“...mixes farce and tragedy so completely that it challenges us to respond at all...Imagine Eugene O’Neill and Woody Allen collaborating on a screenplay about a family reunion. Now let Luis Bunuel direct it. ”
At a family gathering to celebrate their father's 60th birthday, the eldest son makes a speech so damning it will have irreversible repercussions for all concerned. Festen was the first film created under Dogme 95: a movement of young Danish film makers who preferred simple production values and naturalistic performances. The film was selected as the Danish entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 71st Academy Awards, but was not accepted as a nominee.
