Terence Malick: The Tree OF Life

I totally recommend this strange and beautiful film about a Midwestern family in the fifties whose story is told through the eyes of the eldest son Jack (played by Sean Penn). He looks back on his life, trying to come to terms with his difficult relationship with his father, following the pattern of Grace, that has worked in his family's life - and in the life of the whole world, dinosaurs and all. It's certainly an odd and difficult film, slow at times, especially during the wordless camera shots of nature. But all goes to show man's place within nature and God operating through it all - from the infinitely small cell to the towering mountains. Like most interesting works of art, this one opens up a new question, rather than offering an answer: God, who am I to you? And the whole film is a conversation between many Is and one You. This is why at times, hearing what the characters say to God is a bit like reading the Psalms.

Many have said that Malick's God is pantheistic, but He is most certainly a personal God. The film cam be quite disquieting for the way it represents the enormous disproportion between man and His Creator. Like the quotation from Job in the beginning of the film reminds us: Where were you when I laid the Earth's foundation? But the story relentlessly shows a possibility for man to get close to God, first of all through nature and the wonder that it arises. God is also father, in the Judaic/Christian tradition. And the father-theme is dominant in this film, as well. The question seems to be whether there's a parallel between the father-child relationship on earth and the one in Heaven. The answer is troublesome, since Jack's father - an uncommon Brad Pitt - is a man who wants to love, but doesn't know how. He wants to be called "sir", and believes he can do no wrong. So fatherhood appears like something to escape from (one of the children kills commits suicide), but at the same time like one of the most desirable conditions. The film is very dramatic and doesn't shy away from the question: "What if Evil wins in the end?". But the salvation is equally represented. Represented as it is through imagery and explicit references to Christ, as well as through the delicate and loving mother, played by a brilliant Jessica Chastain. And the end is inequivocably a peacefull and glorious one.
It's true, however, that more than a film about Christianity, it's a film about man's religious sense, about his questions and longing for meaning as he goes experiences life and nature. Most of all, it's a film about the marvel of life. Representing God on film is obviously a difficult task, but Malick is able to do it in a very poetic and personal manner. That said, when I was at the movie theater, a lot of people walked out during the film and claim they absolutely hate it (regardless of their personal beliefs). So it's definitely not for everyone, and not for any day. But to me, it was one of the few films that left me grateful to the director for making it.