The Kingdom ( Riget ) [1996]

Amazon.co.uk Review

The Kingdom has been described as "ER meets Twin Peaks", and seldom can the standard and the surreal have met in more perfect accord. The hospital that conceals dark secrets is the premise for this riveting "soap"--seen on Danish TV in 1994--in which science and civilisation are eroded by superstition and instinct. Lars von Trier is not a director who aims to please, and the claustrophobic visuals he draws from handheld cameras and natural lighting anticipate the stripped-down film work of his Dogme 95 movement. Yet there's nothing cerebral about the goings-on here, thanks to the rich variety of characters who people the labyrinthine corridors and functional wards. The Minister's visit and the Haiti jaunt are slapstick humour worthy of the best Python sketches, and Trier is never afraid to mix the prosaic with the profound. There are wonderfully observed performances from Ernst Hugo Jaregard as chequered Swedish surgeon Stig Helmer, and Kirsten Rolffes as common-sense psychic Sigrid Drusse. These are only the first five episodes: having seen them, you'll be awaiting the remainder with impatience. This is persuasive, provocative filmmaking.

On the DVD: The Kingdom on disc has audio and visual reproduction that is authentically Trier, with English subtitles and 10 access points per episode. Each part is viewable separately or in sequence, though make sure you don't lose some of the director's amusingly offbeat postscripts. The first disc also features Tranceformer, a frank insight into the mind and movies of Lars von Trier with extracts from his features between 1984 and 95. --Richard Whitehouse

Customer Reviews:

entertaining.......2007-05-24

The strength of most horror movies is in conveying an extraterrestrial presence as abnormal. We are all well acquainted with the normal and hence are not afraid of it. The paranormal on the other hand infuses fear in us largely because of unfamiliarity.

Lars Von Trier introduces the spirits with suspense and then turns them into objects of humour as the miniseries ends. The interspersed comedy outperforms the sobriety. At the end of the miniseries, I ended up accepting the spirits as a normality.

The acting is commendable, of whom Ernst-Hugo Järegård deserves mention. He plays Dr Stig Helmer, an uptight neurosurgeon who has major problems adapting to life in Denmark.

The plot was interesting enough to hold my attention, although in itself it wasn't mindblowing. The cinematography revealed some interesting angles especially in the hospital corridors.

With an engaging introduction, a body of suspense and an aftertaste of humour, the miniseries was a good watch.

The Kingdoom.......2006-08-14

Having just watched Kingdoom hospital i am buying this on the recomendation of Stephen King.
Anyone who has seen Kingdoom Hospital and watched the documentary will know that Stephen King speaks very highly of Lars von Trier and Kingdoom Hospital was produced in collaboration for an American palet.
I am lookin forward to seeing the original inspiration.

DONT mix this up with Stephen Kings 'Kingdom Hospital'.......2004-05-09

I remember seeing this on BBC2 a couple of years ago & the 1st thing that got me hooked was the grainy, dark quality of the way it was filmed. It kind of reminded me of the popular Silent Hill videogames that have been produced lately, & I LOVE Silent Hill!!.

Anyway, I started watching & loved it. The cross over between a real life Hospital & the Paranormal was an excellent idea & makes sense. I mean, not everybody comes out of Hospital alive do they?, & Kingdom Hosptial is a pretty manky, low funded looking Hospital so the chances of there being more corpses there than alive patients looks pretty high!.

Although it is subtitled you forget that your reading it after a few minutes so dont let the subtitles put you off. And if youre too lazy to be 'bothered' with subtitled Films then shame on you!, cos your missing out on some of the best films ever produced!!.

Anyway, I'm buying this for my missus as she's a big Lars Von Trier fan , along with the budget DVD players available from Amazon, so she will be more than happy!!!.

PLEASE NOTE: DONT mix this up with Stephen Kings 'Kingdom Hospital', which is BASED on Lars Von Triers The Kingdom but has been tarted up & changed for the USA audience & doesnt look half as gruesome or dirty as The Kingdom.
I'm sure that 'Mr. lazy' Stephen King will make millions off the back of someone elses idea, as most wont have heard of Lars Von Trier or The Kingdom. I just hope that Mr. Von Trier hasnt signed his excellent drama over to Stephen King for a few mere peanuts, & I hope the rest of this excellent drama is released soon.

Better than Twin Peaks and X Files together.......2004-01-03

Do believe the hype...this is von Trier at his best. You will be completely and utterly hooked after watching this, so the main reason I wanted to write this review is to inform all those desperate people out there that the sequel is available on DVD...just have a look on USA or Hong Kong auction websites and you will almost certainly find it. Happy hunting, and hopefully one day the director will complete this trilogy. I for one can't wait.

Brilliant, but where's the sequel?.......2003-10-18

Humour, horror, satire; a masterpiece. I absolutely love the way von Trier contrasts the relationship between the swede Dr. Helmer and his Danish colleagues. I think you poor English-speakers miss out on a lot of the subtle humour ;-) I rate it five stars, despite a few minor drawbacks:

- The English subtitle is not optional. As a scandinavian, I understand Danish and Swedish quite well, and would prefer not being disturbed by the subtitles.

- In the original TV series, von Trier appeared during the final credits of each episode. In this edition, episodes 1-2 and 3-4-5 are presented together, so three of von Triers speeches are missing.

- The sequel is not available on DVD yet. Once you've watched this one, you'll desperately want to watch The Kingdom II (1997).

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