Von Trier's 100 øjne

Von Trier's 100 Eyes is a documentary by Katia Forbert Petersen that chronicles the inception, creative development, filming and post production of the film Dancer in the Dark, a musical tragedy written and directed by Lars von Trier and starring the Icelandic musician Björk. This film documents the drama behind the drama of the arduous and sometimes explosive four month process it took to create this film. The title von Trier's 100 Eyes refers to von Trier's groundbreaking and experimental vision of using only handheld cameras, which von Trier operated himself, for the dramatic scenes while using 100 stationary unmanned cameras during the musical scenes. Lars von Trier: "The principle of this concept was to surround the dancing scenes with 100 cameras and then see what happened"

In one of this film's many interviews, Lars von Trier talks about his perception of America, where he has never been, and of his understanding of American film. During this interview he also expresses his extremely critical opinion of the American judicial system. Lars von Trier: "Dancer is my expression of how I think an American film looks. It is a weak nation which murders it's citizens in order to maintain it's so-called morality."

Von Trier also describes how he, as the director, experienced what it was like to shoulder the responsibility of a huge project like Dancer in the Dark, the largest film undertaking in the history of Scandinavian filmmaking. Lars von Trier: "I am a control freak. I have to admit that. It is difficult to say why a person is a control freak. Is it just about the power and control or is it something else? I hope that in my case it is for something more than just the need to control."

As in many of von Trier's films, there is a woman in the leading role of Dancer in the Dark. Many scenes in Dancer express von Triers relationship to women. Lars von Trier: "At one point or another all female actors look at me like they are my mother and make me feel shy and self-concious. Women have that effect on me."
In Dancer in the Dark it is Björk that has the dual role of being both the star as well as von Trier's creative collaborator. A relationship which von Trier likens to a marriage. Lars von Trier: "My relatioship with Björk is very marital in nature. Is starts with many different types of feelings as well as creativity etc. etc. One thinks that one can read the other's thoughts, which ends in a power struggle."

The all encompassing aspect of von Trier's 100 Eyes is this struggle between these two creative forces. This conflict develops and emerges in this documentary and is in itself a complex drama which could have destroyed Dancer in the Dark. This film documents how Björk in a mixture of anger, pain and frustration leaves the project, thus creating serious doubt as to whether it was at all possible to finish the film without her.

The many worries surrounding the technical alterations which would have become necessary in the event of Björk's absence, are relieved when Björk decides to come back to the project and work with von Trier and the rest of the film crew in order to finish Dancer in the Dark, which would one year later receive the "Best Film" and "Best Actress" prizes in the Golden Palm Awards in Cannes Film Festival. Lars von Trier: "Björk has come back. We must allow the young lady to return, and yah, we must take it as a positive announcement. Let's get this film finished." (texto oficial de la distribuidora)