The Tree of Life

I finally watched Terrence Malick's Tree of Life and I have to say that it is a beautiful film: the way the camera moves across galaxies, landscapes, and the faces of the characters. It was artisitic to say the least. With that being said, I do not really know how to tell people what it was about. It was about a lot and nothing at the same time. The movie involves three distinct story lines: A 1950's suburban family, A man named Jack, and the Universe. Brad Pitt was actually very good in his portrayal of the father. Jessica Chastain made me feel all her emotions without saying a lot. And, all the boys pulled at the heartstrings and invoked a remembrance of childhood.

The questions of faith, death and life, and relationships are constants on the minds of the characters. As Jack (Sean Penn) grows up he tries to figure out his relationship with his father. He struggled with death and living since he was young and never truly understood it. The movie also shows how complicated relationships with parents can be. How we take those first relationships into our minds as adults. How do you reconcile yourself with the ideas of your father? The heart of the movie does come from its characters. The Obrien's struggle with loss, pain, and a simple life. A father who wants his young boys to grow up respectful and disciplined. A mother who wants her family to feel loved and cared for most of all. And, boys, one in particular, who wants to understand his place, life, and what it all means. It is a beautiful story of family, that I truly believe Malick pulled from his own memories and heart. Those images and ideas could only come from personal struggle and experience.

However, for me the most prominent ideas were also the most frustrating. Life and death happen simultaneously. The beginnings of the galaxy and the end happen almost at the same time. In this long history, in this huge world our problems and issues are as big as the death of the dinosaurs or the creation of the planets. How can we make sense of our own existence in the midst of the Big Bang? If our "small" lives are all that exist what happens after the earth passes away? The movie is ambitous to say the least. But I don't know if Malick summoned Kubrick or 2001 A space Odyssey but I definitely felt its presence. The movie can be frustrating and it can be, well, weird but I do believe it tries to artistically express the questions and concerns that all of mankind has been asking since the beginning of creation.