Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Extreme
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Graphic
- disturbing
- sardonic
- philosophical
- horror cinephile night
- arthouse film discussion
What critics said
Critics broadly found the film boldly provocative and difficult to ignore, while sharply divided over whether its philosophical digressions deepen or undermine its extreme violence.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Jack presents murders as artworks while the film confronts the viewer with the attraction and repulsion of graphic violence.
Jack repeatedly frames serial murder, photographic records, and house-building as components of an artistic practice.
Jack narrates twelve years of murders through recurring conversations with the mysterious Verge during an apparent descent toward hell.
The film pairs sadistic murder scenes and disturbing imagery with philosophical digressions, satire, and occasional humor.
Films like The House That Jack Built, and why
ninfomaniac: volume i
provocative serial killer perspective, graphic violence, philosophical narration, and bleak moral inquiry
american psycho
stylized serial killer psychology, unreliable self-justification, and transgressive dark humor
antichrist
extreme horror imagery, existential themes, and an uncompromising auteur sensibility
man bites dog
crime-driven descent into moral nihilism with formal experimentation and disturbing violence
Movie Details
- Director
- Lars von Trier
- Release Date
- 2018-10-04
- Runtime
- 152 min
- Rating
- 7.1 / 10 (3163)
Cast
- Matt Dillon
- Bruno Ganz
- Uma Thurman
- Siobhan Fallon Hogan
- Sofie Gråbøl
- Riley Keough
- Jeremy Davies
- Jack McKenzie
- Mathias Hjelm
- Ed Speleers
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- fuboTV, Philo, AMC Plus Apple TV channel, AMC+ Amazon Channel, AMC+, Shudder, Sundance Now, Shudder Amazon Channel, Shudder Apple TV channel
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is The House That Jack Built about?
- A meticulous serial killer turns twelve years of murder into a grotesque artistic manifesto while an enigmatic interlocutor challenges his self-mythology.
- What is The House That Jack Built like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The House That Jack Built as measured, its intensity as extreme and its storytelling as layered.
- Is The House That Jack Built violent?
- Yes. Ember rates the violence in The House That Jack Built as graphic.
- What did critics think of The House That Jack Built?
- Critics broadly found the film boldly provocative and difficult to ignore, while sharply divided over whether its philosophical digressions deepen or undermine its extreme violence.
- Which films are like The House That Jack Built?
- Films with a similar feel include ninfomaniac: volume i, american psycho, antichrist, and man bites dog.
- How long is The House That Jack Built?
- The House That Jack Built runs 152 minutes.
- Where can I watch The House That Jack Built?
- In United States, The House That Jack Built streams on fuboTV, Philo, AMC Plus Apple TV channel, AMC+ Amazon Channel, AMC+, Shudder, Sundance Now, Shudder Amazon Channel, Shudder Apple TV channel.
