It's hard to like a film with such a fractured narrative. There's nothing that dramatic going on. The film isn't comprised of scenes but rather is made up of small moments. Yet, everything is held together and the movie is mesmerizing. The emotions are powerful as we watch a family start to crack.
Terrence Malick is as gifted as they come. I'd like to see any other filmmaker today produce a film with such miminal dialogue and still be able to say so much. Can anyone else make a movie that doesn't have much going on visually and yet is so visually captivating?
Brad Pitt is amazing in the film. He's got to express everything through a look or his posture or his hands. He's bottled up yet he's able to make us feel everything he's feeling. A masterful job.
Jessica Chastain is right there with him, scene for scene. This marriage has gone south yet she never has any dialogue to convey this to us yet we can hear her screaming out. Amazing.
They could've cut Sean Penn out completely though. His scenes don't really add anything. Okay, he's lost in his world. I get that. It could be a result of his upbringing. Fine. But if you're not going to tie in the death of his brother (we never learn how he died), his scenes feel tacked on.
The film isn't for everyone but for me, the art of cinema is in good hands with Malick at the helm.
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