Ever since Twitch announced details about Anders Morgenthaler’s dark and haunting animation project “Princess” last year, I have been eagerly awaiting its release on DVD. While released to theaters in Denmark way back in June of last year, it was only recently that I was finally able to view this film for myself and see what all the buzz was about.
“Princess” combines live action video segments with simple animation to tell a modernday “Grimm’s Fairy Tale” that is both shocking in its subject matter and stark in its overall emotional storyline.
Thure Lindhardt is the voice of August Chistensen, a fledgling Catholic Priest who has come back to his hometown to visit his younger sister Christina (Stine Fischer Christensen in live action flashbacks) whom he has become estranged of late. Christina has become a rising porn star in Demark (she goes by the alluring porn name “Princess”). August is aghast at his sister’s depraved lifestyle, even more so after discovering that she is still performing lewd acts even while pregnant with her first child. He leaves without getting the chance to talk with her but holds out hope that they can mend their once close relationship
Tragically, reconciliation never materializes as Christina dies five years later, leaving her daughter Mia (voiced by Mira Hilli Møller Hallund) in the hands of a kindly brothel madam. Guilty and concerned about his niece’s situation, August decides to take Mia to live with him. August finds his faith severely tested as he begins to unravel and discover the horrific life his sister has lead and the abuse both she and Mia experienced (Mia has been both physically and sexually abused). The crowning indignity of Christina’s tragic life is the phallic adorned mausoleum erected in her “honor” by Christina’s longtime lover and “pimp”, Charlie (who owns the mega porn company “Paradise Lust” where Christina was employed). August’s rage soon boils over when he finds Mia innocently mimicking the sexual acts found in one of Christina’s home movies. He soon dedicates himself to “eradicating” all evidence of Christina’s humiliating life from this world—destroying the porn company she was a part of and to kill Charlie.
The screenplay by Mette Heeno and Anders Morgenthaler is quite inventive. “Princess” is most certainly a revenge story but it is also the story of innocence lost. It is quite sad to see the once vibrant and personable Christina “fall” into the world of porn and the ramifications her life decisions have had not only on her but also her daughter. Similar to “Death Wish”, August represents the everyman pushed to the limits of patience and tolerance and driven to the point of rage and madness.
Director Morgenthaler’s use of simple animation to tell this story is very effective indeed. The sordid and vulgar world of porn is reduced into a surreal and exaggerated childlike cartoon, an almost dreamlike fantasy.
It seems reflective of August’s desire to want to shield and protect Mia from the harsh reality (represented by the grainy video of her mother and the wicked and tragic path she took) of the real world and keep her within a more innocent child’s world.
That being said this is not a kid’s movie, and the violence and bloodshed unleashed by August is definitely startling, but not to the point of being obscene.
The character designs of Mads Juul and Kristjan Møller, while vaguely reminiscent of Japanese animation, reminded me a lot of the work of Ralph Baski’s especially his 70’s movies like “Fritz the Cat” or “Coonskin” which also brought adult themes to the medium of cartoon.
I found Mia to be a bit hard to believe as a character as she seemed much too “mature” to be a five year old. It also didn’t help that her character was drawn with an overly massive head (I assume to accommodate her expressive facial features and wide eyes). Perhaps this was done in a deliberate manner.
August’s character also seems a bit “unreal” in his ability to withstand great amounts of pain and injury.
“Princess” tells a cautionary tale that seeks to say that nothing good comes from revenge except more sadness and tragedy. It is not a happy tale nor was it meant to be.
“Princess” is not for everyone but will certainly leave a long lasting impression for those able to see it.
