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Dogville (2003)

R | | Crime, Drama | 23 April 2004 (USA)
A woman on the run from the mob is reluctantly accepted in a small Colorado town. In exchange, she agrees to work for them. As a search visits the town, she finds out that their support has a price. Yet her dangerous secret is never far away.

Director:

(as Lars Von Trier)

Writer:

(as Lars Von Trier)
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1,793 ( 43)

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Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
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Gloria
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The Man with the Big Hat
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Mrs. Henson
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...
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Bill Henson
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Jack McKay
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Tom Edison Sr.
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Gangster
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...
Narrator (voice)
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Ben
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Storyline

Late one night, a beautiful and well-dressed young woman, Grace, arrives in the mountainous old mining town of Dogville as a fugitive; following the sound of gunshots in the distance which have been heard by Tom, the self-appointed moral spokesman for the town. Persuaded by Tom, the town agree to hide Grace, and in return she freely helps the locals. However, when the Sheriff from a neighbouring town posts a Missing notice, advertising a reward for revealing her whereabouts, the townsfolk require a better deal from Grace, in return for their silence; and when the Sheriff returns some weeks later with a Wanted poster, even though the citizens know her to be innocent of the false charges against her, the town's sense of goodness takes a sinister turn and the price of Grace's freedom becomes a workload and treatment akin to that of a slave. But Grace has a deadly secret that the townsfolk will eventually encounter. Written by Neil Hillman.

Plot Summary | Plot Synopsis

Taglines:

A quiet little town not far from here.

Genres:

Crime | Drama

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence and sexual content | See all certifications »

Parents Guide:

 »
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Details

Language:

Release Date:

23 April 2004 (USA)  »

Also Known As:

The Film 'Dogville' as Told in Nine Chapters and a Prologue  »

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Box Office

Budget:

DKK 83,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$661,452 (France), 23 May 2003

Opening Weekend USA:

$88,855, 28 March 2004, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$1,530,386, 13 June 2004

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$8,604,712, 14 December 2003
See more on IMDbPro »

Company Credits

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Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

Color:

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1
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Did You Know?

Trivia

Jeremy Davies originally intended to be von Trier's apprentice, not to act in the film. He wrote a letter to the director stating that he plans on being a filmmaker and wanted to learn from him. von Trier invited him to the set, mentored Davies, and gave him a small role in the film. See more »

Goofs

When Chuck takes the scarf from Grace's neck it shows up two shots later, then is gone again in next shot. See more »

Quotes

[first lines]
Narrator: This is the sad tale of the township of Dogville. Dogville was in the Rocky Mountains in the US of A, up here where the road came to its definitive end, near the entrance to the old abandoned silver mine. The residents of Dogville were good honest folks, and they liked their township. And while a sentimental soul from the East Coast had once dubbed their main street Elm Street, though no elm had ever cast its shadow in Dogville, they saw no reason to change anything. Most of the ...
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Crazy Credits

During the closing credits, "Editor" is spelled incorrectly. See more »

Connections

Referenced in Brows Held High: Antichrist (2012) See more »

Soundtracks

America the Beautiful
(uncredited)
Lyrics by Katharine Lee Bates
Music by Samuel A. Ward
Sung by residents of Dogville on July 4th
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User Reviews

 
Hard to digest, but great.
28 August 2005 | by See all my reviews

Tough. Once again Lars von Trier tortures the audience (as he did previously on Dancer in the Dark) by upraising the darkest side of the human being. From the beginning you know that things can only get worse, but I doubt that one can figure out neither what's to come nor the powerful conclusion. Nicole Kidman's interpretation is perfect - intense, poignant, passionate, you name it. She is fantastic and so is the small cast locked inside Dogville's scenario (a wonderful creation - I wonder how something so simple can bring such a strong effect). Again, the entire cast is fantastic and for that goes an extra credit for Lars von Trier. His capability of pushing actors to the limit and extracting painful emotions from them creates a heavy atmosphere, full of tension and, at the same time, so familiar. It is not that Dogville represents the essence of our communities, but it exposes some aspects of our lives that we prefer to hide under the carpet.


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