Melancholia (Lars Von Trier)
Melancholia is a film that takes
risks. From the moment it begins, the audience is captivated by a world that is
seemingly stuck in time, a reality that cannot be escaped. This isn’t a film
with a happy ending, and I praise it for not conforming to what is expected.
While most films leave the protagonists in a post-apocalyptic world after the
end has occurred, Melancholia is the
end, but the ultimate end.
Quite
possibly a hit or miss with most audiences, seeing as people love films with
happy endings, or at least endings they can relate to. But the world ends and
then there is nothing. Melancholia doesn’t leave you hanging by a thread. It
severs all ties with the audience, literally sweeping you off your feet.
The
performances are brave. Kirsten Dunst has the role of her life in this film.
She plays Justine, a young woman who is simply broken, without any explanation.
It is implied she has a mental disorder of some sort, but the ambiguity gives
it meaning, heart. The relationship between her and her sister (Charlotte Gainsbourg)
is strained, but real. That is the horrifying side to the film, that it is all
very real, these young women could be anyone, your neighbors, or friends. Melancholia
is a powerful film, one that won’t leave my mind for a long time.
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