Surprisingly, it wasn’t Mel Gibson. I know, right!?
It was Lars von Trier.
During a press conference (35 minutes in) for his latest film, Melancholia, the controversial director felt the need to let the audience know that he “understands” Adolf Hitler and sympathizes with him “a little bit,” all in the middle of an awkward Jew joke routine.
I thought I was a Jew for a long time. I was very happy being a Jew. Then later on came Susanne Bier [Oscar winning Jewish, Danish director] and then suddenly I wasn’t so happy being a Jew. Uh no, that was a joke. Sorry. I really wanted to be a Jew and then I found out I was really a Nazi, because my family was German. Which also gave me some pleasure.
What can I say? I understand Hitler. I think he did some wrong things, yes, absolutely. He’s not what you’d call a good guy, but I understand much about him and I sympathize with him a little bit.
But come on, I’m not for the Second World War. And I’m not against the Jews. I am of course very much for Jews. No, not too much, because the Israeli’s are a pain in the ass, but still [pause]…
How can I get out of this sentence?
OK. I’m a Nazi.
Not the smartest things to say in the middle of a film festival in which your film is competing. Especially since the festival is in Cannes, which is in France, which was overrun by Nazis during World War II.
This guy either has balls the size of grapefruits or a brain the size of a peanut.
Update (May 19)/
The Cannes Film Festival has banned Lars Von Trier and declared him “persona non grata.”
