WTF? How could such a great cast be in such a terrible movie ? Maybe I wasn't even trying to understand the meaning of this narration....
I have no idea what this movie is about.
Still, it somehow managed to deliver a sense of depth and I don't know, maybe hidden meaning. Visually it's beautiful so I can't believe someone wasted that and such talented actors for a botched screenplay, I'd rather hope I'm the one who didn't get it. And I really didn't because I found it extremely hard not to fall asleep while watching it.
Terrence Malick made two pieces of classic cinema in the 1970's, Badlands and Days of Heaven. He then disappeared from view for many years, much to the consternation of film critics who thought they had lost a master of the art. He then returned twenty years later and made The Thin Red Line, a critically celebrated film. 7 years later he made The New World, a dull and ponderous account of Pocahontas. The Tree of Life, in my opinion his best film, followed several years later. Then, in 2012, he made the incredibly boring To The Wonder and then this film, impenetrable to anybody not able to read his mind and intent.
Visually this film is beautiful in parts but narratively it is very thin. Some may call it art but not all art is good. This is more Picasso than Van Gogh, abstract and difficult to piece together. I am sure Malick knew what he was doing but I fully appreciate the baffled response of the reviewers on this site. A good film? A cinematic painting? Pretentious drivel? I don't know and its unlikely I will rewatch it to unravel its supposed meaning. After waiting so long for Malick's return, his output since then is variable to say the least.
What a pointless waste of time and money this movie is the worst I've seen in a long time. switched of after i wasted 30minutes waiting for something interesting and entertaining to happen. avoid like the plague
the meditation of Terrence Malick where in you're bound to get lost with the character and his rigorous search for meaning
This movie is a complete waste of your time.
Anybody remember the movie Willem Dafoe´s character Carson Clay did in "Mr. Bean´s Holiday" ? That´s what this reminded me of.
I´ve no problem admitting I haven´t got a clue what this was supposed to be. The scenery is the only thing in favor for the movie. Other than that you have almost no dialogue (only off-commentary most off the time). At times you have so many cuts you get lost. Yes, the cast reads great but you almost don´t regognize that they are there. I´m sure it must me tough for an actor to play such roles but I can´t shake the feeling you could have casted Joe/Jane Anybody for this. I like movies that tell a story but this seems to tell nothing.
This is as fair an assesment I can make about this without bashing it. If you cannot relate to a movie it doesn´t matter what the intensions or the story is. I´m sure there are people who like and understand it. I´m not one of them. The "1" rating reflects that fact.
Firstly, a spoiler alert is entirely irrelevant. The movie says one thing, over and over and over and over and over... etc. It does it well, in pretty pictures, and is intriguing for about 12 minutes, but then you start wondering why you decided to come see this movie, oh yes, the director, the cast... yes... so you wait to see Cate and Natalie, you wait a while, they come and go, don't add anything, because there isn't a plot to add anything to, so you wait for the end to come, hoping that perhaps there will be more than a singular point to this movie. There isn't. It is not worth seeing, unless you like pretty pictures and hearing the same thing again and again.
Christian Bale observing with a shirt and unicolor jacket, walking through Los Angeles and surrounded by beautiful girls. This is the synopsis that I would sell to the producer, but I assumed Malick would sell that he was doing concept art
The existential crisis of a man who moves in circles of luxury and superficiality. Starting again. But reaching that ideal future is only achieved by retracing the past. A Fellinian gaze that becomes philosophical. The most scattered and shallowest of his existentialist trilogy. But there is a special magic that makes Terrence Malick's cinema an always fascinating experience. "Begin...".
For those who are not a fan of Terence Malick (and for some that are) this film is probably a dud. While not his best work it was certainly worthwhile.
Pure crap and a waste of time.
Shout by maddieBlockedParent2016-03-30T02:15:22Z
the worst movie i have ever seen in my young life. it felt like the director was jacking off to what he perceived to be an artistic triumph, which in reality was disorienting and confusing and completely pointless.
i'm mad i was tricked into buying tickets for this because of the beautiful female cast (that i didn't even get to meet, it was so bad i left 30 minutes into it) and the tarot references.
i am sending the director a letter, asking him to come and fight me, which will surely be a better use of my time than watching this piece of trash.