tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1701501727227850415.post7163830995815108517..comments2023-09-15T09:07:22.719-07:00Comments on A Journal of Film: "And the sons of God shouted for joy": Terrence Malick's Tree of LifeM. Tamminga (@oneaprilday)http://www.blogger.com/profile/10369421041119819033noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1701501727227850415.post-6471506958552733022011-07-11T09:47:55.195-07:002011-07-11T09:47:55.195-07:00Thanks, Steve! It feels good to be doing some writ...Thanks, Steve! It feels good to be doing some writing; I'm so glad summer gives me a little more time for it. I've much appreciated your take on Tree of Life on the Filmspotting forum, btw - really insightful.M. Tamminga (@oneaprilday)https://www.blogger.com/profile/10369421041119819033noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1701501727227850415.post-54794623342650500012011-07-10T12:10:52.146-07:002011-07-10T12:10:52.146-07:00Great review, Melissa. Nice to see you writing ag...Great review, Melissa. Nice to see you writing again, especially on such a wonderful film!Steve Kimeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14187112520269562190noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1701501727227850415.post-80133760969091887572011-07-08T21:20:56.300-07:002011-07-08T21:20:56.300-07:00Thanks, Sandy! Really looking forward to hearing w...Thanks, Sandy! Really looking forward to hearing what you think when you get a chance to see it.M. Tamminga (@oneaprilday)https://www.blogger.com/profile/10369421041119819033noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1701501727227850415.post-49836939319675402492011-07-08T19:09:25.891-07:002011-07-08T19:09:25.891-07:00Beautiful writing Melissa. The movie isn't ava...Beautiful writing Melissa. The movie isn't available for me to watch yet, but now I am looking forward to it even more. Thanks!Sandy J.https://www.blogger.com/profile/08621222023298592162noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1701501727227850415.post-11982525388149750502011-07-08T17:31:19.339-07:002011-07-08T17:31:19.339-07:00Yes, I agree. I think part of Malick's great ...Yes, I agree. I think part of Malick's great achievement is the way the abstract becomes so vividly embodied in the particular. <br /><br />And yes! the scene with the gun, so much tension there, so beautifully constructed that scene - and then the aftermath of it, too, has such a deeply felt poignance.<br /><br />Thanks so much for reading, and I agree - how people respond to the film is almost as fascinating as the film itself. I'm looking forward to reading more of others' thoughts now.<br /><br />I still struggle with the voiceovers a bit. Sometimes I felt they were telling me too much, but that particular line played much better for me when I saw it in context - and I was so happy for that! And it's interesting - since seeing the film, the voiceovers leave a resonance rather than a specificity, and the whole experience merges into loveliness. At the end of the day, I think I'll have to embrace the voiceovers.M. Tamminga (@oneaprilday)https://www.blogger.com/profile/10369421041119819033noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1701501727227850415.post-74327770199237538322011-07-08T17:12:14.222-07:002011-07-08T17:12:14.222-07:00What most strikes me about the film, weeks after s...What most strikes me about the film, weeks after seeing it, is how it never loses focus of the abstract in the particular. I really liked how you worded that part of your post, because I think it's incredibly easy to see the initial creation sequence as irrelevant to the film's more traditional narrative that follows. But it's never really gone, both in the way that Malick uses the camera and in the behavior of the characters.<br /><br />For a film that is so steeped and laced in metaphor, it's impressive just how emotionally charged it gets at times. I know the scene where the boys are playing with the gun made me feel incredibly tense. I know I tend to detract from wordless art a good deal, but what you wrote about it being similar to a painting sums up how I felt about the film perfectly. We catch glimpses of pure visual beauty, but there's something so universal about young Jack's experiences that it seems to hit at that level.<br /><br />Excellent post! I love reading other reactions to The Tree of Life. For me, the discussions it spawns are as fascinating as the movie itself.<br /><br />Also, just out of personal curiosity, how did the "Mother. Father. Always you wrestle inside me" line play for you during the film?Rich Thornehttp://processedgrass.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.com