I feel total awe when a filmmaker sets out with the ambition to make a metaphysical movie and succeeds. Malick does this in Tree of Life, all the important stuff is there: being, existence, time, purpose, suffering, love, indifference, etc. But he reaches even further than I've seen before, balancing between material creations and the immaterial conceptions of his characters. In the process his film creates strong emotional reactions/connections with/from his audience. He alternates between idealized scenes of nostalgia and childhood wonder / contrarily showing the blindness and the beauty of the Universe. The paradox of the ideal and the meaningless and how they both exist and rely upon each other There is so much wisdom in the movie. The dialogue's often prayer. Literally. I remember reading Ebert's review and he said that the movie was a prayer, and well, initially I thought he meant metaphorically(in it's beauty and desire, hope and desperation),-- and while it certainly is that, I'm fairly convinced that a lot of the dialogue is literally prayer-- the sacred thoughts spoken by the various characters; poignant wishes of love and strength, the courage to choose between good and bad, truth and lies. Anyway, Malick has proven beyond any doubt in my mind that he's an artist of the highest caliber.
10/10. Thought it was perfect. Wisdom and poetry from a modern, popular movie-- a rarity worth celebrating and sharing.
See it.
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http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_tree_of_life_2011/
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