I'm not sure how to describe Melancholia. It's a movie about the end of the world, yes, but it's not really. It's a film about two sisters and their dysfunctional family, yes, but it's not really that either.

Melancholia focuses on the life of two sisters. One of them, Justine, played by Kirsten Dunst, may be suffering from severe depression. The second sister, Claire, seems to have both feet planted totally on the ground. Melancholia is not just the feeling that permeates the family but is the name of the planet sized object that is going to "fly by" the earth... or hit it, which seems more likely. Which sister is better able to deal with the truth when it comes out?

I'm not sure how to describe Melancholia. It's a movie about the end of the world; yes, but you won't see special effects thrown at the screen. I didn't miss them, instead I watched the lives of the people who knew they might very well be dead before the week was out and how each dealt with that knowledge. Melancholia moves slowly, one step at a time. It's not in a hurry to destroy the word nor the people who live there. Life continues, plans are made, take place, and then are broken, lives are torn apart one slow paper cut at a time. It's almost painful to watch, but I had to.

I'm not sure how to describe Melancholia. It's a movie about the end of the word, yes, but .... it's not.