Starring: Michael Gelting, Ole Ernst, Ghota Anderson, Jerold Wells, Benny Poulsen, Erik Mork, Lars von Trier, Max von Sydow, Eddie Constantine, Svend Ali Hamann, Allan De Waal, Janos Hensko, Astrid Henning-Jensen, Me Me Lei, Henning Jensen, Ernst-Hugo Jaregard, Esmond Knight, Jean-Marc Barr, Colin Gilder, Niels Vorsel, Ahmed El Shenawi, Preben Lerdorff, Erno Muller, Jorgen Reenberg, Barbara Sukowa, Udo Kier, Michael Elphick

Directed by: Lars von Trier

A triple bill from director Lars Von Trier:

Element Of Crime (1984) - In his bold debut feature, a stylish and eerie murder mystery, Danish director Lars Von Trier creates his own vision of a futuristic post-apocalyptic world.

Police detective Leopold Fisher (Michael Elphick), an exiled ex-cop, returns after many years in Cairo to his old residence in Northern Europe. His former mentor, Osmond (Esmond Knight) author of a book called 'The Element Of Crime', asks him to solve a series of murders invloving young girls who are lottery ticket sellers.

He recommends that to solve the crimes, the investigators adopt viewpoints of the killers in order to better predict subsequent crimes. When Fisher meets the beautiful Kim (Me Me Lei), using a new victim as bait, they embark on a journey that threatens to blur the line between a simulated killer and the real thing.

In this unique and deeply puzzling cult story, the atmosphere and mood is heightened using hypnotism and flashbacks to support the story as it unfolds, and the film is shot in shades of sepia, startling flashes of bright blue with Super-8 footage and double exposures to dramatic effect.

Epidemic (1987) - Not availbale before in the UK on any format. Lars Van Trier both stars in and directs this cinematic essay pondering the possible future nature of a Europe falling further and further into both a physical and spiritual decay. This decay is highlighted by a mysterious illness, the epidemic of the title, which science seems incapable of halting. 'Epidemic' is filmed in eerily atmospheric black and white and color.

Europa (1991) - Lars Von Trier's 'Europa' is an alluring film that follows Leopald Kessler (Jean-Marc Barr), an American pacifist of German descent as he travels to Germany to help the country rebuild and becomes involved in a surreal nightmare. His uncle gets him employment working on the giant railway complex Zentropa where he falls in love with the daughter of the railway owner, Katherina (Barbara Sukowa) who lures him into becoming a pawn in a pro-Nazi terrorist scheme.

Despite his wishes he finds he cannot remain neutral and is forced into making some difficult choices. Von Trier's stylish thriller features hypnotic narration by the legendary Max von Sydow, and employs a series of ingenious technical tricks, using rear projection, as well as cutting between colour and black-and-white, in order to give the film a dazzling visual presentation that rewards multiple viewings.

The 4 disc package also features a 16 page booklet by film historian Peter Schepelern.

DVD EXTRAS

Element of Crime Original documentary on Von Trier. Newly created documentary of cast anecdotes. Exclusive easter egg: Von Trier’s short film, Nocturne (1980). Commentary #1 with Von Trier, director of photography, Tom Elling and editor Tomas Gislason. Commentary #2 with expert Peter Schepelern and author Stig Bjørkman.
Epidemic Newly created Making of documentary. Exclusive easter egg: short film, Befrielsesbilleder (1982). Commentary with Von Trier and Niels Vørsel.
Europa Newly created Making of documentary. Documentary of anecdotes from cast and crew. Commentary #1 by Von Trier and cast members Jean Marc-Barr and Udo Kier. Commentary #2 by Von Trier and producer Peter Aalsbaek.
Disc 4: Von Trier in conversation with journalist Bo Green Jensen. Europa featurettes. Original TV documentaries from Denmark, France, and Germany. Trailers. Documentaries on Tom Elling (storyboarding Element of Crime) and Joachin Holbek (Europa composer).

Technical Details

Certification: 15
Duration: 313 mins
Format: DVD
Single Sided/Dual Layer
Region: 2
Presentation: Widescreen
Aspect Ratio: 16:9 Anamorphic Wide Screen / Wide Screen
Cat. No: TVD3593(TARTAN VIDEO)
Category: Drama:General
Subtitles: Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, German, Norwegian, Swedish

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