Dancer in the Dark

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Dancer in the Dark

R

2000

2h 20m

Drama

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Popcornmeter

69%

Tomatometer

120 Reviews

91%

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50,000+ Ratings

Selma is a Czech immigrant, a single mother working in a factory in rural America. Her salvation is passion for music, specifically, the all-singing, all-dancing numbers found in classic Hollywood musicals. Selma harbors a sad secret: she is losing her eyesight and her son Gene stands to suffer the same fate if she can't put away enough money to secure him an operation. When a desperate neighbor falsely accuses Selma of stealing his savings, the drama of her life escalates to a tragic finale.

Critics Consensus

Dancer in Dark can be grim, dull, and difficult to watch, but even so, it has a powerful and moving performance from Bjork and is something quite new and visionary.

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David Ansen

Newsweek

03/07/2018

Dancer is like no other movie around. Shot in bleached-out video colors in rough, hand-held style, the film is at once aggressively modern and deliberately, melodramatically, old-fashioned.

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Peter Matthews

Sight & Sound

12/02/2002

The situations that writer-director Lars von Trier serves up here might be embarrassingly florid, but the coupling of his manipulative skills and Björk's showy intensity results in a movie with the force of an emotional bulldozer.

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Liam Lacey

Globe and Mail

03/19/2002

2.5/4

At least Dancer in the Dark is bad in a complicated way.

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Theo Estes

The Spool

10/08/2020

Dancer in the Dark critiques the relentless optimism of mid-century movie musicals, but it also puts the American cultural narrative under the microscope.

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Michael J. Casey

Boulder Weekly

07/25/2020

4/5

Björk plays Selma, a Czech immigrant suffering from a degenerative eye disorder. It's a rare, hereditary disease, and it'll steal her sight but not the song in her heart.

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Mattie Lucas

From the Front Row

08/05/2019

4/4

A sweeping denunciation of the myth of the American dream-the idealized America put forth by escapist Hollywood fare.

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Noah H.

@Noah85 Jan 26

Great music by Bjork and really cool visuals but the ending was WAAAAAAAY too depressing for me.

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Richard M.

@Poncy Dec 6

Excellent movie and outstanding performance from Bjork

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Roberto d

@RT16186931 Nov 9

Absolutely incredible and devastating movie. Bjork shine so bright with her shy and valorous Selma. Bjork delivers amazing songs and Spirituous act. All that you don’t expect of a musical. A Beautiful and Brutal movie. You must watch it.

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Tom F

@RT55173143 Nov 7

If you want to see Bjork play a factory worker going blind with occasional reveries in the form of elaborate musical numbers, this is the movie for you.

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Yossam I

@Yossam Oct 17

Denmark's enfant terrible Lars von Trier finally won the Camme Palme d'Or for this postmodern deconstructive musical featuring a stunning performance by Bjork.

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meg M.

@OneEyedmm Sep 21

I get how this movie isn’t for everyone… but if it is for you, it’s incredible. The acting is astonishing from Bjork. And while the majority is filmed in very washed out handhelds, the musical numbers are shot on 100 cameras in beautiful saturated colors. The story is heartbreaking and very relatable. But for sure a film for “film” people.

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Lars von Trier

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Björk

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Synopsis

Selma is a Czech immigrant, a single mother working in a factory in rural America. Her salvation is passion for music, specifically, the all-singing, all-dancing numbers found in classic Hollywood musicals. Selma harbors a sad secret: she is losing her eyesight and her son Gene stands to suffer the same fate if she can't put away enough money to secure him an operation. When a desperate neighbor falsely accuses Selma of stealing his savings, the drama of her life escalates to a tragic finale.

Director: Lars von Trier
Producer: Peter Aalbæk Jensen, Vibeke Windeløv
Screenwriter: Lars von Trier
Distributor: Fine Line Features
Production Co: Trust Film Svenska, Pain Unlimited GmbH Filmproduktion, France 3 Cinéma, arte France Cinéma, Zentropa Entertainment France, Zentropa Entertainment, Slot Machine
Rating: R (Some Violence)
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 6, 2000, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 1, 2012
Box Office (Gross USA): $4.2M
Runtime: 2h 20m
Sound Mix: Dolby SR, Dolby Digital, Surround
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)