Distant, yet personal, visual but emotional; The Tree of Life delves deep into the heart of humanity. The gritty truth where we experience a fierce change. The front row seat in this experience we all go through is an evident and blatant portrayal of who we are: fallen members of creation. The heart of human struggle is put on display with the asking of a few questions: what is our nature? Are we good or evil? If there is one thing to learn from this film, if there is one element we need to walk away with it is this: This film shows who we are.
Terrence Malick has received acclaim for this film, and rightly so. It is a beautiful work, an example of hidden struggle he must have went through. However, the human view of Malick sees him as a genius, he gains the glory from them. In reality, Malick has shown that that is the opposite thing he wants. Tree of Life won the Palm D'or at the Cannes film festival, but he has not made many appearances in front of the media. I believe this reclusiveness is because he wants the audience to look at the film, and look at themselves. Malick's intimate story shows that he believes in toiling the earth, God's curse upon man. Malick is just a man. Watching the Tree of Life is a glimpse of Malick's toil.
Though the performances by the stars were fantastic, the brights performers in this film were the young actors. Pulling their weight against Hollywood heavyweights, the young actors performed so naturally, you are forced to wonder if the camera was ever even there. They were real.
The Tree of Life is a beautiful film. Malick uses a very gradual rising action to get to the heart of the story. It you expect to immediately be in a narrative, you will find yourself wanting immediately. Wait, let the momentum build and when the actual story hits in, you will be thankful you waited.
I recommend The Tree of Life. Watch it, experience it, and let the story entrance you.
