The Tree of Life Review

Upon its release, The Tree of Life was met with much critical acclaim. It was on dozens of top ten lists, being put at the number one spot on many of them; it won dozens of awards including the coveted Palme d'Or, and is actually considered by many to be one of the greatest movies of all time. All I can say is... it's all right. The Tree of Life is directed by the infamous Terrence Malick, who has made a name for himself by doing his best to stay out of the limelight. He doesn't do interviews, press appearances, red carpets, ect. I looked, there are like three different pictures of him online. He's a very unique director to say the least. His style is unlike any other director I can think of, but honestly he's kind of an asshole. He directed a movie called the Thin Red Line about a decade ago, and the way he edited it was controversial to say the least. There were at least seven actors that were in the movie with important parts that got cut out. Apparently the actor that the film was originally centered around was cut out of the film completely, and wasn't told about it until the movie's premiere. Not exactly the nicest thing I've ever heard. Released in 2011, I would classify the Tree of Life as an experimental film. To be honest I haven't the faintest idea what the hell this movie's about. It's full of a lot of deep philosophical sh*t about life and stuff and it went straight over my head. The movie starts out about a family in Waco then goes to Sean Penn like 40 years later, then we see the creation of the universe, the planets form and then sea life comes out of the ocean and there's dinosaurs, and then there's like 2 minute shot of jelly fish. It makes no coherent sense, it's a very non linear story told in a very unconventional way. The movie has several things going for it; first of all it's beautiful. The cinematography looks incredible; it feels like you’re watching a moving painting. And the special effects when you see the universe created look great. The musical score is also top notch, it really complements every scene. Now I have one major problem with the movie, it's boring. I want to like it, but I honestly can't think of a time I've been so bored watching a movie. The other day I was watching it while I was doing my math homework and I was so bored I considered turning it off because I was enjoying the math more. The closest comparison to the movie I can think of would be 2001: A Space Odyssey. Both have similar themes involving man's place in the universe and the directions in which we guide our lives, but the Tree of life isn't nearly as interesting or original as 2001. It's almost like the director became full of himself and tried too hard to make a masterpiece, unfortunately he failed. Malick made an ambitious movie and I can respect that, but I don't think it reached the level many were expecting. The Tree of Life is a beautiful film but is bogged down its slow pace, confusing narrative, and almost pompous direction. It's not a bad movie, I just found it boring. Maybe one day in a few of years or if I watch it a couple more times I might get the message behind it and see why so many think it's so good, but today is not that day.