6 Divisive Directors Whose Work Is Always Interesting To Watch

Lars von Trier

Danish filmmaker Lars von Trier has been directing feature films since 1984 – developing his own, unique and distinctive style, and exploring a range of themes. These themes often centre upon female sexuality, and as such, he has delivered a number of fascinating female characters over the years – including Bess McNeill (Emily Watson) in 1996’s Breaking The Waves, Selma Jezkova (Bjork) in 2000’s Dancer In The Dark, Grace Margaret Mulligan (Nicole Kidman) in 2003’s Dogville, She (Charlotte Gainsbourg) in 2009’s Antichrist, Justine (Kirsten Dunst) in 2011’s Melancholia, and Joe (Charlotte Gainsbourg) in the Nymphomaniac films. Unlikely to ever be considered for studio franchise work, the Nymphomaniac films are arguably von Trier’s own series creation.

The director does not shy away from graphic depictions of sex and violence, but it is his visual style that divides audiences, as much as his choice of subject matter. A founding member of the Dogme 95 movement, he vowed to employ only the most naturalistic of techniques – shooting with hand-held cameras, on location, and eschewing any and all artifice in the pursuit of real storytelling. A relatively small audience was enamoured of this stance, and appreciative of the work it produced, while others find it to be, perhaps, too visceral and challenging to watch.