#137: The Celebration
Part of the Top 150 Films series
The Celebration is a delectably acrid look at family dynamics, denial, and damage control. The film tells the story of a family reunion and dinner, wherein the eldest son publicly accuses his father of sexually abusing both him and his (recently deceased) twin sister during their childhoods. Heralded as the first true Dogme 95 film, the self-imposed restrictions allow Vinterberg to focus on the performances (all brilliant in their naturalism), jet black tone and humour of which ‘gallows’ feels too light a descriptor. Edited in a herky-jerky way that’s nevertheless enables complete comprehension on the part of the audience, we slowly become accustomed to the horrors unearthed from the mahogany and how unsettling, and almost Buñuelian, the initial responses to the accusations are. Though the efforts by everyone to deny, distract and destroy all evidence are foiled, the similarities to real life tragedies that haven’t yet received justice are chilling.
