Breaking the Waves (1996) - Cinematheque - Home Bistro

Emily Watson gives a stunning performance as Bess, a member of a strict Calvinist enclave in 1970s Scotland, who breaks with her community to marry an oil worker (Stellan Skarsgård). After an accident incapacitates him, he insists that Bess still seek out sexual pleasure and share the details with him. She comes to believe that these sacrifices will convince God to bring her husband back to health, causing her to seek out more dangerous liaisons. “This epic melodrama about love, faith, suffering and redemption is emotionally overwhelming…von Trier building the… intensity with consummate skill” —Time Out Film

Director: Lars von Trier
Run Time: 159 min.
Release Year: 1996
Language: English, Danish

Named one of the ten best films of the 1990s by both Roger Ebert and Martin Scorsese

https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/breaking_the_waves

https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/breaking-the-waves-1996

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2023/aug/04/breaking-the-waves-review-emily-watson-adds-brilliance-to-von-triers-windup-of-a-movie

We’ll meet in the lobby after the film, then walk together to the nearby restaurant for dinner and discussion.