Terence Malick: The New World

[Johann]

Malick will get me into a theatre anytime.
This was pure poetry from a master filmmaker.


It's shot after shot after shot of sublimity.

I watched this film in complete awe of the cinematography.
Malick has many many shots (often only just mere-seconds edits), that build and build to give you a powerful look at a new world indeed.

There's some six degrees of separation for me on this film:

Raoul Trujillo is one of the "naturals", and he played the King in an Edmonton theatre stage production of "The King and I"- when I saw his name I thought "whatever part he's playing, it's gonna be awesome". And it was.
(I used to do backstage security at the Citadel theatre, and Raoul's dressing room always had exotic incense emanating from it- it didn't surprise me in the least that he is now on celluloid with a Mastercraftsman- Raoul was one of the most interesting people I've ever met).

Anyway, this film is a love story that reminded me of everything from "Last Year at Marienbad" to "the Land of the War Canoes" to "Cutthroat Island".

Cinephiles, this is your film.


The sound, good god, the Sound!

Cannons, the grass, the trees, the water, the birds (did you guys catch that bird in the last shot?), fire, the naturals' war cries, rifles, everything was glorious sound-wise.

This film was alive for me.

Colin Farrell is interesting. He's obviously being DIRECTED here, and I have a lot of respect for him. This guy could easily spiral out of control and turn into a Hollywood casualty, but his agent is putting his ass in some serious movies. He can be real proud of this film, just as he can be real proud of Alexander.

Watching him, I felt he was seasoned, a survivor of an Oliver Stone campaign. And I wondered what was going though his head in the scene where his peeps say he should be the Leader.
As far as I'm concerned Farrell knows a thing or two about leadership, through roles he's played and directors he's worked with.

Christian Bale came late in the movie, but what an intriguing character: he's playing second fiddle to a guy who's supposed to be dead and his marriage gets some serious tests.
I love the line he says to Pocahontas when she says she's still married to John. " You don't know the meaning of the word".


And Pocahontas.

I have nothing to say.
I was in love with that character and I'm in love with this movie.
Her eyes!
Her hair!
Her spirit! Indeed. her SPIRIT.

Your heart swells when you see her dance...


Chris Plummer is right at home in The New World.
The costumes are incredible, the ships are incredible, the scenery is blindingly beautiful and Malick is nothing short of a genius.

I feel extremely priviledged to have seen this.
I'll see it again before it leaves theatres.

With Stanley Kubrick no longer with us, this is as close to God as we can get.