gavin6942 Just after World War II, an American takes a railway job in Germany, but finds his position politically sensitive with various people trying to use him.I waited too long to write this review, so I cannot do it justice until a second viewing. But it is a perfect storm of European genius. Max von Sydow narrating, Udo Kier appearing (as he does in many of von Trier's works). And the amalgamation of Europe on a train...What sells this film is the visuals, hands down. Von Trier's mix of black and white and classic color give this quite the dreamlike feel. That, mixed with the Kafkaesque plot, and you are sucked into an imaginary world of real life... perhaps not unlike David Cronenberg's "Naked Lunch".

Dickhead_Marcus_Halberstram Lars von Trier's Europa is a worthy echo of The Third Man, about an American coming to post-World War II Europe and finds himself entangled in a dangerous mystery.Jean-Marc Barr plays Leopold Kessler, a German-American who refused to join the US Army during the war, arrives in Frankfurt as soon as the war is over to work with his uncle as a sleeping car conductor on the Zentropa Railway. What he doesn't know is the war is still secretly going on with an underground terrorist group called the Werewolves who target American allies. Leopold is strongly against taking any sides, but is drawn in and seduced by Katharina Hartmann (Barbara Sukowa), the femme fatale daughter of the owner of the railway company. Her father was a Nazi sympathizer, but is pardoned by the American Colonel Harris (Eddie Considine) because he can help get the German transportation system up and running again. The colonel soon enlists, or forces, Leopold to be a spy (without giving him a choice or chance to think about it) to see if the Werewolves might carry out attacks on the trains.Soon, Leopold is stuck in an adventure by being involved with both sides of the conflict in a mysterious and film noir-ish way, where everyone and everything is not what it seems. Its amazing to watch the naive Leopold deal with everything (his lover, the terrorists, the colonel, annoying passengers, his disgruntled uncle, even the railway company's officials who come to examine his work ethic) before he finally boils over and humorously and violently takes control. The film is endlessly unpredictable.The film stylishly shot, it always takes place at night during the winter with lots of falling snow. Its shot in black and white with shots of color randomly appearing throughout. Also, background screens displaying images that counter act with the images up front. Add Max von Sydow's hypnotic narration, and Europa becomes a dreamlike place that's out of this world.This is now a personal favorite film of mine.

rotildao Man oh man... I've been foolishly procrastinating (not the right term, there's a long list!) to watch this film and finally had the chance to do so. And "news" are: Marvellous labyrinthine spectacle!For any Von Trier's "follower": both Rigets, Element of Crime, Dogville, Dancer in The Dark, The Five Obstructions, etc... Europa is probably the differential for its greatness in visual terms. Everything is beautifully somber and claustrophobic! You really get the feeling of being inside this "imaginary" nightmarish time warp. Taking from the masters of surreal cinema like Bunuel, Bergman, till noir films of the 40's with acidic drops of avant-guard Von Trier leads the art-film scene as the "well intended totalitarian" movie maker of nowadays. His authoritarian way of dealing with very intricate issues, without being irrational, hits the nerve of the viewer with the intent to cure some of the deepest wounds we feed in our hypocritical world.As Utopian as it seems, I do believe people like Von Trier could help society in many ways in a broader aspect. The day films and filmmakers that carry this sort of power are no longer necessary, as a tool for reflection, perhaps it could be the start of a new era: "The age of emotional control over our fears". This is what he offers to us constantly through his work over and over.Bravo!

Spuzzlightyear When people ask me if I have a favorite movie, I will look at them seriously and find out what kind of movie nut they are. If they seem a bit clueless, I will say 'Citizen Kane' (which is actually my 2nd favorite movie) but my all time favorite movie is "Zentropa" aka Europa. I saw this first at the Vancouver International Film Festival, and as soon as Max Van Sydow started his haunting narration, I was HOOKED! EVERYTHING about this film I love. From the mentioned narration to the bang on performance of Jean-Marc which he hasn't replicated before (The Big Blue is a big yawn) or since (but I DO love his tiny bit parts in other Von Trier movies) to the gonzo story (An American gets a job as a railway conductor in Germany immediately after the war and gets involved in post-war terrorism groups!) to the LOOK of the film. Black on white on color, phony but amazing process shots). Never boring, quite entertaining. When's this EVER going to be released on DVD?