ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ

According to director Lars von Trier, there'll be "no preaching or swaying of opinion" in his latest film. "It's a comedy, and harmless as such," he explains in an opening voiceover. Those familiar with the Dogme man's hard-hitting oeuvre may be sceptical. But he's as good as his word in The Boss Of It All, a sly satire about a failed actor recruited to play the non-existent CEO of a Danish IT firm as it prepares to sell up to an Icelandic rival.

Thrown in at the deep end by real boss Ravn (Peter Gantzler), Kristoffer (Jens Albinus) quickly realises he's not been idle in his absence. One of his employees is convinced he's gay, another thinks he has offered her his hand in marriage, while a third suffering from "rural depression" has to be restrained from thumping him whenever they meet. Things get even more complicated when the lawyer for the firm's potential new owner (Fridrik Thor Fridriksson) turns out to be Kristoffer's ex-wife Kisser (Sofie Grabol). As acting challenges go, it's a doozy. With a little help from spiritual mentor Gambini, though, can he make it to the curtain call before being exposed?

"BRILLIANTLY WITTY, DELIGHTFULLY SUBVERSIVE"

Though some of the humour gets lost in translation (Kristoffer confusing Human Resources with the Hell's Angels, for example), there's no doubt von Trier milks his farcical scenario for all its worth. The end result is a movie that manages to be both brilliantly witty and delightfully subversive - not least for reportedly entrusting all its cinematography to a computer.

The Boss Of It All is out in the UK on 29th February 2008.