`TWIN PEAKS' MEETS `ER' IN `THE KINGDOM II'.Byline: David Hunter David Hunter (July 21 1802 – February 2 1886) was a Union general in the American Civil War. He achieved fame by his unauthorized 1862 order (immediately rescinded) emancipating slaves in three Southern states and as the president of the military commission trying the Hollywood Reporter It's been more than two years since October Films released the first four parts of Danish auteur auteur (ōtör`), in film criticism, a director who so dominates the film-making process that it is appropriate to call the director the auteur, or author, of the motion picture. Lars von Trier's TV production ``The Kingdom.'' Running nearly five hours, the overwrought o·ver·wrought adj. 1. Excessively nervous or excited; agitated. 2. Extremely elaborate or ornate; overdone: overwrought prose style. creep show about a haunted hospital was barely endurable en·dur·a·ble adj. Possible to be endured; tolerable or bearable: endurable pain. en·dur  a·bly adv. and left the story hanging. A sort of ``Twin Peaks'' meets ``ER'' - but not nearly as well-written as either show - ``The Kingdom II'' (Parts 5-8) is another four-plus hours of von Trier's thoroughly commercial material that refuses to resolve anything in an increasingly annoying fashion. Basically, the spirit-infested Copenhagen hospital where the story takes place has few rational or completely sane people among the doctors, ``consultants,'' workers and patients. Built on the site of a swamp, the hospital is threatened by an evil force, one of several cryptic dangers facing the large cast. Although no character is central, Swedish doctor Stig Helmer (Ernst-Hugo Jaregard) becomes a monstrous presence with his conscious and unconscious evildoing. One of his victims is nearly invincible old Mrs. Drusse (Kirsten Rolffes), a clairvoyant who almost dies and actually communicates with ghosts. Everyone is a little crazy, and unbelievable events are straightforwardly presented, including the abnormally rapid growth of a baby. One character is poisoned and pronounced dead, and the body is nearly incinerated, but he comes back. Grotesque and endless, ``The Kingdom II'' is meant to be taken in smaller doses, with a little time passing between watching the roughly one-hour segments. Of course, just when disaster looms, the story stops and devilish dev·il·ish adj. 1. Of, resembling, or characteristic of a devil, as: a. Malicious; evil. b. Mischievous, teasing, or annoying. 2. Excessive; extreme: devilish heat. von Trier Trier (trēr), Latin Augusta Treverorum, city (1994 pop. 99,183), Rhineland-Palatinate, SW Germany, a port on the Moselle (Ger. Mosel) River, near the Luxembourg border. himself informs us we'll have to wait to see what happens next. THE FACTS The film: ``The Kingdom II'' (not rated). The stars: Ernst-Hugo Jaregard, Kirsten Rolffes, Holger Juul Hansen, Soren Pilmark, Ghita Norby, Jens Okking, Vita Jensen, Morten Rotne Leffers. Behind the scenes: Written by Lars von Trier and Niels Vorsel. Directed by von Trier and Morten Arnfred. Released by October Films. Running time: Four hours, 30 minutes. Playing: Nuart, West Los Angeles
Our rating: Two Stars. |
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