Melancholia & Mourning: the Death of Cinema

For me the final scene in Melancholia made me wonder what von Trier may possibly be saying about the death of cinema…if of course he is saying anything at all on the subject. Susan Sontag professes that cinema is indeed dying, is on life support, or is all together dead because younger generations are not as enthused and are easily dissuaded from the quality of cinema by cheap theatrics which are produced by the industrial Hollywood film complex. But in this case, when analyzing that final scene in Melancholia, I tend to believe that cinema will yes undeniably change in the face of digital technology, but it is up to the filmmaker and the audience if this change will result in a new golden era for cinema or its last will and testament. Does digital technology sometimes distract and dissuade the viewer from a quality cinema experience? It most certainly does. Does technology sometimes rip out the soul and leaves an empty shell of a film for audiences to mindlessly numb on? Yes it does that to. But is it written somewhere or has some cinematic legislature determined that this is the only way film can be represented in the age of technology? That would be a resounding no. To me von Trier’s work truly transcends the notions of Sontag and Geoffrey Chasire‘s criticism of the digital cinema. Truly I do agree with many of their arguments and there are more than one handful of incredibly bad films which rely heavily on the digital medium, but you know what? They have to endure the criticism and reality of being a terrible film, and honestly what worse reality is there for a self-proclaimed and internationally recognized filmmaker? Now with that out of the way a proper analysis of Melancholia’s final sequence can truly reveal not only the successful use of digital technology in the film, but its absolute necessity. As the camera bobs and seemingly floats from face to face, there is almost a feeling like we as the audience are watching these final moments on a hand held camera. Justine, Claire, and Leo put the finishing touches on their stick teepee and embrace the final moments of their lives. Claire cries uncontrollably while Justine quietly accepts her fate, and perhaps Leo is just too young to understand the ending which waits him. Just as the three of them know they are doomed we as the audience sympathize with their plight, but all of us together wonder how this will all end. The camera falls back and captures the three of them holding hands within the stick teepee, it slowly pans up to capture the horizon, and then suddenly a huge sphere emerges and blows outward. Once it reaches them, the three are incinerated and the film fades to black; a brilliant and pivotal moment that truly captures the essence of the film and the characters emotions. Could von Trier have just fade to black to symbolize their doom? Sure he could have, but it in no way could have been as effective or meaningful without the digital recreation of the blast which he does provide. It such a violent and visceral moment which cannot be ignored and truly delivers a payoff to the audience that they just witnessed the end of the world. Without the digital technology Sontag and Chasire so consistently chastise (see what I did there?) this scene would never have delivered the true intent and vision of the director and the audience would have been denied a pivotal moment which brings not only resolution, but an understanding of what being doomed truly looks like.