The Tree of Life

I saw the film this morning and it's going to take me some time to process. I need to see it again this week but as for right now I can only think to describe it in single words.

Beautiful
Ingenious
Slow
Bold
Lyrical
Stunning
Confusing
Pretentious
Masterful
Unforgettable

There was a constant flow of people leaving throughout the film snd after it ended I heard people very vocal about how much they hated it. I can understand their hatred and even sympathize with them. I can't recall a film ever having this kind of an effect on me before. I can say though that this is less a film than it is an actual work of art.

Updated On: 6/5/11 at 02:43 PM

And that's what I find so fascinating about it, because part of me sees all of that as well.

That's where most people left the theater today. I half expected Oprah to start narrating half way in. It wasn't until later in the film that that 20 or so minutes of the creation of the world started to hit me. Good or bad, I really can't get this film out of my head.

Jordan, that's I can totally see where you are coming from, as I found it both captivating and aggravating at the same time. A common theme among the reviews I've read is that the adult Jack parts seem a bit underdeveloped, and I concur. And I found my mind wandering during the creation sequence....but, it was wandering on-topic, if you know what I mean, so perhaps that was the intention?

I read, Jay Lerner-Z, that Malick is shy and avoids the press.

It sounds like it might best be seen at 4:20.

When I first heard about this movie, I wondered if it was attempting to be a modern conceptualizing of "The Skin of Our Teeth."

I haven't seen The Tree of Life yet, but from the trailer I gathered it to have a similar main concept.

Both are allegories, attempting to tell a smaller story of a "modern" family unit, while also telling the entire story of the world, complete with dinosaurs.

Sounds like either I was wrong, or they missed the mark. I wonder how an updating of "Skin of Our Teeth" would play today, especially with VFX, etc. Not that anyone would do that.

---

Jordan, are you very familiar with The Skin of Our Teeth (Thornton Wilder)?

Are there any similarities at all, or did I just gravitate to that analogy blindly after seeing the trailer?

---

I'm uncomfortable with the growing trend of demonizing people for using terms like pretentious or its analogues to describe films or art or literature. Whenever someone has the sense to disagree with the bonafide opinion of the culture machine/tastemakers, they're automatically branded as stupid or suspicious. There are many people--legitimate critics and lay filmgoers alike--who have seen through the film's artifices. When they make their case, as many of them have, their opinion is just as valid as anyone else's.

Where are the risks? Many of the moves Malick made are derivative--both of other filmmakers and of his own previous films.

---

The youngest son is the one who died. I don't remember if anyone ever said how he died, but I saw the movie about three weeks ago so I may have just forgotten.

I found parts of it (especially the creation sequence) problematic, but I also found parts absolutely brilliant and beautiful.

Trite family dramatics linked with nothing less than the creation of the universe in the single most pretentious English language film ever made. Nods to Kubrick and Tarkovsky only highlight the banality of Malick's story and methods. All of Malick's worst habits (those whispered voiceovers) are amplified to an unprecedented degree. Basically, take everything that ever annoyed about Terrence Malick, and crank it to 11.

Some radiantly beautiful cinematography, to be fair -- there's no denying the astonishing beauty of the film. And there's no denying Malick's sincerity, clearly this film is a labor of love, a deeply personal film. But the banality of the story (such as it is, and there's not much) and the attempt to elevate it into cosmic dimensions make for some extreme and unintended silliness, and Brad Pitt's unfortunate attempt at a performance doesn't help matters.

Now don't get me wrong. I've got nothing against elevating the everyday into cosmic significance. Some of my favorite works of art are about elevating the everyday into cosmic significance -- Thornton Wilder's OUR TOWN for example does all of that without descending into the overheated inanities of intensely whispered voiceovers like "Father! Mother! Always you wrestle inside me!"

---

Eyes Wide Shut is Kubricks best film. I watch it at least once a month.

Lol.

I think it's extraordinary and am always amazed at te new things I can discover watching it.