Have you ever thought of describing your depression in an artistic way? Well if you're Lars Von Trier then you did it!! To tell you the truth I had to read about the movie before watching it and thank God I did because if you didn't you would feel so confused and lost. The movie portrays a story of two sisters each in two separate parts. Justine in part I is a bride about to get wed in a beautiful house and party all prepared by her sister and brother in-law but throughout the party she seems unimpressed and sad. She's wandering alone and seems missing things, she misses her womanizer dad who she kept asking him to stay but he didn't, she's stressed from work although she's having a great career and she's uninterested with her marriage and by the time she needed her husband to be along with her he left. Even with all the money spent on the party she's not interested. Depression has taken over her life she's numb ,unimpressed and always feeling alone. her sister is not helping at all and always accusing her for letting herself in such condition. the wedding is over and everyone left, leaving the poor bride in more deep "melancholia"
Part II focuses more on Claire the elder sister. She's a normal mother, trying to take care of her son and husband, who has to be some sort of scientist specialized in constellations and stars movement. Her sister has gotten more deep into depression so she asked her to live with her. She tried to get her out of her melancholia and by the time she was trying her husband was talking about a possible collision which is unlikely between Earth and a planet which is called "Melancholia" Claire started to worry about this incident and she thought maybe it won't be a normal fly-by. Justine told her it won't be a fly-by and there will be a collision although her husband kept telling her that won't happen. The best thing about this part of the movie and total suspense and the reaction of each sister to the incident. Justine seems calm while Claire is terrified. This off course is reflection to Justine's depression were in freight cases depressed people feel very calm. The movie went slowly visualizing the collision until it was over for our poor planet Earth..
The movie is undescribable but all I can say it's more like describing the director's state of depression. if you took the movie as it is you will feel weird, but bearing in mind what it describes it would mean a lot. It's not just a failed wedding part and an exciting Sci-Fi about two planets colliding, it's more like a state of mind visualized into the movie plot giving it a different angle and view to see. of course Lars Von Trier view.
Melancholia (4/5)
