10 Movies So Sad You Can Only Watch Them Once

To be honest, this entire list could be made up by Lars von Trier's work, from the horrifying odyssey into depression that is Antichrist to the harrowing end-of-the-world drama Melancholia, but for this list focus has to fall on Dancer in the Dark.

The portrait of factory worker Selma (Bjork) who is losing her sight and saving up to make sure her young son doesn't go blind, the psychological drama is at first quite hopeful (or as hopeful as von Trier ever gets, at least), but it soon descends into violence and heartbreak as Selma tries to keep her job and her money.

Dreamlike and haunting, Dancer in the Dark slowly destroys Selma's life and ruins her hope for her future, and though there's a last act twist that hints at a happy ending for others, Selma is not so lucky, and her final fate is almost impossible to watch.

Lars von Trier always makes bleak films, but this is something else.