Melancholia

[MacGuffin]

Lars Von Trier Spills Some More Details On 'Melancholia,' Will Start Film With The Earth Being Crushed
Source: The Playlist

Here's what we know so far: Lars Von Trier's next film, "Melancholia," is an ambitious psychological disaster film about two sisters (Kirsten Dunst and Charlotte Gainsbourg) who deal with a planet that is looming dangerously close to Earth. Dunst's character is set to get married to Alexander Skarsgaard with his father Stellan playing the best man, while John Hurt is slotted as Dunst's father. But, in a book about the director titled simply, "Genius" by Politiken journalist Nils Thorsen, Von Trier fills in more details on what is easily one of our most anticipated films of next year. And he'll be starting in a spectacular fashion, with the end. "In 'Melancholia' I start with the end. Because what is interesting is not what happens but how it happens! So we begin by seeing the world being crushed, then we can tell the story afterwards," he said. "In this way you don't have to sit and form theories about what will happen, but can delve down into some other levels and become interested in the pictures and the universe –that's what I imagine." So, Von Trier is gonna get the explosions out of the way first and then presumably flashback so we can focus on character and how things got to where they were. A fascinating way to structure the picture and in typical Von Trier fashion, it won't be an easy ride for the women in the film and he describes the sisters and their take on the upcoming disaster. One sister will calmly accept her fate, while the other will be positively freaking out. "And there are beautiful pictures as she is just standing there looking at the planet that comes closer and closer and accepts it. The other woman, on the other hand, becomes increasingly panicky," von Trier says. No word if that panic ends with genitals being mutilated or babies falling out of windows. Other details revealed that Dunst's character, after her marriage, will slowly pull away from her husband and work, slowing down her pace of life, while Gainsbourg's character, upon learning of her young 6 year-old nephew's fear about the world coming to an end, "positions herself in between the disaster and the boy and tells him about a special cave where he can be safe." And of course, Von Trier's well documented own anxieties from his own life will play out on screen. When he was a kid he apparently built pretend bomb shelters under the kitchen table to calm his nerves. The film went in front of cameras late this summer and we think it's a safe bet to assume Lars Von Trier will once again drive his mobile home to Cannes next year to premiere the film. Any new Von Trier film is pretty much an event and we can't wait to see what he has in store next.

[MacGuffin]

Trailer here.

[mogwai]

BOOBIES!!!

[Stefen]

We're slipping if this hasn't reached 2 pages by the end of the weekend. Lars Von Trier making an end of the world flick is the best thing ever.

Trailer was a bit vague, but the basis is there and I'll give anything LVT does a chance. He's been that good forever. I remember when Penelope Cruz was on for this before she split to do Pirates. I wonder what role she was set for. I'd buy her and Gainsbourg more as sisters than I would Dunst and Gainsbourg but as much as I have bashed Dunst's face and teeth and also her teeth over the years, I gotta give her props for taking a role in this movie. All smiles for her.

I don't think there's a more exciting filmmaker than Lars Von Trier right now. He just does whatever the eff he wants. It's awesome. And he pulls it off. I hope he does here too.

[Gold Trumpet]

I need to update my critical thought process on Von Trier. I still base most of my feelings on Breaking the Waves, Dancer in the Dark, and Dogma. I don't know if Von Trier has significantly improved since or was much better before, but you can't get a trio of films I detest more than those three. It's hyperbole to just say that, but those films represent a lot of things I dislike in film and I don't mind going into more detail why. I have before and I'm sure I will revisit my feelings and thoughts again with those three Von Trier films, but I'm not going drag out critical explanation with my every post. I'm just replying to generics here.

I just wonder, has he developed much since? He's establishment now so all of films are getting critical love. Even though I remember Andrei Tarkovsky slamming The Element of the Crime when it was originally released, I know that film and others of his get easy acceptance from others. It's hard to wade through the critical slosh, but I also like this quote about Von Trier. Written before Anti-Christ was made, it perfectly sums up (for me) the perfect idea of his self as a filmmaker,

"Where Andrei [Tarkovsky] found beauty in nature, Lars finds evil. While Andrei will hold imagery of religious artwork in his films, Lars focuses on images of torture and genocide. In the method of perfection that Tarkovsky strived for, Von Trier relishes in controlled chaos. And in the way that Andrei searches for Christ in his films, Lars reveals to us the Anti-Christ inherent in our own human nature."

[Jeremy Blackman]

I very much doubt LVT is saying "everyone is evil," and I'm sure even the person you quoted understands that. In fact, most of LVT's protagonists have been emphatically good. He even gave one of them a crucifixion. He does explore inner darkness, but that's certainly not all he does.

LVT is one of my three favorite filmmakers, and I'm really excited about the path he's on right now. It's not just the "he does whatever he wants" thing. I love the way his movies are confrontational on such a deep level. It's rare that any kind of art can do that. LVT is like a companion to Lynch or a more evolved version of Solondz.

[samsong]

not sure i see where lvt and lynch meet, and the todd solondz likening is just bizarre but sort of apt, i guess.  maybe a venn diagram of the two would come up with something resembling lvt but... doesn't matter.

gt i'm assuming you meant dogville, not dogma?  if you find yourself fundamentally opposed to a filmmaker and his style/thematic preoccupations then i guess all you can really do is watch his shit again in a few years and see if anything's changed.  this movie however doesn't seem like it's going to change anything.  antichrist is horrendous but so entertaining as a work that represents lars's beating heart and twitching brain on a platter that's put up on a pedestal that he erected.  lars's attempt with every film seems to be to make the best movie in the history of cinema, and there's something to be admired about that kind of insanity.  melancholia however... i don't know, some of it looks fantastic but when considering it all as one film combined with those god-awful sound bites of dialogue... navel-gazing title... more bill viola slow-mo... whatever.  i'll see it but it's going to be bad, and not enjoyably so this time.

as for stefen's claim about lvt being an exciting filmmaker, i don't buy it.  who saw the boss of it all besides mod?  any buzz around antichrist was about it being a shit show and a pretty forgettable one once it passed by.  as of now the only thing i feel like he's known for if anything is being severely mentally and emotionally unstable.  he was once great, though.  the idiots, breaking the waves, dancer in the dark, and dogville are masterpieces.  he once sucked a lot too.  maybe i'm in the minority here but i really couldn't stand the element of crime and zentropa.  it seems like he's going back to that version of himself except with the added bonus of his deluded, depression-battered pontificating.  thank goodness though he hasn't gotten charlotte gainsbourg to swear off acting, because i love her.

[Jeremy Blackman]

as for stefen's claim about lvt being an exciting filmmaker, i don't buy it. who saw the boss of it all besides mod?

I saw it, and it was good. Clearly not intended to be a serious movie, though. There's a reason LVT actually puts himself in the movie and basically says to the audience, "So yeah, I needed a break from serious movies, so here you go. This is a crappy little movie I threw together in an afternoon. It's basically worthless as art, but it's somewhat entertaining." And it turned out to be a very good fun little movie. To attempt to place that somewhere on his actual artistic trajectory (if that's what you're doing) is a little absurd, and maybe even disingenuous.

not sure i see where lvt and lynch meet,

The whole "exploration of inner darkness" thing.

and the todd solondz likening is just bizarre but sort of apt, i guess.

The only filmmaker I can think of that approaches LVT's level of confrontation (especially moral/ethical confrontation) is Solondz. For example, I got the same feeling from Palindromes that I got from Manderlay.

Which reminds me. I guess it sort of stands in the shadow of Dogville, but I think Manderlay is actually a little better. Love that movie so much.

I also don't understand the hate for Antichrist. Okay, I do, but I think it might be misguided. Reinhold had a fantastic explanation of Antichrist's meanings, and my thoughts are here. I think it's one of LVT's very best. In fact, Antichrist is mostly what has me excited for Melancholia, because it looks to be on the same path.

[modage]

Von Trier is an immature Haneke. I think he's shown us his 1 trick and now he's just going in circles.

[Jeremy Blackman]

Wow, couldn't disagree more...

[Reinhold]

Von Trier is an immature Haneke. I think he's shown us his 1 trick and now he's just going in circles.

No, mod. But out of curiosity, what's the one trick you're referring to?

[Jeremy Blackman]

At least we still have directors who are polarizing.

[Reinhold]

not sure i see where lvt and lynch meet, and the todd solondz likening is just bizarre but sort of apt, i guess.  maybe a venn diagram of the two would come up with something resembling lvt but... doesn't matter.

gt i'm assuming you meant dogville, not dogma?  

Lynch, Von Trier, and Solonds each seem perennially concerned with women in peril, fractured identity, and the relationship between violence and male narration of female experience. There's also a case for how all three have employed musical scenes as a cynical comment on escapism... In their films it's more of an acceptance of insanity than a coping exercise for the characters.

Also, re: gt, I think it's more likely that he was referring to Dogme 95.

edit: acceptance is the wrong word. It's more that it represents a real shift in the logic of the characters than a temporary distraction.

[Gold Trumpet]

I was referring to Dogville. Just haven't thought about the movie in a long time so I got something small wrong. I may have second thoughts if I watched the films again, but it would seem dumb to say that stands as a decent chance. Breaking the Waves and Dancer in the Dark I have seen and wrote about relatively recent and my distaste for both films was stronger than ever. Dogville is a bigger mystery.

What I said now doesn't matter and I blogged about Dancer in the Dark in the past year, but a piece about the films may be due to fully update my feelings.

[Stefen]

as for stefen's claim about lvt being an exciting filmmaker, i don't buy it. as of now the only thing i feel like he's known for if anything is being severely mentally and emotionally unstable.  

That's exactly what makes him so exciting to me. I haven't seen all of his films, but everything I have seen of his has left me feeling SOMETHING after it was over. Good or bad, his films always left an impression on me. Dancer in the Dark and Breaking the Waves are certified masterpieces. I need to revisit Dogma, but I really liked that one too. Say what you will about Antichrist, but it's definitely not forgettable.

I kind of do agree with Mod that's he an immature Haneke, but I don't agree that he's a one-trick pony. I actually don't think being an immature Haneke is really a knock since Haneke is pretty much the man.

If you're the light your own farts on fire version of Mike Haneke, is that such a bad thing?

And we're not slipping since this made it to page 2 by the end of the weekend. JUST BARELY.