I'm sure that most filmmakers want to believe that every film they make is a work of art, but most of what is coming out of Hollywood today is anything but art. As for me, well I put film in three columns. In the first column we have films as a form of pure entertainment. In the second column I put film as an art form as well as entertainment. And in the last column I put film as absolute pure art that makes you think, and this is where everything Terrence Malick has ever done surely belongs. And even moreso with Tree Of Life.
Although on the surface, The Tree Of Life is a simple tale about a young man's journey from childhood to adulthood and the conflicting emotions he encounters due to a love/hate relationship with his father, and how in the end he comes to terms with it all. But that is only the surface. As with any Malick film, you are bombarded with imagery, along with moments of whispered voiceovers asking deep questions that can have several meaningful answers. So you drink it all in and try to get just what it is Terrence Malick is trying to say. With The Tree Of Life, it may help if you are religious, or at least knowledgable in the Book of Job, because much of The Tree Of Life is heavy with that theme. And of course there is the final scene where the boy as an adult wanders through rugged terrain to the calm serenity of a beach. This scene has no doubt been heavily discussed by Malick fans and critics, and it will continue to be discussed by film lovers in general. What does it all mean ?
So, unless you are a Terrence Malick fan, rent this film with caution. You will either be bored to tears in the first half hour or will be so fascinated that you will hang on to every image and every word, though there are few of the latter.
The film stars Brad Pitt as the authoritarian and complex father, Jessica Chastain as the angelic mother, Sean Penn as the adult troubled son, and a very good little actor, Hunter McCracken as the young boy, whom you will see through most of the film. Brad is terrific, as is Jessica. We don't see much of Penn, but he is mesmerizing when on screen.
All in all, it is a great artistic triumph for Malick, who had this thing gestating in his mind for 40 years. As for me, well I will be watching it again soon, trying to come up with meaningful answers to those deep, probing questions.
Although on the surface, The Tree Of Life is a simple tale about a young man's journey from childhood to adulthood and the conflicting emotions he encounters due to a love/hate relationship with his father, and how in the end he comes to terms with it all. But that is only the surface. As with any Malick film, you are bombarded with imagery, along with moments of whispered voiceovers asking deep questions that can have several meaningful answers. So you drink it all in and try to get just what it is Terrence Malick is trying to say. With The Tree Of Life, it may help if you are religious, or at least knowledgable in the Book of Job, because much of The Tree Of Life is heavy with that theme. And of course there is the final scene where the boy as an adult wanders through rugged terrain to the calm serenity of a beach. This scene has no doubt been heavily discussed by Malick fans and critics, and it will continue to be discussed by film lovers in general. What does it all mean ?
So, unless you are a Terrence Malick fan, rent this film with caution. You will either be bored to tears in the first half hour or will be so fascinated that you will hang on to every image and every word, though there are few of the latter.
The film stars Brad Pitt as the authoritarian and complex father, Jessica Chastain as the angelic mother, Sean Penn as the adult troubled son, and a very good little actor, Hunter McCracken as the young boy, whom you will see through most of the film. Brad is terrific, as is Jessica. We don't see much of Penn, but he is mesmerizing when on screen.
All in all, it is a great artistic triumph for Malick, who had this thing gestating in his mind for 40 years. As for me, well I will be watching it again soon, trying to come up with meaningful answers to those deep, probing questions.
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