Repost: Nymphomaniac Volume 2 (July 5th and 7th at the Cleveland Cinematheque)

[NYMPHOMANIAC VOLUME 2 screens Saturday July 5th at 9:00 pm and Monday July 7th at 7:30 pm at the Cleveland Cinematheque.]

Review by Milan Paurich

In his review of Lars von Trier’s NYMPHOMANIAC VOLUME 2, New York Times film critic A.O. Scott referred to VOLUME 1 as “the fun part.” Scott was making a joke (at least I think he was), but that snarky bon mot is probably how a lot of viewers will feel after watching the less conventionally enjoyable second half of von Trier’s magnum opus.


There’s as much of a tonal disconnect between VOLUME 1 and VOLUME 2 as there was a stylistic gap separating Quentin Tarantino’s KILL BILL movies. If the first BILL was a dizzying succession of “Can you top this?” action setpieces, the concluding chapter released six months later was slower, talkier and (a half hour) longer. BILL VOLUME 2 was still an enormously accomplished piece of auteurist filmmaking, yet so far removed from its antecedent that many Tarantino fans felt cheated.

Nymphomaniac, Volume 2 (Opens in Cleveland on Friday April 25th exclusively at the Capitol Theatre)

[NYMPHOMANIAC VOLUME 2 opens in Cleveland on Friday, April 25th exclusively at the Capitol Theater.]

Review by Milan Paurich

In his review of Lars von Trier’s NYMPHOMANIAC VOLUME 2, New York Times film critic A.O. Scott referred to VOLUME 1 as “the fun part.” Scott was making a joke (at least I think he was), but that snarky bon mot is probably how a lot of viewers will feel after watching the less conventionally enjoyable second half of von Trier’s magnum opus.


There’s as much of a tonal disconnect between VOLUME 1 and VOLUME 2 as there was a stylistic gap separating Quentin Tarantino’s KILL BILL movies. If the first BILL was a dizzying succession of “Can you top this?” action setpieces, the concluding chapter released six months later was slower, talkier and (a half hour) longer. BILL VOLUME 2 was still an enormously accomplished piece of auteurist filmmaking, yet so far removed from its antecedent that many Tarantino fans felt cheated.