Melancholia (2011)
You realise that the end is near, that you are exiting the building soon. Your days are numbered. You are nearing the end of the road. What are your priorities? What are the next moves? Are you going to carry on life telling yourself that it is all just doomsday prophesies and that life will go on to eternity? Will you go on accumulating wealth or accumulating brownie points for your afterlife or rebirths? Would you let your hair down and party like there is no tomorrow or in late Prince's song - party like it is 1999?! Would you just ignore rituals and formalities?
This may be the question that the story seems to convey but not in the usual Hollywood's bigger-than-life apocalyptic style that we are used too. Absent are the mega-destruction of mammoth buildings and tsunami-like waves or the building of suspense by the cable news network. It is set in a private wedding function at the reclusive estate in the edge of the world. The bride, Justine (Kirstin Durst), an undecided bride is about the tie the knot with her beau. Arriving late at the wedding dinner to be greeted are her dysfunctional family members, her boss and friends. Justin's sister, Claire and her husband are the main organisers of the wedding. Justine's mother is a bitter and pessimistic lady who is disillusioned with the institution of marriage. Her slightly boisterous father is also there, much to the annoyance of the mother.
In the backdrop is the news of a possible collision of a blue planet, codenamed Melancholia, which may have an inevitable head-on collision with Earth.
In the second part of the film, where the focus is on Claire, the sister, Melancholia actually orbits around the Sun to cross Earth's path. Claire is the one who is acting strangely with the impending doom.
This is not your usual fare of doomsday. It gives the viewer the perspective of life. What are we aiming for? We all do things for the moment. Things are not going to be permanent. We all think we know everything and we have everything in control. Do we really? Everything has a shelf life. Then what?
You realise that the end is near, that you are exiting the building soon. Your days are numbered. You are nearing the end of the road. What are your priorities? What are the next moves? Are you going to carry on life telling yourself that it is all just doomsday prophesies and that life will go on to eternity? Will you go on accumulating wealth or accumulating brownie points for your afterlife or rebirths? Would you let your hair down and party like there is no tomorrow or in late Prince's song - party like it is 1999?! Would you just ignore rituals and formalities?This may be the question that the story seems to convey but not in the usual Hollywood's bigger-than-life apocalyptic style that we are used too. Absent are the mega-destruction of mammoth buildings and tsunami-like waves or the building of suspense by the cable news network. It is set in a private wedding function at the reclusive estate in the edge of the world. The bride, Justine (Kirstin Durst), an undecided bride is about the tie the knot with her beau. Arriving late at the wedding dinner to be greeted are her dysfunctional family members, her boss and friends. Justin's sister, Claire and her husband are the main organisers of the wedding. Justine's mother is a bitter and pessimistic lady who is disillusioned with the institution of marriage. Her slightly boisterous father is also there, much to the annoyance of the mother.
In the backdrop is the news of a possible collision of a blue planet, codenamed Melancholia, which may have an inevitable head-on collision with Earth.
In the second part of the film, where the focus is on Claire, the sister, Melancholia actually orbits around the Sun to cross Earth's path. Claire is the one who is acting strangely with the impending doom.
This is not your usual fare of doomsday. It gives the viewer the perspective of life. What are we aiming for? We all do things for the moment. Things are not going to be permanent. We all think we know everything and we have everything in control. Do we really? Everything has a shelf life. Then what?
Comments
Post a Comment