Review of Melancholia (2011) by Jim M — 10 Apr 2013

Melancholia is many things, it is a character study, it is a disaster movie, but it isn't happy. There may not be more than a handful of happy moments throughout the whole thing, which is not to surprising considering the title and subject material.

We start by seeing images, birds falling from the sky, a mother and son, running for their lives, a women in a wedding dress, being tied up by vines while trying to run, Kristen Dunst is then shown lying almost like she has been posed in a coffin, in a stream, a young boy sharpen a stick with a knife, and a massive blue planet absorbs the earth.

Do you see what I mean? That is the first four minutes. The movie is split into two parts. The first focuses on Justine(Dunst), it is her wedding day and she should be having the time of her life. That doesn't appear so though.

We meet her dysfunctional family, which she fits perfectly into, and as we move throughout her wedding night, her behaviour becomes more erratic, by the end of the night she is alone, miserable and to blame for it all.

Justine is depressed, this is part of what the movie focuses on, Melancholia, her depression. During the wedding which is going horribly despite the efforts by her sister Claire, people hear about the blue planet hiding behind the sun(conveniently named Melancholia) is headed towards earth.

The second part of the movie focuses on Claire. Claire takes in Justine and try's to bring her back to the world from her depression. Claire, is worried about the planet hitting earth, despite the best efforts to convince her otherwise from her husband.

This half focuses on the realization of impending disaster, the relationships between Claire, her son, her sister and facing death. It seems these two characters are surrounded by some horrible people.

Those people take there tole. Melancholia, while still being a movie about the end of the world, never really becomes a disaster movie, it isn't an action movie, isn't loaded with special effects(though the planet and end sequence are stunning), at it's heart, it is a character study.

Focusing on the depression that can kill who we are, in this case on a personal level(Justine) and a grander scale(Earth). It is a film that doesn't look for a happy ending, it stays true to the material it is given.

The score is fantastic especially the beginning and end of them film, and the actors are all good in there roles. Melancholia is a deliberately paced, dramatic piece of art.