Review #229: 'The Tree of Life' (2011)

Terrence Malick's 5th film since his brilliant debut, Badlands (1973), The Tree of Life is seemingly a semi-autobiographical familial story of the O'Brien flock. The film begins with a brief look at the family in 1950's Texas. Headed by Brad Pitt's authoritarian Mr O'Brien, his wife Jessica Chastain, and their three boys, Jack (Hunter McCraken), R. L. (Laramie Eppler) and Steve (Tye Sheridan). This is often juxtaposed with an adult Jack (Sean Penn), who seems to be struggling with the memories of his childhood. The end of these first sequences are occupied by the death of one of the boys.

This is followed by a grandiose, visually stunning opus of the creation of worlds and life. A heavily orchestrated sequence with a scientific outlook for the big bang and what follows. We even see some CGI dinosaurs, occupying the beautiful, serene landscape. A tree, like life has wild branches, vein-like, splitting off on tangents, moving into different directions. Humbled by the complexity of this, we are back with the O'Brien clan, as we see birth in all it's joy. A family drama ensues, with Pitt's father, authoritarian, sometimes coldly tender to his boys. He does love his boys, but is stern, particularly with the eldest, Jack. Jack's feelings of hate towards his father becomes increasingly apparent. As Jack progresses, he begins to see the world, the relationships, in a more mature manner. In one sequence he states to his father, "This is your home, you can make me leave any time you want." His thoughts are whispered, as he thinks after "You want to kill me". Jack is also seen praying for God to kill his father.

The films major theme is reflective of both religion and hard science. Philosophy is fundamental to the process involved in the nature of life. Mrs O'Brien tells her sons in voice-over "There are two ways through life: the way of nature and the way of grace". This perfectly encapsulates the meaning behind the film. All actors involved are wonderful. Pitt's Mr O'Brien is stern, and effective, we feel almost threatened by his coldness. And all three boys are seemingly natural in their performances.

For the visual effects, Malick had Douglas Trumball pulled out of retirement, and (except for the dinosaurs), began experimental with natural substances to create the beautifully realised creation sequences. The use of Trumball seems to be reflective of the nature of the films themes. The Tree of Life often feels like a religious reworking of Stanley Kubricks 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) - that Trumball also worked on - and Malick, like Kubrick, uses music wonderfully, evoking creations beauty. It is simply the elliptical nature of the film that gives it a fantastical, grandiose quality. Creation of life is juxtaposed with it's inevitable partner, death, and in turn how this effects life.

Winner of the Palme D'Or at 2011's Cannes film festival, The Tree of Life has been met with polar-opposite reactions. In its first showing at Cannes it was booed. Pretentious has been bandied round a lot in reaction to the film. Yeah, it has pretensions (of course it does - it's a huge subject to tackle). I watched the film with awe, its beauty utterly beguiling and surprising me. Many of the shots in the film are so stunning, I would be very happy to frame them to adorn my walls. And, due to its complexities, it is certainly one of those films that requires more viewings.


Directed by: Terrence Malick
Starring: Brad Pitt, Sean Penn, Jessica Chastain, Hunter McCracken
Country: USA

Rating: *****

Marc Ivamy