Epidemic
Dir: Lars von Trier
1987
****
1987's Epidemic (the second installment in the Europe-trilogy following The Element of Crime and preceding Europa) represents the birth, or at least the conception, of the Dogme movement. Lars von Trier had proved he could do stylish and beautiful films on a modest budget, it was only when he took this film on as a bet (to prove he could make a film on a very small budget) did his truly experimental style surface. It works, it feels real, is original and it did indeed stick to its small budget and almost adheres to the Dogme manifesto (that includes the main rules that; shooting must be done on location, the sound must be recorded at the same time as shooting with no musical soundtrack, the camera must be hand-held, no special effects, no superficial action action allowed). It also bought out the Von Trier as we know him, challenging to the last, almost to the point of pure exhaustion. 'A film should be like a pebble in a shoe' and this is one sharp pebble, the final screams are almost unbearable. It is brilliant but it is only a peek at the greatness to come.