The Movie
Director Terrence Malick has come to remind me more and more of the late Stanley Kubrick, a cinematic artist who has steadily evolved away from the mainstream, making movies that uncompromisingly reflect the creator, to the delight and envy of other filmmakers even if audiences can't always embrace his vision. Such is surely the case with The Tree of Life, his latest. Not content to tell the story of a boy growing up in Texas under a strict father (Brad Pitt), the movie juxtaposes extended nature sequences and even some outer space imagery... but why, exactly? Lest you think me a heathen who's missing the brilliance of Malick's perfectly constructed rumination on life, the universe and everything, keep in mind the story of the Italian theater that accidentally switched two reels of the film this past spring, and no one even noticed.
The slices of the characters' lives are served up in an almost random-seeming and certainly unhurried montage style so I can't quite put my finger on the "story," except to say that a particularly painful death in The O'Brien Family leaves members coping with its ramifications for years, and inspiring much reflection. We explore themes of family, religion and creation, with a big dash of damnable pride, but the unconventional structure and multiple points of view ultimately make the movie difficult to wrap our head around.
Before you make like a tree and leave, give Karen Dahlstrom's review of The Tree of Life a read, too.
The Picture
Exquisitely photographed by Emmanuel Lubezki on a combination of film and digital sources, The Tree of Life boasts close-ups that are frankly as near to perfect as I have ever seen in a live-action film on Blu-ray, keeping no secrets while introducing no artifacts. The 1.85:1 video is officially listed on the package as having an average 37-megabits-per-second bitrate and I would concur: I saw it flirt with and then cross the coveted 40Mbps mark, occasionally by a wide margin, almost unheard of for a feature film. At 139 minutes, it's rather long and feels it, but Fox has kept the extras and even the audio options sparse.
But for some (deliberately?) soft backgrounds, every shot is dependably clean and sharp, with virtually no distracting noise and minimal ringing in the expected, perhaps unavoidable places. The tiny black flecks of an enormous swarm of freaky bats are well-maintained, while the awe-inspiring space images take on an almost 3D appearance, even if they seem out of place dramatically. A fair amount of optical and CGI effects are used, losing none of their beauty and impact, while leaves and blades of grass are clearly defined. Much of the movie was shot with only available light, for a distinctive look and plenty of delicious, inky blacks. Truly outstanding.
The Sound
Furthering this first-class home theater presentation is the accompanying DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1-channel soundtrack. At the beginning and the end we are enveloped by gentle, memory-evoking sounds of the beach, and soon a chorus of singing voices swells with such power, they could be mistaken for angels. Wind and chirping birds also grace the surrounds, while the plucking of harp strings floats all around us and a few notes tapped out on a piano might come from anywhere. The scenes of nature are underscored with ample bass.
The Extras
The sole Blu-ray bonus feature is the half-hour "Exploring The Tree of Life" in HD, wherein the makers of this film and some famous admirers (Fincher! Nolan!) comment upon this and the previous works of the enigmatic Terrence Malick, but The Man himself is absent. Disc Two is a DVD of the movie, while Disc Three carries a Digital Copy for iTunes, Windows Media or Android.
Final Thoughts
So, about three hours, a movie and a "making of" later, what does it all add up to? What does The Tree of Life mean? I can't say that I really know. But this Blu-ray sure is pretty to look at.
Product Details
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