Antichrist

Last night, I watched the film Antichrist by Lars von Trier. I had heard of him but had never seen any of his films before then. Watching made me feel very content. I feel it was a film made for women, surprisingly by a man. Von Trier says, " I am an American woman. Or 65 percent of me is." http://www.signandsight.com/features/465.html

I don't know that much about Lars, but this movie has a keen sense of a woman's darkest moments, and the fury and desperation that she is capable of at her worst. I think this lives in every woman and is a quality that sets a woman apart from a man. It is a aptly named Antichrist because it a power set apart from "man", something mysterious that cannot be controlled, not by a father or divinity that Christ himself is ultimately subject too. It is a force that cannot be harnessed, predicted, or controlled. A force many men fear.

This force manifests itself in varying degrees in women, but is exemplified in its most frightening form in Antichrist. This force isn't necessarily evil as She characterizes it to be. Depending on the circumstances, in this case a dead child, this force can manifest itself in benign or malignant forms. As with rationality, which it could arguably be juxtaposed to, it is a force that can manifest into fascism, genocide, or weaponry.

Though rationality is praised and held at philosophical absolutes, this natural force is often seen as psychosis or a weakness. But in Antichrist, we get to see it reek vengeance in a most satisfying, if not for some, and shocking form.

Many critics say that von Trier is misogynistic. I disagree, I think it is a misunderstanding if not also a subversion. These criticisms are in defense of a political correctness that seeks to whitewash difference instead of embrace it. It only propagates a white male hierarchy. The person that has the power in this movie is a woman, she wields the power. I think that is a frightening thought for many.

In any case, Charlotte Gainsbourg is amazing in it and channels this force superbly. If an oscar is any indication of good acting, she deserves one.