Von Trier 'persona non grata' at Cannes after Nazi row

[muriel_volestrangler]

The Cannes Film Festival has banned director Lars Von Trier after he claimed to be a Nazi and that he sympathised with Adolf Hitler.

In a statement issued on Thursday, organisers said the Danish film-maker was now "persona non grata".

The director issued an apology on Wednesday for comments made at a press conference earlier in the day.

"I am not anti-Semitic or racially prejudiced in any way, nor am I a Nazi," he said in a statement.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-13452978

It could have been at attempt to seem 'edgy', or get publicity, but I think it went too far.

[Trajan]

1. Ah ... Freedom !

You are free to say whatever you wish .... you are NOT free to control the reaction of others ...

You say your a Nazi ? .... POOF ! ... You're a fucking Nazi ....

Live with the consequences of your freedom ....

[frazzled]

3. France actually has laws against hate speech

Whether you agree with that or not, these laws were passed and exist. It's hard to imagine here, but I can understand how such laws came to be in that country, where since the Dreyfus Affair, conducted mainly through writings in the press, up through the deportation and extermination of tens of thousands of French Jews due to the proliferation of anti-Semitic speech and writing, such "speech" is not taken lightly.

Lars von Trier should have known that, and not gone off on some mad disquisition. He "broke the waves" for sure, whether he is simply mad or was simply trying to be "provocative."

[notesdev]

2. another fashionista takes up shark jumping

[Bluenorthwest]

4. His work, in my opinion, is awful on ice

Going to be a long drive back to Denmark this year, Lars.