Thank you for taking a look at Movies In The Rockies. This blog will take a stab at reviewing movies from the eyes, ears and mind of my non-hollywood mind. I am not an artist, insider or expert. I just like movies and want to share some opinions. Each review will start with a quick synopsis of the film, followed by my perceptions. A final rating will be given with the following rating scale:
Sea Level = The movie falls short of climbing even to the first tier Altitude.
Colorado Plains = The movie starts moving upward but lacks the legs to take it to the hills.
Foot Hills = The movie has legs, but air has left the lungs and stops the movie in its tracks.
Montains = The movie has legs & lungs.
14ers = This movie has eclipsed the summit.
The first movie I will review is The Tree Of Life, written and directed by Terrence Malick. I had the pleasure of seeing this movie with my wife and daughter on my birthday. It was easy to get them to attend with me since Brad Pitt is one of the stars and easy for them to look at and they would feel bad if they said no on my birthday. Along with Brad Pitt, the movie also included Sean Penn, arguably the best current working actor. Jessica Chastain, Hunter McCracken, Laramie Eppler and Tye Sheridan round out the main cast members.
The Tree Of Life revolves around a family and specifically around the relationships and life views of the oldest of three sons, Jack, in 1950's Texas. Jack begins the movie seeing the world through innocence and peace, much as he sees his mother. As the story progresses, Jack starts to realize that he might actually be more like his father, played by Brad Pitt, than he wants to be. The father is a stern man but has a great deal of love for his family, yet Jack as a young boy has a tough time seeing this and his relationship with his father suffers. Jack as a grown man is played by Sean Penn and through deep soul searching and in the end finds a way to reconcile with his father.
Unfortunately, I have to admit, much of this information is vague and empty of any real depth. This of course is because the movie lacked any sort of entertainment value and I actually fell asleep in a theatre for the first time in my life. Terrence Malick has a tendency to be "artsy" with his films, but this story was deluted to the point of taking any entertainment value out of the film. I understand that Malick tells this story through artistic expression but he has lost his audience on this one.
The Tree Of Life earns a rating of COLORADO PLAINS. Although it's obvious that Malick tried to create an interesting way to tell the story of a marginally dysfunctional family, he failed to do so in a way that is coherent and even remotely entertaining. I am certain that Terrence Malick and his film The Tree Of Life will garner recognition during the award season, but I won't understand it any more then than I do now.
is there a below sea level level? That is what I would give this movie! I agree with what you said about the vague (non existent) story line. Steve said he is going to play Sean Penn's character for Halloween and walk around with his mouth hanging open saying his 8 lines. He too fell asleep, I wished I did instead of hanging on waiting for the movie to add up to something. I almost felt insulted after I watched it.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the review! Like the blog.
Worst movie I have ever seen!! The only reason I didn't walk out was because I was sure that it was going to get better. It didn't!!!
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