Melancholia [2011]

Lars Von Trier. He’s kind of psycho, isn’t he? He’s always trying to shock and provoke and when he’s not doing that, he’s working hard to put across his dark perception that humankind as a whole is a horrible and vile thing. As any serious film viewer might attest, a Von Trier film (or at least his more recent ones) is not a pleasant experience (although after Antichrist, this seems totally tame). Melancholia is an unsettling tale told with visual flair and excellent music. Somehow, this head case of a filmmaker always manages to attract serious acting talent and his latest cast is at the top of their game. Kirsten Dunst (a winner at Cannes) plays Justine in a mixture of aggression, depression and repulsion. Charlottes Rampling and Gainsbourg are memorable. Melancholia is really very long (or at least feels like it), but it helps if you watch it with someone (which I rarely do) or have a phone with Internet access.