482. Melancholia

482. (28 Nov) Melancholia (2011, Lars von Trier)* 58

Mirrors

Here's the trouble with the Kiefer Sutherland starring horror Mirrors;

-          Why is it that CTU is never called? Oh right! See the problem I face is that I can no longer picture Kiefer Sutherland as anyone other than Jack Bauer.

-          I can understand him taking a job as a night watchman being a disgraced ex-detective/alcoholic, but what I do not understand is the requirement to check the premises (a huge burnt down department store) every two hours.

-          Paranormal activity is fine in a horror movie, but sometimes even that borders the absurd and that is the case in Mirrors.

-          The twist ending in the end seems like a desperate attempt to shock the audience and it does, but its main purpose is to keep the franchise moving with Mirrors 2.

-          The movie could easily have been called Reflections since apparently mirrors are not the only way the “entity” travels. Don’t worry it’s not a spoiler.

Now, the movie complements the genre by having quite a few good scares. It can be expected from Alexandre Aja who isn't new to the genre having made Swithblade Romance and Hills Have Eyes in the past (and Piranha recently). I personally loved the picturisation of the film as in most scenes there is a presence of a mirror/reflection somewhere, be it the background, out of focus, or otherwise. Then, there is also a whodunit aspect to the film that works well and keeps the audience guessing. I especially liked the opening title sequence which has the camera taking an aerial view of the city along with its reflection (as if being viewed in a mirror).  All the actors perform well, but mind you this is a one man show with the supporting cast (Paula Patton, Amy Smart, Cameron Boyce) hardly given any attention.

So, considering that I watched it on TV without having to go to a theater and pay for it, I quite liked it as a good watch for a night in. It was also the first time I made use of the TV pause button so that was fun.

A solid 3 starts out of 5.