[HN Gopher] Terrence Malick's Disciples
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       Terrence Malick's Disciples
        
       Author : prismatic
       Score  : 58 points
       Date   : 2025-12-23 19:35 UTC (3 hours ago)
        
 (HTM) web link (yalereview.org)
 (TXT) w3m dump (yalereview.org)
        
       | softwaredoug wrote:
       | I see Malick in a lot but similarly I see Tarkovsky in a lot of
       | overlapping movies. I don't think Americans are _as_ attuned to
       | Tarkovskys influence on modern film. I definitely recommend
       | Stalker as an amazing film.
        
         | tpm wrote:
         | I would also recommend his movie Andrei Rublev, though that is
         | probably even harder to watch because of the length and
         | medieval setting; but, for people that like to see something
         | different, this is very different to current movies.
         | 
         | And from his disciples definitely recommend Zvyagintsev and his
         | The Return and Leviathan.
        
           | beezlebroxxxxxx wrote:
           | If you liked Andrei Rublev, you should check out Alexei
           | German's adaptation of the Strugatsky brothers "Hard to Be a
           | God." It's insane, gorgeous, disgusting, teetering on the
           | edge of madness, and monumental.
           | 
           | German's "Khrustalyov, My Car!" is also the purest cinematic
           | distilation of paranoia I have ever seen.
        
       | trgn wrote:
       | best malick movie that wasn't a malick movie i saw recently was
       | "here".
        
       | krukah wrote:
       | Tree Of Life is nothing short of a masterpiece IMO. Influential
       | on me personally as my first exposure to how much editing and
       | structure (or lack thereof) build directorial style. It left an
       | impression on me to feel so much for a film that explicitly
       | _says_ so little.
       | 
       | Obligatory mention of that iconic low-angle shot of The Mother
       | floating gracefully across the plains. One of the best of all
       | time.
        
         | sharkweek wrote:
         | I should give Malick another shot. I love film, but only first
         | tried him when I was much younger (Thin Red Line) and don't
         | think I really _got_ it.
         | 
         | Never tried Tree of Life or any of his more recent stuff.
         | 
         | Got any recommendations in the first 2-3 of his you'd suggest?
        
           | rafacm wrote:
           | Days of Heaven (1978)
        
           | skoodge wrote:
           | _Badlands_ and _Days of Heaven_ are definitely his most
           | conventional films and thus good starting points. _Badlands_
           | especially is a great film, _Days of Heaven_ is a bit uneven
           | in terms of plot and pacing, but the cinematography is
           | beautiful.
           | 
           | Then you have _The Thin Red Line_ and _The New World_ , which
           | to me feel like a transitional period between the more
           | conventional films and _The Tree of Life_ , which is the
           | first film that is characterized through and through by
           | Malick's extremely divisive style. I personally love _The
           | Thin Red Line_ , but I can see why it's not for everyone. (I
           | would skip _The New World_.) All later films have a very
           | recognizable style, for which I think _The Tree of Life_ is
           | the best starting point.
           | 
           | Long story short: I'd start with _Badlands_ , then watch _The
           | Thin Red Line_ , then _The Tree of Life_. If you like the
           | last one, watch any of his later films.
        
           | tpm wrote:
           | Or dive at the deep end and watch Knight of Cups or A Hidden
           | Life. You will either like it or not, frankly I don't think
           | it matters what you'll see first, I love all of his movies
           | even though I didn't understand Thin Red Line when I was 20.
           | But Knight of Cups hit me hard when I was 36.
        
       | prvc wrote:
       | "Disciples", but seemingly without back and forth feedback from
       | the "teacher". Many happy to ride on the coattails of his
       | reputation, though. This particular style might also be
       | attractive to new film-makers because it allows them to dispense
       | with learning the basics of traditional film language.
        
       | julianpye wrote:
       | Malick is also unique in that while I love his work, I understand
       | anyone who can't get into them and finds them dull or
       | pretentious. It's as if some people are tuned to his frequency
       | and others just receive white noise. When you're tuned to it,
       | it's a timeless meditative, spiritual experience. Our wedding
       | bands carry the words of the Tree of Life's 'Mrs. O'Brien':
       | 'Unless you love, your life will flash by'. I hope he can finish
       | 'The Way of the Wind' in times for Cannes this year.
        
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