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The Boss of It All

Since when do we believe Lars von Trier?
By PETER KEOUGH  |  May 30, 2007
2.5 2.5 Stars
inisde_boss
WHO'S THE BOSS? Lars von Trier needs to lay off the jump cuts, already!

Lars von Trier interrupts his film at the very beginning to warn viewers that it’s “not worth reflecting on,” but since when did we believe him? Indeed, The Boss of It All reflects on the mysteries of identity, responsibility, globalization, and Gambini’s æsthetics of theater. This last item is fictitious, but that doesn’t prevent the aspiring actor Kristoffer (Jens Albinus) from embracing it and making himself unemployable — except by Ravn (Peter Gantzler), a passive-aggressive businessman who wants Kristoffer to pose as the president of his company so he can sell it to a jerk from Iceland. Kristoffer finds himself in a position familiar to viewers at least since James Stewart was put in office to be a patsy in Frank Capra’s Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. Will our hero respond with Caprae-sque idealism or stay true to his Gambinian theater of cruelty? It’s a funny bagatelle that might have been funnier if this director — lay off the jump cuts, already! — were more Capra-esque himself.
Related: Road rules, Manderlay, All-American?, More more >
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