I watched Melancholia yesterday. I was already depressed, and wondered whether this might not have been the ideal choice of movie. However, it swept me away and I forgot all about my life.

Melancholia is about two sisters, one dealing with depression, and the other with paranoia. Though presented in two parts (one about each sister), the film flows smoothly from the one to the next. It’s a proper art film that tells a simple (yet quite complicated) story about people and relationships.

I particularly enjoyed the series of images the film opens with: Abstract, unrelated images which seem to simply set a mood, but then, as the film progresses, serve as building blocks for the viewer’s imagination. These clearly-presented and memorable images infrom the mind’s eye when picturing certain events, feelings, and experiences the characters allude to through dialogue in other scenes. This device seems so fresh (I have never seen it in a film before) and powerful (with the surreal Daliesque images) that I feel surprised that it isn’t used in every film.

Overall, Melancholia is an example of powerful storytelling; a masterful work of art, with each aspect working to support the narrative. By no means is it light entertainment, but it is simple enough and bearable, and succeeds in providing a break from everyday life – the ultimate goal which certain other “art films” seem to have forgotten about.