Nymphomaniac Volume I & II (2014) Director’s Cut Review!!

Synopsis – (Volume I) A self-diagnosed nymphomaniac recounts her erotic experiences to the man who saved her after a beating. (Volume II) The continuation of Joe’s sexually dictated life delves into the darker aspects of her adulthood, obsessions and what led to her being in Seligman’s care.

My Take – Lars Von Trier is a famous controversial Danish Director & the Anti Christ (2009) is the only film of his I had witnessed ! I was really interested to see this movie as Lars Von Trier has been boasting about this being his best work! Of course this film is not for everyone, 4 hours is a long time (Divided into Volume 1 & 2) to sit through a film that deals with an issue as complex and taboo as human sexuality in a way as simple, poetic, honest and deep as von Trier does. The film tried hard to balance itself from becoming shallow & though at times it really comes off as an excuse to feature unstimulated sex in a movie full of renowned actors. Oh their are a huge bunch of actors here, some probably just for a scene or two Well lets review the movie into parts;

Volume I – I found this volume incredibly revealing about the human condition. Here is a rare type of woman who desires and gets what she wants. Frankly this volume is not all bad, as the plot is well constructed, and I liked how it tangled in between major themes. Volume 1 is wonderfully unusual story, told with superb photography, great acting (Shia Le Bouf, Christain Slater & Uma Thurman as you have never, ever seen!) & a wonderful script. The story is told from the point of view of Joe, a girl that has a weird attachment to sex. I say weird because it is not even apparent that she enjoys it at all. It is rather like a game to her. However, the way the story is told, is staggering. The only thing which I didn’t like about the film was the heavy metal music used at the start. I thought it was inappropriate and set the wrong tone for the film. It’s a movie that provokes the viewer, tries to make you think a bit, or a lot, shows some sex/nudity scenes (yes, it does get close to porn, but I guess that was necessary). Well, I enjoyed Volume I a lot, as this was certainly one of the most disturbing nicest movies I’ve seen in quite some time.

Volume II – I really don’t know from what point to start expressing my huge disappointment with this Volume. It totally changed directions from the insane tone set by the earlier half! Volume II contains comparatively impressive nudity but minus a good plot, I would say rather turns into a senseless drama. Joe’s pornographic journey continues in this sequel and the irrational long dialogue between Joe and Seligman does not stop. This Volume makes a point of being boring & a drab but suddenly shifting the focus of portraying her as rebellion against men and their oppression of females. This Volume also struggles to keep your attention through its ugly visuals and lacks any real substance in the way of plot, including an unjustified S & M with Jamie Bell playing the abuser.

These scenes made no sense and only served to make the film even more explicit. I don’t mind graphic content but having graphic content for the sake of having graphic content with no other reason, is stupid, and a waste of time! Especially the movie’s ending which is depressing, irrational and unimpressive!. On the whole Nymphomaniac is not porn, even though raunchy, & a little bit sexy, of course shocking but instead of relying on its plus points turns into a tiresome, disjointed, and utterly weird piece of art!