Willem DaFoe has already been crucified once on screen, so he knows the drill, so to speak. Work with a well respected director on a controversial project. Get naked in all senses. Get hammered. The film critics get tizzified and it seems equal numbers say tragedy and say farce. One Wahoo literally ran from Newcomb Hall and the clinking of the bottle left behind rolling down the aisle pierced the stunned Silence for those who endured.
I say it is von Trier's best work to date.
The ending credits are a compelling validation of what has come before. The Whammy-Inducer gets the end dedication. There is a credit for "misogyny research" and one for "horror film research". This is not the work of a flippant provocateur, it is a finely crafted synthesis of the sensual, the intellectual and the transcendental sides of the Baltic confrontation with the cold world.
Remember what Frank Pembleton said: Therapist is a straight anagram for The Rapist.
Rating: 9 out of 10
Recommended as a double feature with: The Shining
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