Breaking the Waves

I don't have Lars von Trier among my favorite creators, but I have to admit that he knows how to tell powerful stories and how to extract truly dark emotions from both actors and viewers. It seems to me that the film contains too many unnecessary minutes for what it actually wants to say, but it is true that for another movie, I would criticize the duration more. It is an experience that will make you think. (23/03/2016)

The man is, of course, a terrible emotional blackmailer, which I can logically deduce a few hours after watching the film, but I do not wish to say that this story about a woman who has sacrificed herself completely for a beloved man has brought me to my knees. Trier can break down the barriers between the plot/camera/viewer and create an explosive plot-viewer combination. The authenticity of the story is reinforced by "unassuming" handheld camera filming and absolutely credible performances by Skarsgård and Watson. There's something fatal in this story from the beginning, a harbinger of tragedy... Trier is good at these "omens"... The resulting work is a complete emotional terror, so terrible that one viewer vomited in the movie theatre. There’s no disgust, just long minutes of emotional exertion with an almost fairytale ending, but it doesn't make the scarred soul feel very happy. Where reality ends and the film begins is an almost insoluble puzzle while watching Breaking the Waves. I was so drawn in that my emotions weren't artificial. I was confused and swept off my feet... Trier, you damn animal!!! (31/01/2004)

Lars von Trier pushes the envelope again, but unlike Dancer in the Dark, there is a reason for it and it is not an end in itself. Breaking the Waves is a whirlwind of emotions that often sends chills down the spine. And Emily Watson’s performance is perfection itself. (04/07/2002)

A total, but I mean total emotional inferno. You just don't see anything more vicious than this (except with another Trier). How this freaks pulls this off with these actors I really don't understand. He must be putting something in their coffee. What Emily Watson in particular created is a character worthy of a horror movie. Of course, then the very end comes and I don't know what flew onto my monitor. Trier couldn't have been serious. I think he must have made a bet with someone -) (05/12/2010)

Your typical Trier’s unpleasant cocktail of emotions. Breaking the Waves is such a relentless valley of tears that the viewer never has a chance to calm down; the misery only escalates. Emily Watson’s performance is breathtaking. And yet, I don’t think it’s enough for a full count, why? The answer is simple: because of Dogville, a film without a single weak moment that was a lot more crushing. This one is the light version of Lars’s best. (28/10/2010)