Back in May, a Euro-based producer had mentioned to me that Lars Von Trier was working on a new film. His lips were otherwise sealed when it came to details about the project. I was told a script was ready and that, if we’re lucky, Von Trier would set out to shoot the film later this year.
Now we have Stellan Skarsgård, who has collaborated with Von Trier on five films, telling an Italian outlet the same exact thing. Skarsgård says that even though the filmmaker has Parkinson's, “it’s getting better, now that he can be treated. So much so that he is making a new film.”
Apparently, Von Trier has started prep on this film at his home, and Skarsgård hopes that the filmmaker is well enough to start shooting outdoors very soon.
Last we heard from Von Trier, he was looking for a “girlfriend/muse” on Instagram. Then, a week later, he got into trouble for posting “Russia Lives matter also!” in regards to the War in Ukraine. I don’t think he’s posted anything on IG since. Maybe social media isn’t the best place for Von Trier. Where he should be is behind the camera, that’s why we love him.
In the fall of 2022, Von Trier announced that he’d been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease at the age of 66. It was shattering news. He’s one of the great filmmakers of the last 30 or so years, definitely one of the most influential. With that, he also announced that he was “taking a break” from directing.
Last August, Von Trier had stated that “with any luck I should still have a few decent movies left in me”. He hasn’t directed a film since 2018’s “The House That Jack Built,” an unfairly maligned 3-hour dark comedy about the most despicable serial killer ever put on film, played by Matt Dillon. It was provocative, disgusting, fearless, trolling — Von Trier’s best traits.
Von Trier established himself as one of the great directors of cinema, thanks to films such as “Breaking the Waves,” “Melancholia,” “Dancer in the Dark” and “Dogville.” The third season of his ‘Kingdom’ series premiered at the Venice Film Festival in 2022.
Criterion's December lineup has some great additions to the library, but the title that jumped out at me is Werner Herzog's "Grizzly Man," which officially joins the Collection on December 8.