JAMES A. GEORGE, EYEWEAR FILM CRITIC, ON THE NEW, POETIC MALICK FILM
It has just passed midnight and I’ve just arrived home from
seeing To The Wonder from American auteur, Terrence Malick. Usually I would let
a film settle in a day or two before writing about it so that I can come across
as informed. As if all the nuances and aspects hit me straight away, and that I am in fact perfectly in tune with the cinematic
language. If you’re familiar with Malick’s work since Badlands (1973), up to
his most recent The Tree of Life (2011), you will know that the impact during
viewing – whether it’s first, second, or tenth viewing – the emotional impact
is at its most potent during the film. This is in part due to the stylised
aesthetic of his recent work and lack of plot and scenes as you might typically
imagine them, which makes it hard to recall moments, like trying to recite a
fading dream at breakfast.
I gave myself a slap when I described this film as quaint to
a friend. The scope is far more modest than in The Tree of Life, but the themes
of love, faith and God are no less bold. Ben Affleck’s lead performance is
rumoured to be a surrogate of Malick in a semi-autobiographical study of love; even
if so, the lack of insight into the male lead cannot be forgiven. Rachel
McAdams appears for an important but brief section of the film as an old flame
reignited. If one is pushed to point to a central performance, it would be Olga
Kurylenko. With the film sometimes lost in its own beautiful grandeur, and as
lovely as Olga Kurylenko is, half the sequences of her prancing around in
fields could be cut, and perhaps licking a tree is a bit too much visual
metaphor for me. Moments like this border on parody but equally as many fresh
ideas and sequences counteract this, some obvious such as exploration of
deformity and others subtle like the depleting fertility of the countryside
setting. Nonetheless, To The Wonder does a lot to impress.
Its heart is definitely in the right place. It is
passionate, humble and powerful. New to Malick is the use of diegetic sound in
very human, concrete moments that add an authenticity to the characters and
their situations. Amongst the magnificent visual poetry, scenes of specific
acts of love and anger had me wistful and contemplative. To The Wonder is low
on plot and more concerned with conveying message, but compared to The Tree of
Life it is unafraid of incorporating plot and all the better for it.
As with all of Malick’s work, similar to poetry, he hits
hard-to-define emotional truths. Although not as raw as 2010’s Blue Valentine,
from an audience perspective it is reminiscent of the gut wrenching
self-reflection and relation that builds throughout the film. While the arguments
in Blue Valentine are vague, the extreme vagueness hinders To The Wonder.
Fortunately, mood and thoughts portrayed through the expressions and editing and
silence work starkly and magically. This is a film for the poet and fans of
Malick’s work – I would not recommend this as a first stepping stone to viewers
new to his filmography. Personally, I honestly have not been touched by a
film’s majesty this much since my review for The Master.
James A. George is a film-maker and film critic, completing his BA at Kingston University this semester.
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