Cinema
The Celebration
Festen
Thomas Vinterberg · 1998
Synopsis
In a manor house in the Danish countryside, one summer, the family and friends gather for the sixtieth birthday of Helge, the patriarch. His wife Else and their three children arrive: Christian, the eldest, who runs a restaurant in France, Michael, the second son, who is somewhat rough with his wife, and Helene. Helge asks Christian to say a few words at dinner in memory of Linda, his twin sister, who died the previous year. Christian agrees; he has prepared two speeches, and at the table he lets his father choose.
Context
The first film shot according to the rules of the Dogme 95 manifesto, and titled Dogme 1 for that reason, it was written with Mogens Rukov and produced by Birgitte Hald for Nimbus Film; the director does not appear in the credits, in keeping with the rules. Anthony Dod Mantle films it handheld, on video, in available light, and Valdís Óskarsdóttir edits it. Ulrich Thomsen, Henning Moritzen, Thomas Bo Larsen and Paprika Steen play the main roles. Presented at Cannes on 17 May 1998, it was released in Denmark on 19 June and in France on 23 December.
Who it is for
An hour and forty-five minutes, in Danish, with an unsteady, grainy image. The film turns at the moment of the speech, and it is better to know nothing about it beforehand.
Prizes and reception
Jury Prize at Cannes in 1998, shared; the film of its director's international breakthrough and of the Dogme movement; rereleased in France in 2018.
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