Lars von Trier is a rather controversial film director and screenwriter, his recent work coming in the form of The Depression Trilogy; Antichrist, Melancholia, and Nymphomaniac. After a while, when a director gets a reputation for contention in his films and having people walk out mid-way through, you have to start questioning the justification; whether the gore, death, and mutilation being conveyed on screen actually provides context for the film content, or whether it has been put in specifically to get a reaction from the audience and drum up some free media attention.
The House That Jack Built is an arty psychological horror film, yet at the same time, it is a very mainstream film that is only slightly darker and more macabre than the Saw franchise. The film follows a serial killer (portrayed by Matt Dillon) on a 12-year killing spree during the 1970s and 80s, recounting five notable incidents during that period.
I say the film is both arty and mainstream as it seems to be to rather distinct pieces edited into one. You have a straightforward visual story, displaying the collection of Jack's trophies. This portion of the film could actually be a film on its own and would be a brilliantly shot and thought-provoking film. But it has the arty portion of the film too. A near constant dialogue, as Jack narrates his direction in life to an unknown party, discussing the life, death, icons, and art (with von Trier stroking his own ego, plastering snippets of his previous works as examples of said "high art"), always coming back to the distinction between engineering and architecture. Between the scenes of the film, these discussions are illustrated with imagery like a quickly rushed powerpoint presentation.
Matt Dillon is exceptional in his role as Jack. Every gesture and movement, every smile and word is striking. Carefully calculated, yet unhinged, with a less than ideal dose of OCD which actually ends up adding a comedic element to the film. The film starts off incredibly strong and has you hooked right from the get-go. You can actually empathise with the man as he is practically pushed down a dark path, but the film challenges the audience to see how far they are willing to follow Jack and to agree with his own justifications as he gets more and more brazen.
The House That Jack Built is absurdly dark in its content, with violence directed not only at adults but towards children and animals too, and that will largely be the polarizing element in the film. If you are used to gruesomeness and gore and can remain detached when it comes to children and animals on screen, you will have no issue with the film. It is all rather straightforward. But for those with a strong empathic core, they may struggle with the impact of such scenes.
From a visual perspective, it was very well shot. The cinematography has a lot of moving shots, and switches from close-ups to wider shots in a way that keeps it engaging throughout. There is a beautiful crispness to the scenes, that stands out even with a remarkably vintage set production and colour grading.
I would love to see an edit of the film with the external discussions and epilogue removed from the film. It seems very much unnecessary and reduces the effectiveness of the remainder of the film. But I enjoyed it. It had me hooked.