King's Game [Nikolaj Arcel, 2004]

Already, on the second day of the festival, I've come across a real
gem. King's Game is a political thriller which is astute and filmed
to perfection by first-time director Arcel. There are the usual stock
characters of the genre, but the script gives them room to breathe and
the first class actors really bring them to life. Above all, though,
Arcel brilliantly captures a palpable sense of intrigue and
corruption, taking his time to draw the viewer into the sordid
machinations of this world, while maintaining a terrific sense of pace
and steadily building tension.

Very impressive.

Dear Wendy [Thomas Vinterberg, 2005]

Lars Von Trier's script does this film no favours, with its
Dogville-like stylised American world used as backdrop for a
simplistic parable that never quite connects with reality.
Thankfully, though, this is not Dogville, and the commitment and
directorial flare of Vinterberg manage to make at least some of it
work, after a fashion, and he certainly imbues the final showdown with
a truly mythic quality.

File under interesting failure.