CANNES FILM FESTIVAL

Fresh from the premiere of his newest film Melancholia, director Lars Von Trier took to the podium and proceeded to say that he understands Adolf Hitler. Never one to shy away from controversial comments, Von Trier went on to say he sympathized with Hitler, calling himself a Nazi.

Now, two things: the Danish director has always had a crude sense of humour, and when Von Trier said he "sympathizes" with a German dictator who was behind the murder of millions, I believe it was meant to be a nod to Hitler's suicide in a bunker--a feeling Von Trier himself has felt in the past with his battle against severe depression.

Not that I'm at all siding with him (there are still some subjects that you do not mess with, and the Holocaust is one of them), but it seems obvious to me that Von Trier simply gets caught up in a poorly placed joke. The heads behind Cannes fully disagree however, and have banned the man behind Antichrist (2009), Dogville (2003), Dancer in the Dark (2000) and Europa (1991) among others,  forever from the red carpet of the Palais des Festivals.

Perhaps the French can't take a joke, but a lifetime ban from Cannes seems a bit excessive; especially considering Mel Gibson is currently a guest, strolling the Riviera looking for Jews and African Americans to hate. Anyway, you can see Von Trier's verbal faux pas below, also starring Kirsten Dunst as "shocked, awkward actress."