A Review of Dogville: Spare No One, But The Dog

This is a story of a woman’s delayed revenge against a town she had once wandered into, while on the run from her arrogant father. Before her departure, after her stay, she saw to it that every living soul in it was murdered. “If there’s any town the world would be a better place without, this is it,” She had declared. And she summoned hell’s evil and damned all the souls in the town, except for Moses, the dog. The town is Dogville.

Lars Von Trier, Director and Writer of Dogville

Some people argue that this is the most important film made in the past two decades. Dogville is a film written and directed by a daring, most ambitious and very distinctive director, Las von Trier, and stars Nicole Kidman, Paul Bettany, Lauren Bacal and more. John Hurt. His velvety voice narrates the tale of the town of Dogville, and its good and honest inhabitants. It is set in ancient Colorado, USA.

That day when Grace stumbled upon the town, it was Thomas Anderson Junior that she first met. He was the son of Thomas Anderson Senior, who happened to be catching up with the book, Adventures of Tom Sawyer. The family also simply went by the name Tom. It was a small town, you see. With little to no complications. Even the news had nothing to do with them, or they had nothing to do with the news. Now that Grace was here... Would she bring change? They didn’t like change. And so Tom knew he’d have to thoroughly persuade the town’s people to let Grace stay. They would let her stay to demonstrate their willingness to recieve. She was a gift; for Tom. She was exactly what the town needed for his great illustration.

Tom Anderson Junior was a writer who wrote nothing. Matters of the world weighed heavily on him, and he felt it was his duty to orchestrate some change within the town, a moral rearmament. His drafts could wait for as long as his father’s pension money would last. For now, he was busy mining souls, and on the day he uncovered Grace, he could see that people would soon gather to marvel at his wisdom and his ways. It wasn’t

easy to convince the people of Dogville to let her stay, but it was simple, thanks to her Graciousness. And to Grace he said,”Isn’t saving your life worth a little game? Do you mind physical labour?” She didn’t.

Within two weeks of her stay, she had taken up all the duties that needed not done, since nobody needed help getting anything done. For example, old Thomas Edison was a doctor and knew his medicines well—surely he didn’t need her help with his prescriptions. Within the next couple of months, Grace was a teacher, a nurse, a therapist, a babysitter, a gardener, and much more that no one needed. She loved the town. Its simplicity, its hills and its lights. The town had accepted her eventually, and decided that she made it a better place. She was even getting wages from them.

Grace and Tom looking at each other sweetly.

On the fourth of July, Tom Junior declared his love for Grace, and she loved him too. Then the police brought a poster; she was wanted for Bank robbery. They all saw the timing didn’t make sense, for during the time of the robbery, she had been with them, in Dogville. It should have ended there except, some people started to complain that they felt like accomplices to a crime for not turning her in. Wasn’t it the right thing to do? Grace confided in Tom that she was ready to leave rather than stress everyone. Tom, who now negotiated all her terms on her behalf, said “No.” He had a plan, surely they’d be appeased if she doubled her hours? Then the word “DANGEROUS” on that WANTED poster wouldn’t be so triggering. The people of Dogville seemed content with this but also, they would cut down a chunk of her pay.

Grace was very busy the next days, where she worked an hour, she now worked two, and for lesser. She loved this town and its people. However, she was straining herself, and cracks were starting to show. The town’s people were not impressed. First, Ma Ginger implied that she couldn’t use her path because she was a newbie, therefore less entitled. Tom thought this was good stating,”She gets angry at me too, means you’re one of us now.” Then Chuck expressed dissatisfaction with her saying that she should understand people’s needs, to which she begged forgiveness and he awkwardly shook her hand. The complaints grew, but she was always too tired at the end of day, then came the next day, and the next.

As you can imagine, the situation only got thicker for Grace. She was eventually reduced to a slave dog, with a heavy chain with a bell around her neck. Old blind Jack Mckay who once appreciated her company which he didn’t need now couldn’t keep his hands off her lap. Chuck had forced his way with her and sent his wife after her claiming fatal seduction. Some silly kid Billy (its not Billy, i forget his name) had begged for punishment, for an ass whooping then claimed abuse to his mother, who then turned against Grace. “Remember you were happy when i taught them to count?” Grace had pleaded, but the mom claimed amnesia. Grace was now but a tired disgusting dog, doing all the things they didn’t need done, yet everything they demanded. She barely met Tom anymore, and when they did meet, he said he had a plan.

Pitiful Grace drags her chains as kids sneer her.

In the end, when she had been reduced to an even more pitiful state, Tom realized that the only way he could save her was to set her free. He would have but somewhere between his hard cock, and his soft brains, doubt jammed his gut. It occurred to him that he had been an accomplice to everyone, a limited beneficiary because he had hesitated from using her for his release. He thought that unfair. Why won’t she get with him? Why not? While in fact, he was the choir master, the writer, the philosopher, orchestrating this... great moral demonstration? That’s when he realized his failure. Grace was now not just a picture of disgrace to his town, but was also evidence of his failure in his illustration.

In the final chapter, Grace’s dad comes into town in the nick of time, and with the energy of a god, big and instilling fear. Grace was of the impression that she didn’t have more trouble in Dogville than back home. “Power is not so bad.” He says to Grace after freeing her from their chains. Besides, was she demonstrating high ethical standing or arrogance when she repeatedly makes excuses for others, that she would never make for herself? He argued. “Dogs can be taught many decent things, but not if you let them bet on their nature everytime.” Her father reiterated.

Grace had desired to be merciful, but she eventually decided that she would be a part of the problem if she acted that way. The people may have acted the best way they knew how, given their circumstances, but their best wasn’t good enough for her. She would have never treated them the same way they treated her, and if she did, she wouldn’t have excused herself for it.

So she declared death upon all people of Dogville. “There’s a family, _ do the kids first and have the mother watch. Tell her you’ll spare her if she can hold back her tears. I owe her that,” such were her instructions. She knew the woman cried easily. She killed Tom herself and of course, spared Moses, the dog.

The Moment Grace Realizes she must rid the world of the town Dogville.

The choice of words used in this film is meticulously layered to provide not just accuracy, but also to measure up to the fragility of the situations, and to coat the viewers' minds in that very delicate essense. When Grace uses the word ‘frailty’ to describe her state of mind when she got to Dogville, in place of a word like ‘vulnerability’; definitions aside, the word frailty appeals more to the spirit in a way the word vulnerability can’t. The flow of words in this film are like poetry, intricately arranged to keep you graciously hooked. The words are fine and sharp as a cutting-edge.

The movie Dogville is very striking. At first, you are introduced to a town, then a man inside the town, then a woman that stumbles into the town, these three elements seem to contest for the lead role at first, but they quickly overlap each other, becoming one organism, with each independent particle rattling the others so that you watch one big beautiful tragic mess. The woman, being the visitor, the newbie, is absorbed into the man’s mission, and eventually into the town’s. All three elements, however independent, ultimately worked to keep the heart of the town beating, also shining a light of importance supporting characters. In the end, we are left with the question, Did Grace leave Dogville or did Dogville leave Grace?

The final, most impressive element of the movie that I must put to paper is its minimalistic style and theatre feel. Dogville was not shot in rooms and streets, no. There's no props, or walls and doors. Even Moses the dog is represented by a chalk drawing of a dog on the floor.

An aerial view of the Dogville set.

This movie is not just good, or profound, it is indeed important as they say. It challenges the the idea of a state of normalcy. It rather exposes normalcy as a volatile and malleable state. Grace's abuse for instance, was dangerously normalized. There are many distractions and so much hurt and trauma with which people can conveniently tack away their consciousness. Everyone is going through something, and it is not appropriate to use trauma as a way to put ourselves above others. Gabor Mate, the most effective healer of our time, wrote in his book 'The Myth of Normal' "We each carry our wounds in our own way; there's neither sense nor value in gauging them against those of others." The movie Dogville teaches an important lesson, especially to women who are often forced into complacency and an unusual gratitude, that when your life or sense of self is threatened, retaliate. Zora Neale said, "If you are silent about your pain, they will kill you and say you enjoyed it."

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Rachael Wamucii is an artist at heart. She boldly delves into the world of nature’s expression, whether in theatre and film, dance and music, or through poetry and essays, as well as bike riding and stunts. A student of Finance, and a member of YPEACE, a youth-led organization fostering peace through community programs, she uses her platform to advocate for social justice, climate action, and cultural preservation.

Her previous works include a raw take on the slow fade of capitalism, where she argues that the shift away from capitalism as we know it is inevitable.