A von Trier meditation wrapped in a sitcom

A sitcom by Lars von Trier?

A funny film by the same man whose Breaking the Waves transformed Emily Watson from a naïf into a mystical prophet-cum-prostitute chosen by God for sacrifice by a band of vicious thugs?

The Danish auteur already has directed the comedy The Idiots, a savage satire about a group of clueless anarchists. But The Boss of It All, about an actor hired by the secret owner of an IT company to dissemble plans to sell the business, is just so frothy and slight. It's so small in scope. It's so TV sitcom-fan-friendly (and sometimes, so very annoyingly so).

Or is it? Is Boss not actually a powerful yet disguised wide-ranging social critique about the dehumanizing effects of modern Western capitalism? Doesn't it fit within von Trier's increasingly ethically self-aware oeuvre?

Kristoffer (Jens Albinus), Boss' anti-hero, is not unlikable, but he is not particularly likable, either. A rarely employed actor, he gets a break when an acquaintance, the affable, bearded Ravn (Peter Gantzler) hires him to play Svend - the nonexistent boss that Ravn has convinced his employees actually runs the company from America. Most important, Ravn has built Svend up as a strong, capable business genius for the misanthropic Finnur (Fridrik Thor Fridriksson), an Icelandic man who wants to buy the company although he detests all Danes.

It becomes quickly apparent that Ravn relishes his role as a caring teddy bear who's always willing to mediate between senior employees - six geeky, emotionally stunted and overly sensitive men and women - and their autocratic, profit-obsessed Boss, who often hands down unpopular edicts. And it's equally obvious that Ravn is a predatory, cut-throat businessman and duplicitous boss who's using the fictional Svend to bleed his company dry.

It's a beautifully perverse setup that lets Ravn manipulate anyone at will: Even as he basks in his workers' adoration, he abuses them as workers. He also takes advantage of them emotionally by developing intimate e-mail relationships while pretending to be Svend.

Boss seems to lack the usual cinematic fireworks that have made von Trier's films such memorable spectacles.

The film's naturalism is immediately undermined by the opening sequence in which von Trier appears - as a reflection in an office building window - to tell us just how normal, nondescript, naturalistic, straightforward, even forgetful a film we're about to watch.

"Although you see my reflection," says the director from his perch behind a large camera rig, "this film won't be worth a moment's reflection." What's more, Boss, we're promised, will have "no preaching or swaying of opinion" that brought criticism to some of von Trier's films like Manderlay.

What's a body to do when a director says his film is meaningless: Look even harder for meaning!

The Boss of It All is a wonderfully perceptive study of the use and abuse of power set in a concrete, everyday context - a break from the abstract EuroSpeak about philosophical ethics that usually muddies such reflections.

Written, directed and photographed by Lars von Trier. With Jens Albinus, Peter Gantzler, Benedikt Erlingsson, and Iben Hjejle. Distributed by IFC Films.

Running time: 1 hour, 36 mins.

Parent's guide: NR (profanity, adult themes, brief nudity, sexual content)

Playing at: Prince Music Theater at 5 p.m. Saturday; Ritz Five at 7:15 p.m. Sunday.

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