Dancer in the Dark

Nothing bad ever happens in a musical, or so thinks Björk’s character. However, this is a Lars Von Trier film.

Starring as a Czech immigrant in the USA, she struggles to earn enough money for an operation to cure her son of a degenerative eye condition: the very same which is sadly robbing her of her sight and aspirations of being a musical film and theatre star.

Shot mostly with a handheld camera, the film flits between non-fussy and intimate Dogme 95 drama to the more elaborate stylings synonymous with musical cinema. Winner of the Cannes Film Festival’s Palme d'Or in 2000 with Björk picking up the Best Actress award, escapism and realism clash in what is largely regarded as Von Trier’s most accessible feature.