Lars Von Trier seems to have taken to heart the old Groucho Marx adage of not belonging to any club that will have him as a member. The director who famously ruffled feathers this spring at Cannes with his terrible Nazi “joke” — and who caused more consternation by not apologizing for it — has decided to give himself a character poster for the U.K. release of “Melancholia.” What’s more, his is the only one stamped with an “official” Cannes Persona Non Grata stamp. You gotta love it.
But it’s not just LVT giving himself some love, as Empire have unveiled the individual one sheets for Kirsten Dunst, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Kiefer Sutherland, Alexander Skarsgård and John Hurt as well. It’s actually pretty remarkable to see a strictly arthouse film get such a marketing bonanza. Not even “Tree Of Life” had character posters or even multiple trailers and LVT’s pic is certainly much more niche. And “Melancholia” itself is far from a crowd pleaser, taking viewers on a pretty beautiful but punishing journey into the depths of depression via an impending apocalypse. But then again, no one provokes and stirs up audiences quite like LVT, and he’s never quite had this starry a cast, so it’s a good play on behalf of Artificial Eye.
“Melancholia” will open on U.K. screens this Friday, and on this side of the ocean will hit NYFF, which starts this weekend. The film will go VOD on October 7th before getting a limited release on November 11th. Posters below.
