The Melancholy Fantastic is a pleasure to watch. The cinematography is beautiful and holds your interest, even during the few moments when the pace of the movie slows down. The plot is not obvious and requires full attention to understand its subtleties, but the suspense and images are enough to carry you through it, even if you are not in the mood to "think" it. The music is great. The film features great images of New England in winter. I've seen many higher-budget Christmas movies that I didn't enjoy nearly as much. It is a great movie to watch by the fire with friends when all your Christmas shopping is finally done. Don't forget the popcorn. Enjoy!