To The Wonder

It's always difficult to review or recommend a Terrence Malick film, you'll either love him or hate him, there isn't much in the middle. To The Wonder is no exception, but even as a Malick fan, I'm finding it hard to recommend this one entirely.

Throughout his career there's been a very interesting trend in Malick's work, starting with the more conventional Badlands and Days of Heaven to the wildly unconventional Tree of Life.  To The Wonder continues in that trend, whereby the film is much more abstract and free-flowing, but it takes this one step further.  To The Wonder is probably too abstract, it would've benefited greatly by being more tightly wound. Because of how loose the film is, a lot of it feels a bit meandering. The film was shot without a script, without artificial lighting, and was meant to be shot in a more experimental and abstract way, but this doesn't explain how loose the narrative is.

The plot is inherently simple, couples fall in and out love as we follow them through photogenic Paris, Normandy, and Oklahoma.  The plot is driven through imagery and very little dialogue.  There is heavy narration, as to be expected, to further advance to thoughts of the characters.  We can see Neil (Affleck) and Marina's (Kurylenko) happiness and love through their embraces and gazes, without hearing the characters say a word.  The same holds true as the relationship turns sour.

The true beauty in this film is the collaboration of Malick's direction and Emmanuel Lubezki's cinematography.  Lubezki is the very best at what he does, and I can't think of a better cinematographer to capture Malick's unique vision.  The imagery is gorgeous, but at times it feels like this is all the film has going for it.  As the plot doesn't really manage to hold the film together, it occasionally feels as if the film is just a
collection of artistic shots.  The Tree of Life managed to blend the imagery with the poetic looseness of the film's plot with more cohesion.  While the film constantly displays Malick and Lubezki's visual talent, there are moments where it feels as if it's too much. Specifically there are way too many scenes of Olga Kurylenko twirling.

It's difficult for me to settle on a grade for this film, as I've never really pieced together a solid opinion on it.  I appreciated it for what it was, but it's Malick's worst film.  Though, Malick's worst is better than a lot of directors can call their best.

B