Lars von Trier's ghostly version of the classical tragedy by Euripides by way of a screenplay written but never filmed by Carl-Theodore Dreyer and Preben Thomson has the haunted air of a silent film unearthed just before its irretrievable decay. Shot on video for Danish television in 1987 and set in some indeterminate past, von Trier's retelling rejects the atmosphere of deranged fury that drives most versions of this blood-soaked revenge drama, replacing it with an icy, unhurried sense of inexorable doom. Exiled from her homeland, Colchis, for her part in helping adventurer Jason (Udo Kier) steal the Golden Fleece, sorceress Medea (Kirsten Olesen) has settled with h...
Released:
1987
Rated:
NR
Length:
75 mins