Icelandic pop pixie Bjork makes her acting debut in this musical.
She plays Selma, a poor immigrant who has a young son Gene. Selma works day and night to save up for Gene's eye op. But the hereditary disease which threatens her son is fast making her go blind too. Only her best friend, played by Catherine Deneuve, is aware of her tragic secret.
You have to hand it to the director Lars Von Trier - his ambitions are certainly on a grand scale. His over-long epic, much of it filmed on hand-held camera, kicks off with a song from The Sound Of Music and ends in the electric chair!
Bjork fans won't be disappointed. Her performance is convincing and the soundtrack is haunting.