The Tree of Life

This may be the most Malickian of Terrence Malick movies. The first 45 minutes of this (long) film are utter bullshit--a barrage of half-baked "grand vision" executed through weird, impressionistic story set-up, a stock footage festival that comes across as outtakes from 2001 and Jurassic Park, and a preposterous set of scenes showing Sean Penn doing nothing except brooding. (He does little more throughout his scenes in the movie.) The last 15 minutes almost replicates that first 45. So, bad movie, right? Well...in fact, the middle section of the film, a substantially more straightforward telling of a family's story (featuring a great performance from Brad Pitt) is fascinating, almost mesmerizing film making. Is it a yes or a no? I can't say; it depends on your tolerance for overly artistic vision. If you're at home in the art house, go for it. If you prefer the googolplex, maybe stay away. Your call.

The New World

Rich, lush, lovely to look at--as an exercise in visual presentation this film works splendidly. But does that impressive look outweigh the languid and somewhat pretentious storytelling? Tough to say. Despite the shortcomings, the viewer's interest only fades out towards the end, after more than two hours of long sledding. And the other question is, as always with these historical dramas, how historically accurate is what we're seeing? We think we know this story--the tale of Pocahontas and Capt. John Smith--but do we really? It all makes for a muddle, and that can be difficult sell when you're choosing a movie to watch.

The Thin Red Line

Wow--they made Guadalcanal boring. Almost a twin to Saving Private Ryan--another ponderous, pretentious WWII epic that had virtually no real story to speak of. Oh well--at least it looked nice.