107: The Kingdom (a.k.a. Riget –original Danish title)

            About five years ago when I first purchased the 1001 text I spent a semester reading it cover to cover.  I wanted to know what I was in for and what titles contained within that I’d already viewed.  I don’t remember the contents of each write-up, a fact that I am thankful for as I now prefer to be surprised by films, but I distinctly remember reading about Lars Von Trier’s The Kingdom (1994).  It’s given almost a full-page write-up in the second edition of the text, and I remember questioning how so much of what is covered in that write-up could fit into one obviously strange film. 

            The simple answer is that it is a long movie.  Originally produced for Danish television as a four part miniseries, The Kingdom runs about 280 minutes if viewed in episodic form.  It was reedited for theatrical release, cutting out the repetitive title and pre-credit sequences, down to a two part 265 minute runtime.  However, even within this lengthy canvas, The Kingdom is absolutely overflowing with content that bridges drama, horror, and comedy.  With about ten principle roles, there’s hardly time for any filler.

            Though the first quarter of the film begins slowly, it establishes characters well and effectively draws viewers into the narrative with elements of suspense.  The Kingdom is the most technologically superior hospital in all of Scandinavia, and much to the chagrin of Swedish neurosurgeon Stig Helmer (Ernst-Hugo Järegård) it stands in Copenhagen; just close enough to the Swedish border to see their nuclear power plants.  The arrogant Dr. Helmer has little use for Danes, believing them inferior, but is banished from working in Sweden after publishing others’ research as his own.  Medical director Einar Moesgaard (Holger Juul Hansen) is only to happy to have him join his surgical staff, especially as “Operation Morning Breeze”, a happy-go-lucky PR campaign, is instituted at the hospital.

            Dr. Moesgaard is so preoccupied with the institution of this program and the meetings of a secret society called “The Lodge” that convenes in the building’s basement, that he neglects his medical student son; to preoccupied himself with giving a severed cadaver head to a pretty sleep study technician.  These actions do not go unnoticed however by Hook, a surgeon by day/medical Robin Hood by night who has just fallen for his pregnant but single colleague Dr. Peterson.  Meanwhile an orderly, Bulder (Jens Okking), and his hypochondriac spiritualist mother, Mrs. Drusse (Kirsten Rolffes), are roaming the halls of The Kingdom searching for supernatural phenomenon.  There is also Dr. Bondo (Baard Owe), so desperate to find a liver with a hepatoma to experiment on that he’ll stop at literally nothing to get a hold of one.

            All of these characters and events seem to have something or another to do with two cases involving little girls.  One is Mona, who has been left severely brain damaged after a mishap during an operation.  Hook is sure that Helmer is to blame, but he can’t prove anything unless he can get access to the massive and permanently sealed hospital archives.  The other is Mary, whose records have been sealed therein since her mysterious death in 1919.  Though it’s unclear whether Mary’s body ever left The Kingdom, Mrs. Drusse is convinced that her soul is most definitely trapped in one of the elevator shafts.  The only people who seem to know anything for certain are the Hospital dishwashers.

            This is only the beginning of this most complex and wildly entertaining film.  It might not be the easiest film to convince friends to sit down and watch with you, but those who agree to will be hooked.  The Kingdom has something going for it that few other contemporary horror films have.  It is genuinely creepy.  Not just scary, but creepy.  Von Trier made decisions with his lighting, filters, film stock, and casting that create genuine moments of uneasiness, long before the climactic payoff.  Likewise, his script works on multiple complex levels, any one of which would make a good short film in its own right. 

            There are some dated graphics and special effects here that I’m sure some naysayers will point to in order to detract from this work, but I find that they actually made the film more effective.  It’s clear that Von Trier has enough confidence in his writing that these peccadilloes were negligible to him.  The director himself addresses his audience after each episode, indulging with a devilish smile in his ability to manipulate emotions.  He succeeds here in creating a work and a world that transcend the level of a typical horror movie, making a piece that would surly be loved by any X Files fan willing, as Von Trier recites “to take the good with the evil.”

Language: Danish

Runtime: 280 Minutes

Available through Netflix.com

Grade: 3.5 Hats Off