”
Open Hearts,
”
which opened in New York and Los Angeles in late December so it
could qualify for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar, will
certainly be remembered as one of the great films of 2003, because,
now in wide release, most will see it this year.
“Open Hearts,” which opened in New York and Los Angeles in late December so it could qualify for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar, will certainly be remembered as one of the great films of 2003, because, now in wide release, most will see it this year.
As for its chances to take home the coveted Academy Award, “Open Hearts” is probably an underdog to Mexico’s “El Crimen Del Padre Amaro,” but its beauty and grace in its depiction of two families’ suffering after a tragic accident is something to behold. It’s a magnificent, heroic film, one that you will not forget long after seening it.
“Open Hearts” is shot using the now famous Dogma ’95 method of filmmaking, a method devised by Danish filmmaker Lars Von Trier (“Breaking the Waves” “Dancer in the Dark”). The technique harkens back to the glory days of Italian Neorealism, when filmmakers were more concerned with presenting reality than with telling the plot-driven fantasies gracing Hollywood screens.
It is precisely the Dogma method that makes “Open Hearts” so beautiful and emotionally compelling. The rules are simple: No artificial lighting of any kind can be used, and camera set ups are to be kept to a minimum. The light that may be used must only come from the environment of the story.
Digital cameras are to be used for shooting the film, and the shots must move with the characters and must be hand-held, keeping cutting to a minimum.
There are no special effects shots allowed, and music in the film must be listened to by the characters, as sweeping, melodramatic scoring also is not allowed. What follows is an extremely intimate look at tragedy as it effects those involved.
The film opens as a meditation on love, as young lovers Cecilie (Sonja Richter) and Joachim (Nikolaj Lie Kaas) plan their life together. At the evening’s end, Joachim declares his love for Cecilie and asks her to marry him. She says yes.
They fall asleep in each others arms, sure of their future together. If only they knew.
The next morning, Cecilie drops Joachim off at work only to see him accidentally run down by a motorist. As Joachim’s body flies across the street, the camera focuses on Cecilie, whose face is in shock. As Joachim’s bloodied body lays in the street, Marie (Paprika Steen), the woman who strikes him, is forced to call an ambulance while Cecilie looks on in utter disbelief and horror.
All of a sudden we are in a hospital room, where Joachim goes in and out of a comatose state with Cecilie looking on, hoping to raise his spirits when he wakes up. But when Joachim does get his wits about him, it’s apparent that this tragedy already has changed him. The loving, sweet and funny fellow we met the night before has transformed into a blithering, bitter man.
As Cecilie tries to comfort him, he throws her out of his room, asking her never to come back. Each time she comes back, she is shunned.
Devastated, she looks to Joachim’s doctor, Niels, (Mads Mikkelsen) for answers, trying to figure out what went wrong.
Niels just so happens to be married to Marie, the woman responsible for hitting Joachim. Although she has been cleared of all charges, Marie is devastated by the accident because she feels it could have been avoided.
Just before impact, she is seen fighting with her daugher and admits it could have caused her to be less focused on driving than she should have been.
The love stoy that develops between Cecilie and Niels is believable. Niels feels compelled to help Cecilie because of Marie causing the accident, and she clings to him to help her with the grief of losing Joachim.
“Open Hearts” is a beautiful, bold film that shows how tragedy effects the lives of those who are touched by it. Although the film is an unconventional love story, the emotions we feel through the characters are as real as any we feel in actual life, and that’s a miracle.
OPEN HEARTS. Written and directed by Susanne Bier. With Sonja Richter, Nikolaj Lie Kaas, Paprika Steen, Mads Mikkelsen and Stine Bjerregaard. Rated R (mature themes and language), 118 minutes. In Danish with English subtitles. Now playing at art houses in the Bay Area.
