Title/Year: The Thin Red Line (1998)
Director/Birth Country/Year Born: Terrence Malick / USA / 1943 [imdb]
Budget: 52 million [imdb]
Gross: 81.6 million [imdb]
Synopsis: "Maybe all men got one big soul; everybody's a part of it." That, a piece of narration from a film about an integral WWII battle at Guadalcanal against the Japanese. A group of American soldiers fight for survival against hellish odds, of which provides them bonds with one another and moments for quiet reflection, wherein everything and nothing matter, and the reasons for the war are irrelevant.
Narrative and Visual Keywords: Narration / War drama / multiple perspectives
Characterization/ Dialogue: The windy and sun-drenched vistas of the Soloman Islands and Queensland, Australia / African natives go about their lives as soldiers patrol their perimeters / soldiers talk to one another in a no-nonsense matter with mostly southern drawls / narration comes in the form of simple yet introspective man caught in the trenches.
Camera/lighting/editing technique: close-ups that tend to crop the tops of heads make for effective reaction shots / lots of natural lighting and silhouetting and heavy shadows by night / beginning and ending rife with cross dissolves to give an illusion of time passing accented by endless cycles.
Political/ Social Commentary: War is absurd yet men will fight to survive / all men are afraid and vulnerable and capable of so much / death on the battlefield is commonplace yet impactful, and murder is completely legal within the window of war.
Historical Relevance/ Recognition: The film highlights a WWII battle that helped influence Japan's advance into the Pacific. Flashbacks of the soldiers memories help the viewer with time and place as '40s America is then most evident.
Notable Collaboration: James Jones wrote the novel The Thin Red Line, of which the film is based. [imdb]
Random fact, Etc.: The original edit of the film was six hours long, until Malick performed his cuts. [imdb]
1. "Notice factor." Why was their first film received well- what set it apart from other films being released. Essentially, what made these now mainstream directors seem fresh upon their first release?
Looking at other films released in '73, films depicting a different era were not commonplace. Badlands, set in the late 50s, featured not only locations set in this time, but people and their activities also played a role in bringing the viewer back (i.e. the father character painting billboards featuring images of the era). Dialogue also felt simple yet complex, and the narration was unique in that it was delivered from a naive perspective.
2. "Emerging Talent" What signature stylistic tendencies are apparent even in work that is embryonic?
Malick's mastery of taking the viewer to a different time is apparent in so much more than just location. The naive-character narration plays a key role in Badlands and would go on to be a tool he revisits. Slick and no-nonsense characters that are simple yet complex are an archetype I recognized in this and later works.
3. "Evolution of Vision" Has the vision of the director become evolved/ integrated or dispersed/ unidentifiable.
Malick's vision has evolved. A lot of his key tools are in play, but with a more substantial budget and with the backing of Hollywood, he is able to amplify his bag of tricks and make them more palatable to a larger audience.
Personal: Do you prefer this director's early works or later works?
When I compare the tones of Badlands to The Thin Red Line, I much prefer the former. It's pure and quiet, and while these descriptions could be put upon the latter, the mood isn't diluted by the horrors of war or an abundant cast. Having said that, I know several people who love A Thin Red Line because of its seeming accuracy and for being an all-around bombastic experience, but would never consider Badlands at the rental store or on Netflix.
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