Europa

Synopsis: An American of German descent arrives in post-war Germany 1945. His uncle gets him a job on the Zentropa train line as a sleeping car conductor. The American's wish is to be neutral to the ongoing purges of loyalists by the Allied forces and do what he can to help a hurting country, but he finds himself being used by both the Americans and the influential family that owns the railroad. After falling in love with the railroad magnate's daughter, he finds that he can't remain neutral and must make some difficult choices.
Genre: Drama, Thriller
Director(s): Lars von Trier
Production: Criterion Collection
  16 wins & 7 nominations.
 
IMDB:
7.7
Rotten Tomatoes:
85%
R
Year:
1991
112 min
1,162 Views


You wll now lsten to my voce.

My voce wll help you and gude

you stll deeper nto Europa.

Every tme you hear my voce,

wth every word and every number,

you wll enter a stll deeper layer,

open, relax ed and receptve.

I shall now count from one to ten.

On the count of ten,

you wll be n Europa.

I say one.

And as you focus your attenton

entrely on my voce,

you wll slowly begn to relax.

Two.

Your hands and your fngers are

gettng warmer and heaver.

Three.

The warmth s spreadng through

your arms

to your shoulders

and your neck.

Four.

Your feet and your legs get heaver.

Fve.

The warmth s spreadng

to the whole of your body.

On sx I want you to go deeper.

I say sx.

And the whole of your relax ed

body s slowly begnnng to snk.

Seven.

You go deeper and deeper and

deeper.

Eght.

On every breath you take you go

deeper.

Nne.

You are floatng.

On the mental count of ten you

wll be n Europa.

Be there at ten.

I say ten.

You are lstenng to the nose of ran

beatng aganst a large metal drum.

Go closer.

There's a fence and you have

to stop.

You are walkng across the ralyard,

and you've been travellng by tran

from Bremerhaven,

and before that on a shp from

New York.

You are n Germany.

The year s 1945.

His name is Leopold Kessler.

I'm your uncle.

You may embrace me.

I have received this letter from

your father.

He has the nerve to ask me

to find you a job.

My God!

Isn't he aware of the situation in

Germany?

My father...

I do not wish to know anything

about my brother.

He left our country at a difficult time,

for that I'll never forgive him.

Family bonds are intolerable!

Well, also I'll probably regret my

kindness dearly...

Due to my position I succeeded

to get you a job in Zentropa.

Your reasons to apply for this job,

and why you are here at all,

is of no interest to me.

-Uncle, I truly...

-No, I don't want any gratitude.

Zentropa will give no guarantee

that only new material will be used

for your uniform.

Your uniform will be delivered

within twelve hours.

Remeber that the uniform has

to be changed twice a year.

The uniform is the property

of the company,

but paid by the employee.

Give me your wallet, please.

Thanks.

Is your nephew ready to be examined,

Herr Kessler?

Thank you, doctor.

Thank you, Herr Kessler.

There's no need for further

examination.

Your nephew is of standard health.

Standard fee, please.

Your wallet.

The German citizens you'll meet,

will all give you the impression

of friendliness,

but never for a moment believe

that it's anything but trying to gain

something from you.

All Germans will hate you,

and in my opinion,

they are right in doing so.

We're all living at the mercy of the

Americans.

The military authorities have tied

Zentropa hand and foot.

Your fellow countrymen treat

Europeans without much respect.

Humility, Kessler.

Never forget humility.

Don't draw the courtans!

What are you doing?

Do you want to wake the sleeping?

All these people work at night

and need their sleep.

-I just wanted to look at...

-There's nothing to see!

You are n Germany

just after the war.

You are cold.

You're coverng yourself up wth the

clothes you have n your sutcase.

You are to start your tranng as a

sleepng car conductor.

When you have rested you wll be

on your way to your new job.

Get up.

Get up and be on your way.

Come on, come on!

-Good evening.

-Good evening.

-Tonight you'll be going on train 317.

-Frankfurt-Berlin.

-Tomorrow, train 212.

-Berlin-Munich.

And then on 522.

Then we return here.

Now we shall receive our papers.

Timetable, list of sales, receipts,

electrical chart, green checkbook,

book of tickets, account book,

and the green journal.

Thank you, Frulein Schulze.

The inspector wants you at

turntable 3.

Really?

I have promised not to say anymore,

but I think he's got a surprise for you.

Thank you. Come on!

Wait. I see young Herr Kessler

hasn't paid his guarantee yet.

I think I understand unemployment

in Germany much better now.

People just can't afford to work here.

This is for railway personel only.

Stay back!

Over here, Kessler!

I thought I'd tell you right away,

Kessler.

Car 2306 is back in order.

-Really, Herr Inspector?

-Yes, dammit, Kessler!

Your nephew is off to a great start

with us.

Would you please turn the handle?

Yes, Herr Inspector!

Track 8, Kessler. Track 8.

You'll have the honour of serving

on the first class

sleeper to run under the revived

company of Zentropa.

We've worked day and night to get

it back in order

and now it will run again.

I understand you specifically wish

to become a sleeping car conductor.

A fine choice.

But it's a symbolic gesture

the management has given you,

a foreigner, the job.

We're dealing with the important

issue of human transportation

which no borders should prevent.

l, too, began as a sleeping car

conductor,

and believe me,

those were the happiest days.

An engine driver's work is exciting,

so is the systematic's in the tower,

but only the sleeping car

conductor is

in direct contact with the travellers.

A fine task. He can say:

Relax,

I guarantee you a pleasant journey,

sleep well.

-Right, Kessler?

-Sure, Herr Inspector.

I'd call this a mythological task.

You'll be accompanying your uncle

during your training period.

Your exam is in three months,

after which you'll be able

Rate this script:5.0 / 1 vote

Lars von Trier

Lars von Trier (born Lars Trier; 30 April 1956) is a Danish film director and screenwriter with a prolific and controversial career spanning almost four decades. His work is known for its genre and technical innovation; confrontational examination of existential, social, and political issues; and his treatment of subjects such as mercy, sacrifice, and mental health.Among his more than 100 awards and 200 nominations at film festivals worldwide, von Trier has received: the Palme d'Or (for Dancer in the Dark), the Grand Prix (for Breaking the Waves), the Prix du Jury (for Europa), and the Technical Grand Prize (for The Element of Crime and Europa) at the Cannes Film Festival. In March 2017, he began filming The House That Jack Built, an English-language serial killer thriller.Von Trier is the founder and shareholder of the international film production company Zentropa Films, which has sold more than 350 million tickets and garnered seven Academy Award nominations over the past 25 years. more…

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Submitted on August 05, 2018

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