Blog 10. Melancholia. (Denmark-Sweden-France-Germany, 2011. Director: Lars Von Trier)
Here is the pertinent information for Melancholia.
Melancholia was made for $9.4 million and returned $15 million. It won several awards: The U.S. National Film Society named it best picture for 2011 and was third in the Film Comment poll for best film of the year. Here is the trailer for the film.
1. Your reaction to the movie? Like? Dislike? Why?
2. What do you think is the connection between the wedding scene and the impending destruction. Why open this movie with that?
3. Justine and John: natural antagonists. They both are smart; they both have access to the same information. One is sure that Melancholia will miss the Earth; one knows that it will hit. Why is this—why does Justine know and John doesn't?
4. Finally, after all these movies, we get something definitive—the earth will end. No mystery. Right now we're seeing how these characters respond to this. John commits suicide. Claire wants to have a glass of wine and sing a song on the patio. Justine...well, it's not clear. But she's not going along with his sister. So: what do you do? You're in that house: you're seeing Melancholia filling the sky. The end is near. What do you do?
Enjoy your long weekend. Maybe think about what Memorial Day means while you're relaxing on Monday. I know I am. See you all on Tuesday when we'll finish the film and begin this one:
Melancholia was made for $9.4 million and returned $15 million. It won several awards: The U.S. National Film Society named it best picture for 2011 and was third in the Film Comment poll for best film of the year. Here is the trailer for the film.
1. Your reaction to the movie? Like? Dislike? Why?
2. What do you think is the connection between the wedding scene and the impending destruction. Why open this movie with that?
3. Justine and John: natural antagonists. They both are smart; they both have access to the same information. One is sure that Melancholia will miss the Earth; one knows that it will hit. Why is this—why does Justine know and John doesn't?
4. Finally, after all these movies, we get something definitive—the earth will end. No mystery. Right now we're seeing how these characters respond to this. John commits suicide. Claire wants to have a glass of wine and sing a song on the patio. Justine...well, it's not clear. But she's not going along with his sister. So: what do you do? You're in that house: you're seeing Melancholia filling the sky. The end is near. What do you do?
Enjoy your long weekend. Maybe think about what Memorial Day means while you're relaxing on Monday. I know I am. See you all on Tuesday when we'll finish the film and begin this one:
1) Completely honest here… During the first 20 minutes of this movie, I hated it. It was so slow! There were just seemingly random images, such as falling horses, people running across golf courses, etc. (slowly) appearing on the screen. I now appreciate the images because they are actually relevant to the plot of the movie, although I do wish they were presented at a faster pace. For example, the people running across the golf course were Claire with her son, frantically trying to run to the nearest village, and the falling horse was (Abraham, I think), Justine’s favorite horse falling after being too afraid to cross the bridge. I definitely do not consider “Melancholia” to be one of my favorite movies, but I liked it more and more as it continued. I find it a little weird how they introduced Justine. She was acting really strange by peeing on a golf course and then having sex with a different guy than the one she intended to marry (on the same golf course). We are later led to believe Justine has acute depression with the help of some major context clues.
ReplyDelete2) Well, all apocalypses are preceded by ignorant happiness. We are all living our lives, ignorant of the fact that the world will end, and then it just happens. The beginning and end of the movie are stark contrasts. Weddings typically symbolize a new beginning, and in a way, so does an apocalypse if you think about it in terms of life without humanity. Apocalypses are also (obviously) associated with “the end,” and this is what Justine chooses to do with her (kind of) marriage.
3) Justine spends most of her time just observing. She notices that something is wrong with Antares (twice) before anyone else does. Also, I think she wants Melancholia to destroy Earth. She is so depressed, she wants the world and therefore her life to end, and she also believes that humans are evil and deserve to be wiped out of existence. John, however, is blinded by both his excitement to see Melancholia and his desire to protect his family’s (specifically his wife’s) sanity by saying that the scientists are never wrong, but secretly knowing that the calculations may be off. John convinced himself that it would not happen, and he eventually believed it.
4) Claire’s reaction to the apocalypse is key to the movie. She literally tries to outrun a planet with her son in her arms. She has a full scale meltdown and is desperate for some normality, drinking wine on her patio, before she dies. This, to me, is the initial reaction that I would have to seeing Melancholia slowly move closer and closer to me. I would go insane at the thought of the fact that my life would violently end. I would like to say I'd remain calm like Justine, but I know that is a blatant lie. The erasure of electricity would bring me back to reality; everyone would inevitably die. I think I would give in to the facts, try to relax, and eventually probably follow John by taking the pills. I, however, would not use all the pills because that's not fair to everyone else who has to live through that traumatic experience.
Honestly, in the beginning, I hated Melancholia. It is without a doubt one of the weirdest movies I have ever seen, but what I found frustrating about the movie is that it is sooooo incredibly slow, almost painfully slow. The first scene where they were trying to maneuver the limo was my favorite scene, because it was hilarious. Then, it drifted over to the wedding, which was rather unfortunate. This connects with the apocalypse, because both the wedding and the apocalypse symbolize ending and tragedy. Weddings typically symbolize unions and the beginnings of relationships, however, Justine's wedding was the end of her relationship with her husband (he left her the day of the wedding!). The apocalypse symbolizes the end of Justine's suffering from depression and, obviously, the end of the world. People were drinking, laughing, and dancing a few days before another planet would collide with Earth, and the whole world would blow up. Everyone was oblivious to the apocalypse that was soon to happen - everyone but Justine, and by the end, Claire.
ReplyDeleteWhile John was sure that Melancholia would simply pass by the Earth, Justine knew it would hit Earth "because she knows things". Justine "knows things" because she is by nature, an observer. John however is too caught up in himself to admit reality; he was to excited to watch Melancholia through the telescope and too overconfident in his work and that of other scientists that he did not even consider that he could be wrong (which he was). Another more far fetched unrealistic idea is that when Justine was laying out in the light of Melancholia, the light was changing her mental state. Melancholia's light was giving her a Melancholia condition (depression), because when Claire looked up "Melancholia" on her computer, a link appeared briefly on the screen that said "Melancholia symptoms". This could be how Justine "knows things" and why she is always so melancholy. The one thing that made her happy was knowing that the world was going to end, because "life on Earth is evil".
If I were in this situation, I would probably do something similar to what Claire wants to do. Initially, I would have a mental breakdown worthy of the Guinness Book of World Records for both length and magnitude. When that subsided, instead of killing myself or trying to protect myself, I would try to enjoy my last few hours on Earth. Knowing that there was no chance of my survival, I would continue to do what I always try to do, which is to live life to the fullest. Maybe I would do something crazy or something that I have been scared to do but wanted to do. I think it is fascinating to hear peoples' responses to the question, "If you knew you were going to die tomorrow, what would you do...?". If I were watching Melancholia fill the sky, I would be asking myself that question and then fulfilling the answer.
At the very beginning of the movie. I was unsure how I felt about the movie. Everything was moving so agonizingly slow that it made me want to scream aloud. The imagery was absolutely beautiful in the begging and is really inspiring from an artistic point of view. Miles mentioning that most of the scenes were paintings made me appreciate the opening scene more. However because everything was happening so slowly and was extended to be very long, I could barely enjoy the scenery. I wanted the movie to be over, and I thought it was after we got the image of the planets colliding followed by a black screen. I thought the movie was actually over and a funny joke being that John described it as being slow. I never thought he meant literally. Then the movie continued on and I understood that he didn't actually mean it took place in slow motion, but that the pacing of the story at hand was a bit drawn out. All in all I'm loving this movie so far. The setting is beautiful and the imagery is absolutely astonishing. For instance when we get a view of both the sun and Melancholia in the sky, we see how they cause every object to cast two shadows which was breath-taking. The story itself is far from boring but not entirely intriguing to me. I love this movie because of how beautifully it was made.
ReplyDeleteAfter watching a bit off the movie a loose connection formulates, in my opinion. With the impending doom, we see how the world falls apart right before crashing into Melancholia and ending. With Justine's wedding, we can virtually see the same thing. Things go wrong with the wedding here and there because of Justine's mental state until it ultimately distengrates with she and Michael separating after the wedding.
This question is not easily answered, and to me, has no answer. The movie gives us no explanation as to how Justine knows Melancholia will hit. When prompted by Claire on how she knows, Justine simply replies, "I just do." We know that she has had a dream about the end of the world, however we do not know why she had that dream. I'm not even sure the dream is what Justine is basing her knowledge off of. This can be supported by the fact that she knew the amount of beans in the jar though it was not present in her dream. She also "knows" that they are alone in the universe which is information also unrepresented by the dream. John's knowledge comes from a more scientific basis where's as Justine's seems mysterious, in the sense that we don't have any hardcore evidence of how she knows Melancholia will hit.
If I know that Melancholia will hit. I'm going to enjoy the scenery and celebrate life. There's nothing I can do or can be done about it so there's no need to fret and worry. I'd take Claire's offer on how to spend the last few moments. I'm sure the end would be beautiful in a destruction and creation type of way. Might as well enjoy it while it lasts.
I want to hate this movie, I really do. But for some odd reason, I’m enjoying it. It’s definitely not one of my favorite movies, but it’s keeping me entertained. Normally I would hate the slowness of it all, but I think it gives the audience time to absorb the incredible settings and cinematography. Overall, not my first choice of a movie, but certainly not my last.
ReplyDeleteBoth the wedding and Melancholia passing by were supposed to be amazing events that everyone enjoyed. But instead Justine cheated on Michael and, well, the scientists REALLY screwed up. Instead of the happy ending that was expected of the two events, they both devolved into something much sadder, with the destruction of Justine and Michael’s marriage and the destruction of the world.
Well we had a foreshadowing of what would happen in the slow motion scenes, when we saw Justin with lightning or some other form of electricity coming out of her fingers like she’s a superhero or something. So it’s clear from the start that she’s got some otherworldly knowledge and senses which allow her to sense the path of Melancholia, which is what separates her from John.
If I know the world’s going to end, I’m just going to try to enjoy the rest of human existence as best I can.I don’t really know what this enjoyment involves or if I should even say it due to the nature of it’s legality. But I’m not going to spend my time moping, because that’s not how to live.
After watching Melancholia Thursday, I came home disliking the movie. My only positive commentary involves the intro; yes, it was dull, but the projection of the artwork across the screen gave the film an ominous notion which in turn saved the entirety of the film. I was annoyed by the opening scene; it was irrelevant and unneeded and just added to the overall dullness of the film. After watching the film Friday though, while I cannot say that I enjoyed it, I was entertained by it. Melancholia addresses far more issues than just an unhappy bride but instead addresses the dynamic interplay between two sisters, the innocence of the young, the effects of an illness on the whole family, and the steps one takes in their darkest moments. The film presents probing questions that inherently affect us all, whether it be directly or indirectly.
ReplyDeleteA well loved life constitutes joy, happiness, and a sense of belonging within the people you love. But as the film shows, this can be a dangerous way to live life, as you are inherently placing yourself into a bubble--a bubble of protection that fails to call attention to the dangers of the outside world. Life can change in a moment’s notice whether it be for the good or for the bad. In the film, the wedding is the bubble and Melancholia is the trajectory of life. Because the attendees of the wedding have placed themselves in a bubble, one of wealth and arrogance, they are susceptible to annihilation.
John is a really complex character but in my opinion, the most human of them all. John’s character attests to the vulnerability of the human spirit and the the innate emotions prevalent within. John can not be faulted for his actions, as they were done out of love for his family. Similar to Curtis in Take Shelter, he initial reaction was to spare those he loved and this manifested itself in denial. And unlucky for him, denial was the worst weapon of them all. Justine on the other hand, although she understands the gravity of the situation, chooses to remain futile in the face of disaster. Justine could have chosen to channel her knowledge of the disaster and lack of denial into a means to help Claire realize the shortcomings in John’s actions, but instead she let her own sister fall subject to the throngs of fear before her very eyes. And, in my opinion, this is a fault of her personality, of her love towards Claire.
I honestly don't know what I would do. I would most likely take Claire's route. I imagine that I would exhibit many of her same actions--the running around to try and save those you love, trying to escape, etc. Once I realize that those actions are fruitless though, I don’t think I would be able to sit on the patio and wait for the cloud of doom. Instead, I would want to do something that I love.
When John said that Melancholia was even slower than Take Shelter, I was prepared to hunker down and painfully get through the movie. However, the beauty of the images and the music in the very beginning seemed to be almost mesmerizing. I found myself in a trance as the scene of the wedding and the characters slowly unfolded. I love Justine so much. She is so depressed and hopeless that she doesn't give a damn about how her actions affect other people. It's sad to watch, but it's also slightly liberating to see someone behave completely on their own agenda. Like in Take Shelter, I feel like the slow pace of the movie lets the audience truly take time to feel every character's feelings. For example, we feel Michael's utter heartbreak as the camera slowly pans over to the picture of the orange trees that Justine left on the couch. As we feel sad for Michael, we also feel Justine's depression. These conflicting emotions add to the depth and complexity of the film. I have been eager to finish the movie in class all weekend.
ReplyDeleteJustine's mother repeatedly says that marriages are doomed from the very start. I feel as though Melancholia's inevitable collision with the Earth is supposed to echo her opinion about relationships in general. Justine ruins her relationships with Michael by ignoring him on their wedding night, turning down his offer to own the beautiful property, and having sex with a random, desperate boy on the golf course. Claire and Justine's relationship with their father disintegrates during the film as we learn that he decided to not stay the night in the house. Justine also ignore's Claire's efforts to make her feel better and refuses to comfort her when her sister is scared about the end of the world. I think that the movie is trying to say something about the temporary nature of human relationships. I also think that the film is commenting on how wealth and high status do not necessarily lead to happiness and love-- they can actually prevent these feelings. Maybe the impending doom of this perfect, fairy tale world in which the characters live is a comment on the fragile nature of the bourgeois class.
Because Justine does not carry a sense of positivity or hope in her heart, she is able to face and accept reality. John is a giddy, happy man with a wife and child that he loves. He has the instinct to want to live and protect his family. Because of this, he can't accept what is true and looks to false senses of hope to help him live a happy life.
I feel like if I knew the world was about to end in a matter of minutes, I would want to be surrounded by all of the people in my life that I love (friends and family) and we would have a huge dance party outside on the back porch. Dancing is the best way to release stress and negative feelings. I feel like leaving this life in a state of pure bliss is the best way to go.
1. So far, I'm really enjoying this movie. It's very interesting to watch a movie that acknowledges the apocalypse. People always think that they can control nature, so they don't believe it when they learn that they can't. Justine isn't afraid of the apocalypse, and she doesn't try to escape it. She doesn't try to have hope, and this makes the movie so interesting. Sometimes having hope is what can keep you going, but there isn't anything for Justine in the future. The movie's so interesting to me, because Justine is the only character that doesn't live with the hope of the future. She lives with the acknowledgement of the present, and doesn't try to forget what will happen.
ReplyDelete2. The wedding scenes were very monumental to the movie. They really showed Justine's discomfort. Some people believe that money and status are the most important things if you want to be successful, and Justine's wedding reception was very expensive. John tells her that he spent tons of money on it, but that it was worth it as long as she is happy. The wedding really represents two things. You aren't always comfortable even if you have tons of money. Justine really didn't want to be at her wedding, so it didn't matter how much it had cost. John had so much money that the wedding didn't really impact his wealth. However, Justine was also lucky to be able to have the celebration that her sister and brother-in-law provided. She was able to have the opportunity to enjoy the wedding, but she decided not too. This really shows what it is like to be blessed with something, but not appreciate it and only want more. However, I also feel that it is ok for Justine to feel like this, because the wedding wasn't really hers. Justine was obviously really uncomfortable, but she had to hide it. This related to the destruction because Justine wasn't allowed to just be upset. Everyone was afraid to accept that she wasn't feeling right, and that she would have preferred something else. With the destruction later in the movie, John and Claire wouldn't accept that the world may be hit. Justine was the only character that continued to believe that the apocalypse would happen.
3. I believe that Justine isn't afraid to question her comfort. As we said before, it is important whether you choose to question your life or if you chose not too. John seems to believe with all certainty that when the scientists write that they won't be hit, it means that there isn't any chance that an apocalypse will occur. However, Justine knows about the apocalypse, but she is embracing it. She doesn't try to run away, like Claire actually does. She lays on the riverbank and lets the light from Melancholia shine over her. John would have found out if he had done more research, and if he wasn't afraid to question what the scientists thought.
4. I believe that I would act how Justine has. You aren't stronger than nature. You can't stop Melancholia, so you might as well accept that it's going to hit. You could spend your last few days running away, as Claire tries to, or you could understand what will happen. Once Claire learns that they can't just run away, she just decided to enjoy a glass of wine. You can accept that the apocalypse will occur, but you don't have to stop trying to live because you're afraid. You can't overpower Melancholia, but I would still try to live. I wouldn't lay down and pretend that by drinking a glass of wine, the end will be easier. It'll be painful and terrifying when the apocalypse occurs, but trying to believe that a relaxing evening on the patio will ease that terror is ridiculous.
I have to say I didn't enjoy Meloncholia as much as the other movies we have watched in these past couple weeks. The slow motion pictures in the beginning set a bad tone to me due to the lack of action and content. I realize that was the point of them showing us those picture but regardless, they caused me to feel bored. Also even though the car scene in the beginning was quite humorous, I was ready for it to be over as soon as it started. I also didn't like the way that this move was filmed. The slow shots of landscape throughout the film seemed unnecessary. Again, I realize that it was filmed this way to set a tone of indifference. I believe that they chose to put the scene of Justine's wedding before the collision on the planets because at that time there was an apocalypse in her own little world. She cheated on her husband, eventually lost her husband, she was fired from her job, and she made a fool out of herself all in the same night. I believe these two scenarios were put in the same movie in order to show how different apocalypses can be from each other. John thinks that the planets will pass each other both because he has hope in the world and he doesn't want his wife to freak out while Justine cares about neither of those things because she is depressed. I'm not quite sure what I would do if I was in that movie. I would most likely freak out and attempt to run away, but if I thought about what I should do I would try to go to sleep so I wouldn't have to deal with the last couple seconds.
ReplyDeleteBefore I answer these questions: I finished the entire movie over the weekend since I was absent Friday. I'm not sure where you guys stopped, but I guess it doesn't matter since we know the Earth is done for anyways.
ReplyDelete1) This isn't going to make sense, but it's how I feel. I enjoyed watching the movie, but when I think about it, I don't really like it. I'll explain. I loved how the movie opened. The images were captivating and the music playing behind them really pulled me in. I think it was a nice how they told us the Earth would be destroyed early, so we watched knowing everyone was going to die. The actual cinematography looked nice, and an interesting combination of characters made for an ultimately enjoyable experience. But (see this is the part you actually pay attention to), when I think about what this movie was trying to say, I realize I can't think of anything. Essentially, I don't think there was a point to anything: to Justine being depressed, to her having sex with Tim and not with her husband, to her father being a narcissist, or to her mother being so critical. I think all of these aspects had potential for something, but nothing was capitalized on. The movie presents an insanely interesting cast of characters, but nothing is ever done with them. Most of them are out of the movie halfway through. Why not have her father explain the reason he is how he is? Why did he even marry in the first place, and why would his wife marry him? Why not have any other character outside of the ones in part two mention the huge ass planet literally barreling toward Earth? Would it not be interesting to see why Tim and his boss are so obsessed with the he tagline even though there's a high probability their company won't even exist tomorrow? How would Justine’s father, a man who's only concern is enjoying himself, spend his last day on Earth? What was really Justine’s relationship with her father? It may just be me, but I feel like any of these questions would be more interesting than seeing Justine randomly have sex with Tim. That's just my opinion.
2) No offense to anyone who wants, or has already had, a fairytale wedding with their soulmate, but wedding as an institution is pretty stupid. I hate it, to be frank. It's an excuse for a marriage of industries to suck couples dry for a ceremony that people now think is necessary for their relationship. That's not even mentioning the legal aspects of the matter (for example, a gay couple couldn't adopt a child together when they couldn't get married. Why did they even have to be? It's BS.). Wedding ceremonies are the epitome of human’s materialistic obsessions, shown by John’s comments on how much the damn thing cost. So I think the movie was similar to Dawn of the Dead in how it showed out need for materialistic things even in the face of an apocalypse.
3) There are two things happening here I think. Bough I'm pretty sure this is just me constructing this by myself because, according to my answer to the first question, I don't think the movie is smart enough to make these points. First, I think this is a mockery of modern science. A common theme in apocalyptic movies is humans looking to science for safety and solutions, like the global warming solution in Snowpiercer or nuclear weapons in other movies. In this movie, they look to science to assure themselves they are safe, but once again, science is wrong and everyone dies. This may also be a feminist comment, because not only was Justine right, her sister was as well. Both women were right and the man was wrong? Coincidence? Probably. But maybe the movie is trying to say women should really be in power, just like the ending in Madmax.
4) If I'm being honest, I'd probably do every hard drug I'm too afraid to do now, because why not? I'd just try to have fun and experience everything that society prevents me from experiencing now. Society won't exist anyways, so I might as well. Life now is about experiencing things in the short time you have, so really you'd just need to move a little faster. If I was in their situation, I'd probably do something similar to Justine. She really just wanted to please the kid in his last few days, and I'd want to fulfill at least one of his wishes to. He only had a few years of living, I'd want to give him something, even if it's pointless in the end. Even if I won't remember it after, I'd want to die happy, and it'd make me happy that I made that kid happy.
DeleteI really like the movie. It was definitely slower paced but they didn't take away from it it was just a stylistic thing. Oh my god are the shots beautiful.
ReplyDeleteWith any movie that contain description of society and or the world it makes us ask the question what is so good about society and we are the world. The movie made the wedding scene so meaningless and byzantine with all the rituals and the way she interacted with them. She seems so detached from caring about this and to most people that would make us dislike her but since we know the world is ending we gain a new perspective on what's actually important. Wedding seems dumb knowing that the world going to end.
I believe were supposed to think that just teen had depression problems before melancholia which would suggest maybe it's just outlook but I think the movie once us to believe that Justine just knows. John comes at it from a standpoint of optimism but That doesn't mean Justine is a pessimist she just knows the world is going to end.
I would take the Claire approach and by that I don't mean hopping in the golf cart trying to find safety. I would probably do whatever I was feeling at the time that was the equivalent of drinking a glass of wine and sitting on the patio. I wouldn't joy whatever a little time I had left and wouldn't struggle against the inevitability.
This movie is so incredibly slow, but I am still enjoying it a lot. Not much seems to actually happen in this movie, but the plot depth is not supposed to be the strong point. This movie is great because of the cinematography. The first part (sort of the prelude of the movie) shows what I am talking about. A plot and atmosphere is created purely because of the scenery and camera work, and not a single word was spoken the entire time (On a side note, that opening scene was amazing, and perfectly set up the rest of the movie). I think that the slow pacing and infrequent dialogue is the reason why I like this movie so much. I don't have to focus as much on a plot or what the characters say, but instead I can get absorbed into the movie and almost zone out.
ReplyDeleteA somewhat obvious connection between the wedding scene and the impeding destruction of the world is that the wedding scene is also a scene of destruction. The progression of the wedding scene is very close to the progression of Melancholia. Everybody starts out happy, then people start to doubt how things will turn out but still remain ignorant in order to feel comfortable, then people start to accept their fate since nothing can be done to save them at this point. I don't think that the only purpose of the wedding scene was to connect a personal apocalypse with a worldwide apocalypse. I think that it puts Justine, Claire, and John in different mental states that makes it interesting to see how they deal with inevitable death.
There isn't a definitive answer to this question. John is the most reasonable since he uses scientific models to predict the fate of the world, and if this were real life he would most likely be right. It was probably not the intention for the filmmakers to push an anti-science stance (or more accurately, how much people blindly trust science and don't do their own research, since Claire did find a model that predicated the end of the world), but I found it interesting how they created a character that was certain that the apocalypse would not happen based on the science and made his prediction wrong. There is no way that Justine was certain that the apocalypse would happen based on any knowledge. Her mental state was so poor after her failed marriage that I think she was looking for the worst possible solution. If she didn't want to live, then she was hoping for Melancholia to hit earth, or even if she wanted to live she might have been so cynical that she was certain that the worst would happen.
I agree with Claire (the character in the movie). If the world is going to end, you might as well enjoy your last minutes as much as possible. Claire wants to surround herself with food and people to make herself more comfortable, which I think is smart. I also agree with Jaliwah, and I would probably do everything that has serious long-term consequences at once because there would not be nearly enough time to suffer any if the consequences. I would be selfish, and look to make myself the happiest instead of making everybody else happy.
I was very confused by this movie. The first part was really slow but interesting and beautiful so I didn't know if I could hate it. The wedding with the whole family and everyone leaving and the deadly planet was very clever. I loved the plot even though i was very confused at times but the pace of the movie bothered me.
ReplyDeleteThe wedding, similar to the planet Melancholia were supposed to be beautiful sites. Weddings are supposed to be a lovely time, and Melancholia's passing was supposed to be an amazing experience. Both of these events also turned out much different then expected in a bad way. The wedding was a disaster because the bride was unhappy and slept with another man on her wedding night, and Melancholia didn't end up passing so much as crashing into planet earth and causing everyone inevitable death.
I don't know how she Justine knowns and John doesn't. Part of me thinks maybe she wants the world to end because of her talking about how all the humans are going to die and should for all they have done to this planet. I think she knew because she wasn't trying to avoid the facts while other people hoped so hard that it wouldn't hit that they started believing it.
I want to say that I would have a grand party or whatnot to celebrate human existence and it would be epic, but honestly I think my anxiety would get so high that I wouldn't be able to function anymore, and I would end up killing myself. If I know for sure Melancholia is going to hit, I don't know how much that death will hurt but I wouldn't want to find out.
Definitely not what I’m used to, at least as far as film structures go, but I liked it! I know a lot of people are having a difficult time with the pacing, but I really think it gives us time to get to know the characters and really get involved in the moment. A lot of movies move too fast for me to appreciate what’s happening in each instant; they end up feeling more like reading a series of bullet points than watching a full length film. I liked that everything at the beginning of the film had two shadows - it’s subtle, and you almost don’t register it at first, but you can tell that something about the picture is just wrong. I actually really loved the introduction of Justine and her husband - the scene with the limo gave the movie a quality of reality through its silent, silly, and impromptu nature. It felt more like something that would really happen than a scene in a science fiction movie, and it set the tone for the rest of the film. Details like that were what made me like this film.
ReplyDeleteWeddings are generally happy, and symbolic of a victory or a beginning, and it was important that this wedding felt rotten underneath. It was beautiful, but it felt plastic and fake and angry, like no one really wanted to be there. Justine certainly didn’t want to be there, and it was her own wedding! No one would let her be alone - they yelled and pushed and forced her to pretend to be happy until she finally snapped and couldn’t pretend anymore. Watching what should have been a beautiful and heartfelt thing be torn apart by those who should have been the happiest - it set the world up for disaster. What have we become if marriage, the occasion that so many choose to symbolize the happiest moment in a person’s life, is defined by misery? The wedding was the base for Justine’s position: that humanity and the Earth were awful, and deserved to be destroyed.
I don’t think Justine knows anything that John doesn’t. I think that she’s depressed and I think that she’s pessimistic, and that’s why she “knew” Melancholia would hit Earth. If it had missed we’d be asking “why did John know and Justine didn’t?” I think that John, unlike Justine, was so completely terrified and confused by the idea of the world ending that he couldn’t bring himself to consider it a possibility (after all, when he really did accept that it was happening, he immediately killed himself.) If we’re arguing that Melancholia was some sort of fated reaction from the universe to destroy a rotten Earth, then Justine would be aware and accepting of how terrible humanity had gotten whereas John was still comfortable hiding behind the pretty facade people like to put up. But if we’re going off of Melancholia being a giant rock that just happened to hit our own giant rock, I’d say that the point was more about point of view; John sees how unhappy people are, but doesn’t think it should end; Justine sees how unhappy people are, and thinks it’s okay if it ends. What you choose to believe has just as much an impact on what you think as does your intellect and your information.
I’d probably do something like what Claire suggested - something fun. Panic and fear are meant to push people to fix whatever is harming them, but if that thing is completely inevitable, why waste time worrying? I wouldn’t commit suicide, though. John was so afraid of death that he…. killed himself? It doesn’t make sense to me. Maybe he just didn’t want to watch the world end, but I think I’d be curious enough about what would happen that I’d stick around to see it. Every dies, don’t they? It’s not like we were planning on living forever, and Melancholia ruined eternity. Yes, maybe it’s happening sooner than planned, and maybe it’s happening to everyone at once, and one could argue that that fundamentally changes how someone should feel about death, but I think I’d leave that argument alone if I was counting down the hours. I’d have fun and make the most of it. A few hours can be a long time.
1-2. I would not go so far to say that I "like" "Melancholia," but certainly there were aspects of the film that I enjoyed. What was difficult for me was trying to figure out what this film was "about," so to speak. I like tackling big ideas, yet at the surface this film seemed confused. To me, this film encapsulates multiple discordant elements; I'm not totally convinced that they come together to make a whole. I flip back and forth between thinking that the film is meaningless and thinking that it is a masterpiece; ultimately I think it is some of both. I think a good place to start would be the obvious; the film is most definitely von Trier's vision of depression. Justine is depressed -- she does not want a marriage, or her job, or even her life -- all the viewer can see in her eyes is blank passivity. She acts not out of forethought, but out of utter misery. Even on what is supposed to be the best day of her life, it is all she can do hold herself together. At some points throughout the film, she even has trouble moving her own body. Much like the experiences of people with depression, people around her attempt to make her feel better but to no avail. Within Justine is a paralysis so deeply embedded that no job, no marriage, no sister, no horse, or no anything material can heal. The bridge is a symbol of this; even when she kicks the horse with all her might she cannot get it to cross. She is trapped, but no one recognizes this. Yet what strikes me about Justine's depression is how little von Trier focuses on the negative consequences of her actions; instead of being a usual depressive episode of self-loathing, "Melancholia" is an accusation at those around her -- at the boss who came to her wedding to get a tag line from her and his manipulative underling, at the scientists who say everything will be ok, at Claire's cowardly husband, at her useless husband, and at her bickering parents. The singular best thing about "Melancholia" is how it gets us to realize that in the end, Justine's appraisal of the universe was right all along; much like the other planet is going to hit us, humanity truly is dysfunctional and not worth saving. Maybe we should just be depressed because the world is just that horrific. There is purification in destruction, an epic romanticism emphasized by the soaring classical overtures. So yes, that part of the film is good -- I think its what von Trier was trying to say, and I respect that. I guess I'm just not sure that you can really put those two together. We're not living in the apocalypse now, and while I know the planet Melancholia represents a wider apocalypse of our own lives, at the same time Justine's depression is not really the more pragmatic approach until the very end. During the entire first part of the movie and into the second part, Justine was miserable. So even though the end of the world might be beautiful, we can't really live our lives like this -- we still have to reify the falsehoods of society. The end of the world was a dream, taking place on the 19th hole of an 18 hole golf course, but we don't live in a dream -- we live in reality, and we have to make the best of that instead of fantasizing about the end.
ReplyDelete3. Justine doesn't know; I just think she's pessimistic. She wants the world to end so her vision of humankind's depravity can be proven right. John, on the other hand, has faith in humanity. This is just an optimism versus pessimism thing, and von Trier clearly opts for pessimism in this case.
4. Sit down with a pizza, a 12 pack of krispy kreme doughnuts with sprinkles, a 2-liter coke, and watch Game of Thrones reruns. Maybe read a grim chapter of Heart of Darkness.
*the things I would do that are G-rated...
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