20 Depraved Movies Only Truly Sick Individuals Could Enjoy
2. The Angels’ Melancholia (2009)
Extreme cinema usually fits into two categories - there is the art house violence of Lars von Trier's Antichrist or Gaspar Noé's Irreversible and the perverted gornography of b-movie schlock. Melancholie Der Engel (aka The Angels Melancholy) is a German film that fits somewhere in the middle and pushes the boundaries of cinematic sex and violence to its ultimate extremity.
There is very little in the way of plot in this film, it is merely a collection of random and pretentious acts of depravity. Animal cruelty, murder, and masturbating to dead bodies are all in the cards. There is also a particularly unsettling scene featuring a young woman defecating on a guy as he licks her backside.
These aren't reasons this film should be bad though, extreme cinema can be done well and hold cultural significance. Salò pushed boundaries but managed to do it with artistic integrity. Even A Serbian Film was trying hard to tick off shocking taboos, but whatever you may think of it, A Serbian Film was well made. Melancholie Der Engel has none of the artistic credibility it strives for. It is merely the documenting of deluded existential ramblings by a group of depraved nutcases. But it's still one hell of a ride.