As enigmatic as Terrence Malick films usually are, The Tree of Life poses quite a problem for anyone trying to make sense out of it. It's arguable whether the film actually has a story, and there's very little spoken dialogue. But it takes a true auteur to make a great film without those necessary elements. Ladies and gentlemen, I present you with Terrence Malick, art- house provocateur and world-class director.
The Tree of Life is, simply put, a masterpiece. It's pure art, a wonderfully ambitious mystery that runs just under two hours and a half. Malick has created cinema at its finest--it shocks, it causes awe, and it requires thought. While the entire cast's mostly silent performances are amazing, they're overshadowed by the visual poetry of Malick's creation.
The creation of the universe is what this movie opens with, and its destruction is its finale. Immediately, the viewer knows what he's getting into. Reviewers have called this the "most ambitious film since 2001: A Space Odyssey," and they're totally right in saying that. It's a literal journey of a movie, one that stretches from prehistoric times to the future, but one that focuses primarily on a family living in the 1950s in Texas. The father is Brad Pitt. He's stern and believes that the matriarch, played by Jessica Chastain, is naive for fostering a relationship with the world that allows for innocence. Their three children age with them, only to learn life's true lessons.
Most of the feeling of wonderment from in The Tree of Life arises from the fact that it is gorgeous. Cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki, who has worked with Malick previously on The New World, brings his visual prowess to the movie by putting so much care into every shot. The composition and camera angle of every single shot are not only beautiful but they're meaningful as well.
And yet Malick's film is still cryptic. While Lubezki presents the viewer with colorful, almost sensuous shots of nature, Malick has chosen to keep the viewer interpreting. The creation sequence, easily the best part of the film, includes dinosaurs, hammerhead sharks, jellyfish, close-ups of mitosis, and cosmic nebulae over Mozart's "Lacrimosa." It's all beautiful, but why is it here? That's for you to mull over.
The Tree of Life is an experience, not a movie. Movies present a story and portray a clear message to the viewer. Experiences are something more, and The Tree of Life is just this because it is something of a revelation. Riddled with biblical imagery, the movie's central themes are deeply religious and personal. The Tree of Life is cinematic heaven, a film that is so moving on a primordial level that it inspires fear and awe. There's simply nothing on earth like it.
The Tree of Life is, simply put, a masterpiece. It's pure art, a wonderfully ambitious mystery that runs just under two hours and a half. Malick has created cinema at its finest--it shocks, it causes awe, and it requires thought. While the entire cast's mostly silent performances are amazing, they're overshadowed by the visual poetry of Malick's creation.
The creation of the universe is what this movie opens with, and its destruction is its finale. Immediately, the viewer knows what he's getting into. Reviewers have called this the "most ambitious film since 2001: A Space Odyssey," and they're totally right in saying that. It's a literal journey of a movie, one that stretches from prehistoric times to the future, but one that focuses primarily on a family living in the 1950s in Texas. The father is Brad Pitt. He's stern and believes that the matriarch, played by Jessica Chastain, is naive for fostering a relationship with the world that allows for innocence. Their three children age with them, only to learn life's true lessons.
Most of the feeling of wonderment from in The Tree of Life arises from the fact that it is gorgeous. Cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki, who has worked with Malick previously on The New World, brings his visual prowess to the movie by putting so much care into every shot. The composition and camera angle of every single shot are not only beautiful but they're meaningful as well.
And yet Malick's film is still cryptic. While Lubezki presents the viewer with colorful, almost sensuous shots of nature, Malick has chosen to keep the viewer interpreting. The creation sequence, easily the best part of the film, includes dinosaurs, hammerhead sharks, jellyfish, close-ups of mitosis, and cosmic nebulae over Mozart's "Lacrimosa." It's all beautiful, but why is it here? That's for you to mull over.
The Tree of Life is an experience, not a movie. Movies present a story and portray a clear message to the viewer. Experiences are something more, and The Tree of Life is just this because it is something of a revelation. Riddled with biblical imagery, the movie's central themes are deeply religious and personal. The Tree of Life is cinematic heaven, a film that is so moving on a primordial level that it inspires fear and awe. There's simply nothing on earth like it.