I don't agree. I believe Heaven and Hell are one and the same. The soul belongs to Heaven and the body to Hell. The film debuted at the Cannes Film Festival and was released theatrically on November 29, in Denmark, with a simultaneous video-on-demand and theatrical release in America on December 6, as a slightly censored cut; a full uncut version was released in June , and physically in February The film follows Jack, who has been a Serial Killer for most of his life and fancies himself an artist of sorts in his field.
The movie centers on him retelling 5 "incidents" over a period of 12 years from the late s into the s to the unseen Verge. At several points, Verge interjects to question Jack on his dark view of the world and his delusions of grandeur, leading to lengthy discussions about philosophy and ethics. Asshole Victim : Downplayed with first incident. The woman in the segment behaves like an abrasive Jerkass who repeatedly mocks, taunts, and pushes Jack to a Rage Breaking Point , despite the fact that he gave her a ride with no ulterior motives.
Despite even Verge admitting that she was "insufferable", he points out that being rude is no reason to murder someone.
Played straight with Jack himself at the end, as he's sent plummeting into the depths of hell as the result of his own horrific actions and sheer cowardice. Author Avatar : Jack himself represents the worst aspects of Lars von Trier , and is meant to be a self-critique on the director's own works, including his attitudes towards violence, sex, and women.
Ax-Crazy : Fitting for a Serial Killer , Jack, despite his claims of being an "artist", is clearly a violent lunatic who will kill people for the pettiest of reasons. Bad "Bad Acting" : Jack lying to get into a victim's house, first claiming he's a police officer, then saying he's an insurance agent when that starts to fall through. Bad People Abuse Animals : A scene from Jack's childhood shows him cutting a duckling's leg off with a pair of pliers, just to establish that he was a bad egg right from the beginning.
