Dogville

Dogville is a 2003 movie written and directed by Lars von Trier, starring Nicole Kidman and Paul Bettany. It is a parable that uses an extremely minimal set to tell the story of Grace (Kidman), a fugitive from mobsters, who arrives in the small town of Dogville and is provided refuge in return for physical labor.

Staging

The story of Dogville is told by a narrator (John Hurt) and takes place on a stage with minimalist scenery. Some walls and furniture are placed on the stage, but the rest of the scenery exists merely as white painted outlines which even have big labels on them; for example, the outlines of gooseberry bushes have the text "Gooseberry Bushes" written next to them. While this form of staging is common in black box theaters, it has never been attempted on film before. The bare staging serves to focus the audience's attention on the acting and storytelling, and also reminds them of the film's artificiality. As such it is heavily influenced by the theatre of Bertolt Brecht.

Related Topics:
John Hurt - Black box theater - Bertolt Brecht

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The movie was shot in a studio in Trollhättan, Sweden.

Related Topics:
Trollhättan - Sweden

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Tagline: A quiet little town not far from here.

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