THE TREE OF LIFE - Review

The Tree of Life

Drama, 2011

Directed by Terrance Malick

Starring
Brad Pitt
Sean Penn
Jessica Chastain


The Tree of Life is simply one of the artsy-est films I've seen. Is that a good thing? I don't know.
Despite winning the Palme D'or at the Cannes Film Festival in 2011, it was one of those "love it or hate it" kind of movies. Truthfully, I'm kind of mixed on this one.
This movie is quiet. There is very little dialogue at all, and soft music is almost always playing in the background. This is complimented by gorgeous cinematography. Take any single frame out of this movie and it could be your desktop picture. It's that beautiful.
The story is... complicated, to say the least. The first act is duller than Ben Stein teaching economics to high schoolers. There are some trippy special effects, as Malick attempts to go through the early stages of life on earth. And honestly, it's kind of boring. There are some dinosaurs at one point. The dinosaurs look pretty good though, but they don't really do much.
The second, and largest part of the film, takes place in the memories of Sean Penn's character as a young boy. Brad Pitt plays his tough love father (if you can call it that) with Jessica Chastain as his mother, basically the polar opposite of his father. The father-son relationship is the main component of the story, and for the most part, it's entertaining.
However, everything else is just plain old fucking dull. Sean Penn doesn't have anything to do, and the ending is pretty strange.
This is undeniably an art film for art people. I am not an artsy person, but I know what I like and what I don't like. The Tree of Life has a little of both.

On the Upside - Decent story in the second act and gorgeous cinematography.

On the Downside - It's often boring.

Long Story Short - If you're a casual movie watcher, skip it. If you're really into art films, then you'll feel right at home.

Score - 6/10