Well here it goes...
Days of Heaven This movie was somewhat of a tough sell for me since the 1910s aren't exactly a captivating time for me in regards to period pieces, but I want to watch Malick's first five films in chronological order, and it's already been a good year & a half since I watched
Badlands. Obviously, as a Malick film, the movie is aesthetically gorgeous through & through; the first act is a bit of a drag, so the scenery was vital to keeping me invested at first. For the most part the film was sitting on an 8/10, but the riveting,
biblical locust swarm + fire scene brought the movie to new heights, which it managed to consistently remain at for the rest of the film. Stylistically, the film definitely mirrors Malick's previous work; in particular, the
shootout scene brought back immediate memories of
Badlands' climax, and then of course there's the element of both films being narrated from the POV of an inquisitive - if not somewhat apathetic - young woman in a bit over her head. While I found Spacek's character in
Badlands to be the more captivating protagonist, Linda Manz's character had undeniably the better payoff - the ending scene was the cherry on top of one of the 1970s' most gorgeous, life-affirming films; a reminder of how beautiful and open the world can be, even in the face of tragedy and economic strife. Still not 100% positive I'd rank it above
Badlands, but I'd give the movie a
strong 9/10. It'll be interesting watching
The Thin Red Line from here & observing how Malick's style had changed/evolved after twenty years of inactivity.
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