Review! The House That Jack Built

Review for The House That Jack Built (2018) Directed by Lars von Trier. Starring: Matt Dillon, Bruno Ganz, Uma Thurman. IMDB says “The story follows Jack, a highly intelligent serial killer, over the course of twelve years, and depicts the murders that really develop his inner madman.”

“This was maybe a mistake.”

I didn’t plan on seeing this film in theatres. To be honest, I completely forgot all about it. I figured it’d be another instance of finding it on Amazon Prime or buried deep on Netflix. I read up on the film and was intrigued that over a hundred people walked out of its premiere at Cannes. What caught me even more was that after the film, it received a six-minute standing ovation. What? What made this showing even more enticing was the fact that it would be the unrated director’s cut that was shown at Cannes. It would be a one night only deal, that has since gotten the distributor in trouble with the MPAA, and that subsequent showings would be a R rated cut. I couldn’t pass this chance up. I’ve seen a handful of Trier’s films at home, but the best experience was seeing Melancholia in a packed theatre during the New Orleans Film Festival. The audible groans, grasps, and giggles helped make the film more than just a movie. When it ended, people stood and applauded while others booed. Many sat in their seats and passionately discussed the film while others scoffed, walked out the theatre, and pondered a refund. If I had a chance at this again, I was definitely taking it. On a bitter cold Wednesday night, the wind made it worse, I found my way to a packed theatre and waited to see what Lars had in store for us.

The House That Jack Built opens on complete darkness with Jack (Matt Dillon) having a conversation. We have no idea what’s going on, we just hear water and a series of questions. Eventually we’re greeted with the first in a series of five “incidents”. Jack is a serial killer, but unlike most, he’s meek, timid, and has OCD. As the film progresses and he kills more and grows more, we begin to see a change to a literal devil may care. The five incidents in the film represent five different murders he commits throughout his career. It’s a downward spiral as his incidents begin small, yet aggressive, and degrade into cold, shocking, and brutal acts. There is no holding back in this film. We don’t shy away from the murder of women, children, and animals. There are no cuts or artful camerawork to make you imply the worst is happening. It is unflinching and on full display.

That said, as unsettling as this film can be, it’s surprisingly funny. It’s obviously a dark humor, but there is also an absurd, almost slapstick component to parts of the film. It’s a bizarre choice of tone that’s hard to hold onto, especially when we get to moments of pure rage and body mutilation. It was fun hearing patches of people laughing then suddenly stopping as the film would abruptly go from absurd to violent. To hear chuckles and murmurs silenced by gasps. It heightened the film in its darker moments when it was so quiet, it was if everyone held their breath until the carnage stopped.

There are also, and I really don’t know how else to put it, slideshow presentations. Yeah. It’s different. It’s everything from dissecting genius in music to architectural styles and their benefits, and it’s done in a quasi-Wes Anderson style. The affectation in Dillon’s voice, even to some of the framing. It was a hard balancing act, and while Von Trier doesn’t exactly pull it off, there are enough respites throughout the film to pull you back from the edge of your seat and you’re able to put your hands down from your face. It also doesn’t help that the film’s soundtrack is comprised of three or four classical music pieces and ‘Fame’ by David Bowie. It becomes taxing when you know that certain cues are supposed to represent certain feelings, but they don’t really match up with what you’re feeling.

With all of the pacing changes and tonal shifts, the film does begin to drag. It gets even harder when the film reaches its epilogue and completely halts. It becomes a different film altogether and, for me, ruins the film. It takes some of the metaphors and analogies in the film, and spells it out for you. It’s as if Trier decided the audience wouldn’t “get” the film and opted for a condensed and highly stylized on the nose segment that becomes painfully pretentious and leaves a stain on the rest of the film. You’d have a stronger film without the section, even with the meta slideshows. That’s where Von Trier fails with this film. I understand it’s important for the artist to put a piece of himself into their work, but there is such a thing as subtlety. Then again, having seen films like Antichrist and Melancholia, you would think I know better.

Matt Dillon is wonderful in this film. I know that’s a weird way to praise one’s role as a demented serial killer, but how he naturally adapts his character and is able to change as the film shifts in tone and not seem hokey is impressive. He maintains a seriousness that’s needed for this film to work and he succeeds. This may sound weird, but I feel that this is easily Von Trier’s most accessible work. He’s able to get out of his own way just enough to let the film breathe on its own. Sure, there will be moments that play better to those who have seen his previous works, but if you haven’t, the story and acting is enough to keep passing film-goers interested. Visually the film feels pretty standard until we hit the epilogue. Then it’s full blown Trier as we get these intense yet beautiful slow-motion landscapes that look like paintings come to life. Literally. I cannot stress that sentence enough. I’m interesting to see what is trimmed for the R rated version of the film. If you’re okay with intense periods of unsettling violence, and have/enjoy a dark sense of humor, then I’m sure you’ll laugh and flinch your way through the film like I and the audience did.

FTS SCORE: 70%