This is how Terrence Malick begins The Tree of Life. This may seem like a somewhat ordinary occurrence, but for those who haven’t seen his films, he is also the director of Badlands, Days of Heaven, The Thin Red Line, and most recently Knight of Cups. He is a philosopher who disregards conventionality in favor of non-linear, visual storytelling infused with natural light and beautiful nature. And The Tree of Life probably is the most evident example.
At its most base form, this film chronicles the beginning of the cosmos up to the 50s era of a Texan family with 3 boys (one is Mud star Tye Sheridan) led patriarchally with Brad Pitt and a quiet, loving Jessica Chastain. So far so good, I guess. Also throw in Sean Penn as the future adult of one of the kids, and already you can tell how the non-linearness will unfold. But you can’t tell. The first 10 minutes are a grieving mother, the next 10 are of a contemplative and questioning Penn, then you get about 45 minutes that literally goes from the beginning to present day with a couple of dinosaurs mixed in. And it’s not there for eye-candy, but it all means something-- this includes all the shots of trees and the metaphors represented (similar to some of the graduation speeches I listened to yesterday). And I truly believe none of this works without Emmanuel Lubezki. Wait, who? Lubezki is probably the best cinematographer, at least of this generation, and is responsible for being director of photography for Gravity, Birdman, Children of Men, and my darling The Revenant. All I can say is this film is beautiful.
Is it worth watching? Well I think everyone should see at least one Malick film, and Days of Heaven is a good choice, but this film is better along with The Thin Red Line which I would argue is the equal to Saving Private Ryan for war films. With that said, dialogue is sparse and this can be frightening. But what it is is one of the greatest stories told, er rather watched, and right up there with Boyhood on the depiction of boyhood. There is so much I understood and learned and awed at, and there’s definitely even more for me to understand and connect with.
You will not want to see the film again the following week after watching because of the hidden details you missed on the first viewing; no, you’ll be thinking and thinking and in a year or two will absolutely have the urge to rewatch it.
Words don’t describe this film. Neither does dialogue. You watch and feel the love, the sternness, the intertwining emotions of the family.
There isn’t trivia to learn and gain by watching, but there is knowledge to gain and perspective to behold. I’m not saying you will love it, but you will come away with something old, something new; memories of your life and an appreciation of the known and unknown.
No comments:
Post a Comment