The opening is already deeply sinister. In a ghostly mist, meat trucks arrive at the magnificent restaurant Le Hollandais. Barking dogs wolf down the leftovers. Rhythmic chords by Greenaway’s regular composer Michael Nyman heighten the atmosphere of menace.

The Thief (an overpowering Michael Gambon) is a vulgar underworld king who dines here every day to bolster his status—he’s a coarse bigmouth who isn’t satisfied until he’s humiliated everyone. Only his wife (Helen Mirren, as an ironic contrast) and a simple bookseller dare to defy his dictatorship.

Cinematic sorcerer Peter Greenaway, inspired by English Renaissance theater, impresses with an allegorical satire about a society dominated by bad taste and gluttony (cannibalism included). Carnage, sex, blood and revenge prevail in this provocative tragedy, where beauty and quiet strength compete against decadence and cruelty. Ben van Os and Jan Roelofs deserve a special mention for their production design for this cinematic theater with classical touches (including a Frans Hals reproduction) and contemporary expressionism.