Thomas Vinterberg's contribution to the Dogma 95 collective is an electrifying achievement, driven by powerhouse acting and hand-held digital camera work so realistic that one might forget they're watching a feature film. Friends and family gather to pay tribute to Helge on his sixtieth birthday, but when it's time for the eldest son, Christian, to give the opening toast, the fireworks begin. At times hysterical, at times tragic and heartbreaking, this is a film that has the ability to single-handedly reaffirm one's faith in cinema. Inspiring and brilliant. Winner of the Jury Prize at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival.
Review 1:
"...A beautifully calibrated and carefully thought out film about a completely out-of-control situation, it is raw without being off-putting and wrenching without losing its sense of humor..."
Source: Los Angeles Times
p.C10 10/16/1998
Review 2:
4 stars out of 5 -- "Think of the worst family party you've ever been to, times it by ten, imagine it in Danish and you'll still be unprepared for Thomas Vinterberg's shocking and resonant drama, on of the best Dogme films."
Source: Empire
p.193 11/01/2008
Review 3:
"...Filmmaker Thomas Vinterberg seems impressively in control juggling multiple characters..."
Source: USA Today
p.6E 11/20/1998
Review 4:
"...Brashly brilliant..."
Source: Rolling Stone
p.79 10/29/1998
Review 5:
"...[The film] eminently succeeds....Triumphantly the near-documentary it purports to be..."
Source: Sight and Sound
p.39-40 03/??/1999
Review 6:
"...A good case for [the Dogma 95 aesthetic]..." -- Rating: A- - Recommended
Source: Entertainment Weekly
p.77 10/08/1999
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