← Apex Mountain

Breaking the Waves

1996 · directed by Lars von Trier · 159 min
24,237 feet · Prominence
770th of 24,106 films scored
Not coveredNo Rewatchables episode on file.

How this film scores

Draw48

Lifetime worldwide gross $23m, re-releases included; about $48m in 2026 money.

Rank4,315 of 11,051In 199682 of 191

How Draw works

Inflation-adjusted worldwide box office, on one global curve, and nothing else. It does not know whether a film was good.

Praise87

Awards claim half the headroom above the critics' score.

Critics83 baseAwards44 signal → +4 lift

Oscars1 nominated Actress
Golden Globes2 nominated Best Picture, Lead acting
BAFTAs1 nominated Lead acting
How Praise works

Critics set the score; a tiered award record, Picture and Directing carrying the most weight, claims half the headroom above it. Praise is the verdict at the time; Legacy is the verdict since.

Legacy55

Judged directly: Criterion von Trier landmark, Watson.

Verdict55 of 100IMDb7.8 from 75kWikipedia17k views a monthAge30 years

On the listsCriterion Collectionevidence, not an input to the score
Scored beside it · 799 of 4,039 films judged

If it does not belong in this company, the number is wrong.

How Legacy works

Legacy is a judgment, not a formula. A film can be adored by critics and culturally quiet, or lightly reviewed and permanently lodged in the culture, and no arithmetic over IMDb numbers tells the difference. Every signal behind it keeps updating.

draw 48 praise 87 legacy 55averages 63, placing it at24,237 ft
How the three become one number

Added, not multiplied, so a film transcendent on one pillar and weak on another is not zeroed out. A compression curve then squeezes the top, because the seven greatest films ever made should not be four thousand feet apart.

Whose apex this is

▲ Katrin Cartlidge

In these careers — elevation for this film

Emily Watson20,016 ftStellan Skarsgård18,951 ftKatrin Cartlidge18,248 ftJean-Marc Barr17,883 ftUdo Kier17,835 ft