---
title: "Breaking the Waves"
year: 1996
kind: "film"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/breaking-the-waves"
fi1m_id: "breaking-the-waves"
imdb_id: "tt0115751"
tmdb_id: 145
wikidata_id: "Q538412"
fi1m_score: 82
critics_score: 78
critics_reviews: 6
published: "2026-09-13"
updated: "2026-09-18T08:38:18.748685+00:00"
region: "US"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Breaking the Waves (1996)

Directed by Lars von Trier · 2h 39m · MPA R · Drama, Romance

## Identity

Breaking the Waves

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/breaking-the-waves
- **Type:** Film
- **Fi1m ID:** breaking-the-waves
- **IMDb ID:** tt0115751
- **TMDB ID:** 145
- **Wikidata ID:** Q538412
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0115751/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/145, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q538412

**Fi1m score: 82** · Critics 78 from 6 reviews

*In a sentence:* Emily Watson gives everything; we spent much of the film wishing somebody would tell her she could keep a little

> Emily Watson makes Lars von Trier’s drama of faith and self-sacrifice painfully affecting. We recommend it for her performance and its emotional force, with a firm warning about the suffering he asks us to accept.

## Synopsis

A young woman living in a severe religious community, Bess McNeill (Emily Watson) gives herself to love with the same commitment she brings to her faith. She is a wife who regards selflessness as a duty, yet her devotion raises questions about what love can ask of a person. Religious expectations and personal feeling become difficult to separate as she tries to decide what is right. Stellan Skarsgård plays Jan Nyman and Katrin Cartlidge plays Dodo McNeill in Lars von Trier’s drama about belief, marriage and sacrifice.

## Review

Lars von Trier’s *Breaking the Waves* is a powerful melodrama with a troubling habit of treating suffering as proof of love. We recommend it, although we cannot accept everything it asks us to believe. Emily Watson’s Bess McNeill gives herself to devotion with a completeness that makes caution look almost dishonest. The film takes her faith seriously, and that willingness to risk seeming foolish gives it much of its force.

Bess belongs to a severe religious community, and von Trier puts her personal feelings up against its certainty about right and wrong. He is interested in what happens when a woman regards self-sacrifice as an obligation, especially within marriage. That is difficult material, and there is courage in making a romance so uncomfortable to watch. There is also a danger that Bess will become a convenient person to hurt whenever the film needs to insist on its importance.

Watson prevents that from happening for long stretches. Her Bess is so open in her love that we feel protective of her before we have decided what to make of her beliefs. We were upset by Watson’s unguarded expression, which makes Bess’s trust in love seem painfully vulnerable to abuse. It is an exposed performance, and its generosity keeps us close even when von Trier’s demands begin to seem unreasonable.

Robby Müller’s cinematography is an important part of that discomfort: its rawness denies us a comfortable distance from Bess. The images can be abrasive, but they suit the emotional exposure Watson allows. Karl Júlíusson’s production design helps make the community’s severity feel ordinary to those who live within it, which makes their certainty more disturbing. It is an oppressive setting for a love story, without much suggestion that Bess might be allowed to think differently.

Anders Refn’s editing gives the performances room, but the 159-minute running time still feels longer than the story needs. The repeated insistence on devotion and suffering becomes tiring, even when individual passages retain their force. Joachim Holbek’s music adds to the emotional pressure; we sometimes wished for less encouragement to feel what Watson has already made clear. Katrin Cartlidge, as Dodo McNeill, brings a welcome firmness to a film so committed to Bess’s vulnerability.

Von Trier writes as well as directs, and the responsibility for our unease belongs with him. Too often, the story asks us to accept that Bess’s willingness to suffer makes what happens to her meaningful. We can believe in her love without agreeing that cruelty is the right way to demonstrate its depth. This is where the film feels manipulative, despite the honesty of the actors, and where its seriousness becomes least convincing.

As a romance, it has little interest in the reassurance the genre can offer. Its religious questions are taken seriously enough to be disturbing, even when von Trier pushes too hard for our response. Watson is the reason we would return: she makes Bess worth attending to beyond any debate about the director’s treatment of her. Choose it when there is room for a difficult film, and do not expect the love story to provide much comfort.

*Fi1m score 82, published 13 September 2026.*

## What the critics say

Most critics respond strongly to Breaking the Waves, finding emotional force in its disturbing treatment of love, faith and sacrifice. Praise centres on Emily Watson’s performance as Bess: even reviews suspicious of Lars von Trier’s methods regard her as the film’s source of feeling and substance. The performances draw more consistent approval than the ideas, with Time Out also singling out Katrin Cartlidge and Robby Müller’s camerawork for their raw power.

The reservations concern how von Trier treats his heroine and how much weight his religious themes can bear. Time Out questions whether the suffering borders on sadism, while The Guardian finds manipulation and absurdity alongside the force of Watson’s work. The spread is wide despite the positive majority: the Los Angeles Times offers the clearest dissent, acknowledging the filmmaking skill and Watson’s vitality but finding juvenile ideas beneath the suggestion of profundity.

## Straight answers

**Is Breaking the Waves worth watching?**

*Breaking the Waves* is worth watching for Emily Watson's performance, and we scored it 82. Lars von Trier's drama of faith and self-sacrifice is painfully affecting, but it too often treats suffering as proof of love, and at 159 minutes it runs longer than the story needs. Choose it when there is room for a difficult film, not for comfort.

**How long is Breaking the Waves, and what is it rated?**

*Breaking the Waves* runs 2h 39m and is rated R by the MPA in the US. It is a drama and romance film.

**Where can I watch Breaking the Waves in the US?**

*Breaking the Waves* is streaming on MUBI and Amazon Prime Video in the US. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service.

**How violent or frightening is Breaking the Waves, and is it suitable for children?**

*Breaking the Waves* carries a UK 18 certificate and is not suitable for children or younger teenagers. There is little in the way of conventional violence or horror, but the film asks its heroine to suffer at length, and Robby Müller's raw photography denies us any comfortable distance. Anyone squeamish about cruelty within a marriage should approach with care.

**How does Breaking the Waves compare to The Passion of Joan of Arc?**

*Breaking the Waves* and [*The Passion of Joan of Arc*](https://film.one/film/the-passion-of-joan-of-arc) both fix on a woman's face and make us watch her faith tested to the point of exhaustion. Dreyer's film is the more disciplined and the one we recommend without hesitation; von Trier's is longer, more manipulative and harder to trust. Watson's performance is the reason to see the later film.

**What should I watch after Breaking the Waves?**

After *Breaking the Waves*, try [*The Passion of Joan of Arc*](https://film.one/film/the-passion-of-joan-of-arc) (1928, Fi1m 94): A face carries the suffering here, with little chance to look away. Then [*Ordet*](https://film.one/film/ordet) (1955, Fi1m 86): For another troubling encounter with faith, devotion and the need to believe; and [*A Woman Under the Influence*](https://film.one/film/a-woman-under-the-influence) (1974, Fi1m 86): Another performance so exposed that the surrounding film can feel almost intrusive.

### Reviews we read (11)

- **The Times**, Kevin Maher (5/5): This is peak early von Trier, an earnest and harrowing heartbreaker that launched the director globally and features a monumental, never-equalled performance from Emily Watson as the determined yet unstable Bess. [Read](https://www.thetimes.com/culture/film/article/breaking-the-waves-1996-review-lars-von-trier-and-emily-watson-at-their-finest-cs9lc57ww)
- **The AV Club**, Mike D'Angelo (A-): The film marks von Trier's reinvention toward emotional truth and heart-wrenching performances, especially Emily Watson's as Bess. It remains bracing and pure in its vulnerability despite its disturbing plot of faith, love, and self-sacrifice. [Read](https://www.avclub.com/breaking-the-waves-was-a-major-turning-point-in-lars-vo-1798180151)
- **The New Yorker**, Terrence Rafferty (80/100, inferred): An erotic-metaphysical fantasy about a young woman's transformation into a saintly figure through love and sacrifice in a severe religious community. Rafferty singles out von Trier's recognition of the aphrodisiac properties of religious imagery. [Read](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1996/11/18/1996-11-18-123-tny-cards-000153467)
- **Time Out**, GA (4/5): The critic finds this epic melodrama about love, faith, suffering and redemption emotionally overwhelming. They single out the raw power assured by the forthright performances (especially Emily Watson and Katrin Cartlidge) and Robby Müller's camerawork, while questioning whether the film's treatment of its heroine borders on sadism. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/breaking-the-waves)
- **The Guardian**, Peter Bradshaw (75/100, inferred): The critic finds the film a ridiculous yet forceful hoax-like ordeal from von Trier that manipulates audiences, but praises Emily Watson's luminous, generous performance as the selfless wife as the element that gives it substance. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2023/aug/04/breaking-the-waves-review-emily-watson-adds-brilliance-to-von-triers-windup-of-a-movie)
- **Los Angeles Times**, Kenneth Turan (40/100, inferred): Skillful and provocative filmmaking that ultimately offers the flimsy illusion of profundity rather than the real thing. Turan praises Emily Watson's alive performance as the expressive heart of the film but criticizes its trite and juvenile ideas. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1996-11-20-ca-790-story.html)
- **Empire**, Angie Errigo: The critic finds the film as frustrating as it is rewarding and compulsive viewing. They single out the daring and exalting miraculous send-off for praise while complaining about the perverse convolutions that strain credulity. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/breaking-waves-review/)
- **RogerEbert.com**, Roger Ebert: The film is emotionally and spiritually challenging, presenting a story of sacrifice and faith that questions conventional morality. Ebert praises Emily Watson's instinctive, animal-like performance as Bess and the film's raw power in confronting good and evil. [Read](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/breaking-the-waves-1996)
- **Slant Magazine**, Chuck Bowen: Von Trier finds his greatest film in an active dialogue with characters and actors, creating emotional resonance amid rule-breaking aesthetics. The film is praised as a faith-based story with a punk-rock style that captures the terrifying wrongness of visionary existence through Bess's transcendent selflessness. [Read](https://www.slantmagazine.com/dvd/breaking-the-waves/)
- **The New York Times**, Janet Maslin (Critic's Pick): The raw, crazy tour de force fuses true love with lurid exploitation and religious faith into a fierce, wrenchingly passionate film. Maslin highlights its surprising power from a narrative path leading to a final image of flabbergasting transcendence. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/1996/10/04/movies/the-steep-plunge-from-love-to-madness.html)
- **Variety**, David Stratton: An emotionally draining, soaring story of love, devotion, sacrifice and miracles centered on newcomer Emily Watson's extraordinary performance. Stratton notes the power of the theme and central performance carry the day despite flaws like length and visuals. [Read](https://variety.com/1996/film/reviews/breaking-the-waves-1200445816/)

## Details

- **Director:** Lars von Trier
- **Director:** Lars von Trier
- **Writer:** Lars von Trier
- **Cinematography:** Robby Müller
- **Editor:** Anders Refn
- **Music:** Joachim Holbek
- **Production design:** Karl Júlíusson
- **Costume design:** Manon Rasmussen
- **Producer:** Peter Aalbæk Jensen, Vibeke Windeløv
- **Cast:** Emily Watson as Bess McNeill; Stellan Skarsgård as Jan Nyman; Katrin Cartlidge as Dodo McNeill; Jean-Marc Barr as Terry; Adrian Rawlins as Dr. Richardson; Jonathan Hackett as Priest; Sandra Voe as Mother; Udo Kier as Sadistic Sailor
- **Runtime:** 2h 39m
- **Certificate (MPA):** R
- **Release (the US):** 13 November 1996
- **Genres:** Drama, Romance
- **Also in:** [Golden Globe Best Drama winners](https://film.one/collections/golden-globe-drama.md) (Nominee, 1996)
- **Budget:** $8 million
- **Box office:** $23 million
- **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPmWixRLFPQ

## Where to watch in the US

- MUBI: streaming, uhd
- Amazon Prime Video: add-on

*Checked 2026-09-13.*

Also available in: AR, AT, BR, CA, CL, CO, DK, FI, GB, IE, IN, IT, MX, NO, PA, SE, TR, US. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## Awards

- Academy Awards 1997: Best Actress (nominated)
- Silver nugget for the best foreign film 1997: Silver nugget for the best foreign film (won)
- Amanda Award for Best Nordic Feature Film 1996: Amanda Award for Best Nordic Feature Film (won)
- Cannes Film Festival 1996: Cannes Film Festival Grand Prix (won)
- European Film Academy Critics Award 1996: European Film Academy Critics Award (won)
- European Film Award for Best Actress 1996: European Film Award for Best Actress (won)
- European Film Award for Best Film 1996: European Film Award for Best Film (won)

## If you liked this

- *The Passion of Joan of Arc* (1928), Fi1m 94: A face carries the suffering here, with little chance to look away. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-passion-of-joan-of-arc.md)
- *Ordet* (1955), Fi1m 86: For another troubling encounter with faith, devotion and the need to believe. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/ordet.md)
- *A Woman Under the Influence* (1974), Fi1m 86: Another performance so exposed that the surrounding film can feel almost intrusive. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/a-woman-under-the-influence.md)
- *The Piano* (1993), Fi1m 88: Desire and moral judgement meet in a romance with far more breathing space. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-piano.md)
- *Saint Maud* (2019), Fi1m 82: Religious certainty becomes frighteningly intimate, with considerably less time to recover. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/saint-maud.md)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/breaking-the-waves