The Five Obstructions

An eccentric and intrepid testament to the pure joy of cinema, The Five Obstructions is what happens when one of the world's most audacious filmmakers--Lars von Trier, founder of the minimalist Dogme 95 movement and director of Breaking the Waves, Dancer in the Dark, and Dogville--decides to challenge his artistic mentor to a duel of intellect and imagination. The semi-documentary begins with a simple conversation between von Trier and prolific Danish writer-director Jorgen Leth, in which the student presents his one-time teacher with a challenge too thought-provoking to refuse: Leth is to direct five remakes of his avant-garde 1967 short "The Perfect Human," and for each version the childish, egotistical von Trier will impose harsh creative restrictions to see if the filmmaker can rise to the occasion. Tormented by increasingly impossible hurdles, Leth quickly comes to regret the bargain…but much to von Trier's unmistakable frustration, the resulting films are riveting, remarkable, resourceful wonders to behold. To keep the film down to a brisk 90 minutes, The Five Obstructions shows only highlights of each of the remakes, but it's more than enough to be stunned and delighted by Leth's sheer brilliance. Highly recommended. Editor's Choice. [Note: DVD extras include audio commentary by writer-director Jorgen Leth, the 13-minute original version of “The Perfect Human,” and trailers. Bottom line: would have been nice if all five original shorts were included, rather than just one, but this is still a decent extras package for an unusual film.] (R. Blackwelder)[DVD Review—Apr. 8, 2014—Kino Lorber, 87 min., in English, Danish, French & Spanish w/English subtitles, not rated, $29.95—Making its second appearance on DVD, 2003's The Five Obstructions features a nice transfer and a Dolby Digital soundtrack. Extras include audio commentary by director Jørgen Leth, Leth's 1967 short film “The Perfect Human” (13 min.), and a trailer. Bottom line: a fine extras package for this excellent re-release, newly remastered.]