His adaptation of Greek tragedies, particularly *Medea*, centers on a mother's infanticide as an act of desperation and rebellion against patriarchal oppression.

His films, especially *Funny Games* and *The Seventh Continent*, explore violence and psychological breakdown in ways that confront viewers with uncomfortable examinations of family pathology.

His films *Antichrist* and *Melancholia* directly and provocatively engage with themes of maternal suffering, depression, and the darkest impulses within family structures.