When it comes to watching movies, the war genre is one of my favourite as we have been treated to many powerful stories and interesting characters over the years. For me, The Thin red Line is one that I love the most and it remains one of the best in recent years.
The Thin Red Line
It was back in 1999 when The Thin Red Line hit the big screen in the UK and was an adaptation of the autobiographical novel by James Jones. The movie also marked the return of Terrence Malick to the director's chair for the third feature of his career; it was the first film for the director since Days of Heaven back in 1978. As well as being in the director's chair, Malick also adapted Jones' novel into a screenplay.
There was a time when it looked like we would never see Malick back in the director's chair… however; the twenty-year wait was worth it as The Thin Red Line is a terrifically powerful film that is unlike any other movie in the war genre. The movie follows American forces during the conflict on Guadalcanal during the Second World War. The Thin Red Line explores the hell they faced, the battle between those that were supposed to be in charge, and the randomness of life and death during wartime.
What I love the most about The Thin Red Line - and it is the thing that sets it apart from all other war movies - is the strong philosophical aspect. This element hangs over the whole film as the characters question reasons behind the war and, in particular, life as they potentially walk so close to death, leaving many issues unresolved when the credits role, much like life itself.
Malick's main theme behind the movie was to delve into the experience and psyche of soldiers at war looking at how they cope, or not, with what they see and how they band together under the most testing circumstances.
It is a very impressionistic view of war that may not be to the taste of many. Malick delivers a truly beautiful movie that likens war to the harshness of nature and he uses his beautiful surroundings to bring home his point, and only maverick director Malick could have shot a war movie in this way and got away with it.
The cast is also impressive bringing together well-established actors such as Nick Nolte and Sean Penn with the then newer talent of Jim Caviezel and Adrien Brody.
Malick beautifully compares how the characters see and experience war, as Lieutenant Colonel Tall (Nick Nolte) is forced by powers from above to drive the war effort forward no matter what the cost and he locks horns with Captain Staros (Elias Koteas) who wants to protect his men from the horrors of war.
There's also an interesting relationship between Witt (Caviezel), who sees beauty and hope in life but doesn't want to serve in the army compared to First Sergeant Welsh (Penn) who has lost hope in everything and now just follows orders as a way to survive.
The Thin Red Line is a daring movie that looks at the war in a way that it has never been explored in film before. It is a wonderful piece of filmmaking that is packed with dazzling shots, interesting, complicated, and conflicted characters, and some great action that you would expect from a film in this genre.
From start to finish, there is something so haunting and beautiful about The Thin red Line and it is a movie that will stay with you long after the credits have rolled. Terrence Malick is a director who doesn't make movies very often, but when he does, it really is something to behold. Malick has made a series of terrific films during his career, but The Thin Red Line remains my favourite and up there as one of the best.
The Thin Red Line may not have been a huge commercial success upon release, but it did win over the critics and picked up seven Oscars; including Bes Picture, Best Director, and Best adapted screenplay for Malick.
Tagged in Terrence Malick