artificial lighting employing fluorescent bulbs?
- do filmmakers today still use back projection when creating a process shot, or do they rely solely on green and blue screens?
- would you label any of your favorite filmmakers an auteur?
Dancer in the Dark (2000)
- Is the psychedelic pastiche of layered drawings that opens the film meant to signal something in particular, either literal or figurative? What do you make of the slow-paced orchestral music which accompanies it, in which brass instruments play a central role? After viewing the film, reconsider this musical overture (00:00:00—00:03:47) in light of the tale that follows.
- Towards what type of music does Selma gravitate, and what does this reveal about her temperament?
- Consider the various musical numbers performed by Selma (played by Icelandic singer Björk) in Selma’s head. Do these imaginative exercises empower Selma? Do they help more than hurt her?
- Is Kathy an enabler—does she sanction dangerous, maladaptive behavior in her friend Selma?
- Does Selma seem like an effective parent to her son Gene, a loving and intentional guardian?
- Is Selma best characterized as a simpleton, a naïf, an optimist, or merely someone with an enviable joie de vie (joy of life)?
- Does Selma appear capable of safely working at the factory? Are those with and for whom she works aware of her limitations?
- Norman asks Selma why she’s in the United States if, in communistic Czechoslovakia, everyone shares things (27:25-30). What does this reveal about his values?
- How does von Trier set the stage for the first musical number, “Cvalda," prior to the aesthetic shift (39:50) that signals the official start of the song? Once the song begins, how does von Trier visually signal the shift in tone and pacing?
- Why does Selma reject Jeff’s romantic overtures?
- Would marrying Jeff have been the smart move, on Selma’s part?
- Does the second musical number, “I’ve Seen It All” (00:55:50-1:00:50), seem carefully crafted, or impromptu?
- Whenever Selma sings the refrain “to be honest, I really don’t care” in the song “I’ve Seen It All,” what registers on her face? Is she fully invested in what she is declaring?
- Can you identify anything redemptive in Bill’s character?
- What does the third musical number, “Smith and Wesson (Scatterheart),” allow Selma to accomplish? What practical purpose does it serve, within the confines of her imagination?
- Do Selma and Bill appear to be friends, lovers, or enemies during the singing of “Smith and Wesson”?
- Do you think von Trier intends the audience to agree with Selma’s refrain in “Smith and Wesson,” that she “just did what [she] had to do”?
- Recall the film’s opening: what do the other actors think of Selma’s being cast in this musical?
- In the opening scene, is the director initially harder on Selma or on her friend Kathy? Why?
- The prosecuting attorney for the state accuses Selma of betrayal, robbery, and murder—all acts committed against the very people who befriended her after she emigrated to America (1:30:15-1:30:30). Are any of these charges true?
- Why won’t Selma let Gene come visit her in the state penitentiary, and why does she refuse to let Selma send a “hello” to Gene by way of Kathy (1:44-1:45)?
- How does musical #6 (“My Favorite Things”) differ from the musical numbers that precede it?
- Why does Selma refuse to call her son once she is incarcerated?
- When Selma decides to place Gene’s eyesight ahead of her own life, do you think she’s making the right decision?
- Excepting a couple short-lived moratoriums, the death penalty was a legal penalty in Washington State up through 2014; most of these executions involved hanging. What appears to be the film’s implicit attitude towards capital punishment?
- Does the last song take place in Selma’s head, like the others?
- Selma sings “this is the next to last song” right up to the last moment, as if she’s aware another song will follow her final words. Why might von Trier choreograph the scene in this way?
- Early in the film, amidst a sharing of personal secrets and a celebration of musicals with lots of dancing, Selma told Bill that she dislikes the ending of musicals when there’s a final, grand musical number, the camera pulls up out of the roof, and the audience knows the ending is coming. Apparently, she used to “cheat” as a little girl in Czechoslovakia by leaving the theater just after the next-to-last song, allowing the film to “go on forever” in her imagination (25:10-25:45). What kind of ending does von Trier create for his musical?
- Peter Singer, a famous animal rights activist and utilitarian philosopher at Princeton, has held that the life of a newborn who lacks self-awareness is of less value than that of a mature, rational adult because an infant is incapable of holding independent, personal preferences. This underlining assumption informs his views on abortion, (voluntary) euthanasia, and individuals with disabilities whom he has suggested could, ethically, be eliminated at birth. With this in mind, consider Selma’s decision to value her son’s vision and unrealized potential over her own life. Is this an intelligent decision or a ludicrous one? Do her actions beg to be weighed by some measure other than pragmatism?
Landscape with Multitrip (1995)
Poul Anker Bech
Dr. Paul Marchbanks
pmarchba@calpoly.edu
