I watched the DVD of Terence Malick's "To the Wonder" last night. Yes, it is silly and ridiculous, and Ben Affleck has no acting to do, but it is riveting, in a Malick way. I flipped back and forth, thinking I knew what he was saying and feeling I had no idea. Nothing is helped by Kureschenko being fairylike and twirling around like a four year old. I believe the narration guides the viewer to believe this is a simulation of the turbulence and transitory nature of love. But there are threads of story, never developed, never dropped, that play with us, and I don't mean in a good way. It will be interesting to see what Malick come up with next: probably a soundtrack without film to be played before a film without sound.
Anyway, he's always pretty fascinating, stretching the limits of what a film can do, and failing and succeeding in about equal parts. His world view, however, is insistently compelling.
Today I'm off to get vacuum cleaner bags, and to the post office. Will there be bigger thrills in store? I doubt it.
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