Let me start by saying something nice about this movie. It's beautifully shot and the score is very nice. Thus concludes the compliments. The listed time for this movie is just under three hours. In reality, the movie seems to last forever. And not in a timeless way but more of a "What day is this and how long have I been stuck in here" kind of way.
Thin Red Line tells the story of the taking of Guadalcanal. If it was taken by the Army Corps of bull session philosophers and not by actual soldiers. The men seem taken with trying to figure out what life is all about and why go through all of this dirty war business. They're also driven by a lieutenant colonel (Nick Nolte) who seems driven to promotion through a bloody frontal assault. In the tradition of well regarded Hollywood war movies, Nolte's character is insane and can only command through bullying.
The cast is deep and performances are solid, but the movie itself is very weak. Much of the movie is told through voiceovers where it's very difficult to tell who is speaking. Flashbacks abound and it's difficult to keep each characters story in order. And, worst of all, the movie doesn't go anywhere.
This movie deserved nominations for cinematography and music. The best picture overvalued it greatly. A bad movie.
2 comments:
I agree - such a beautiful and BORING movie. *sigh* Have you seen Mallick's other two films? Badlands and Days of Heaven? They're sloooow too but sooo beautiful (and I think better than TRL) (and by that I don't mean that teeny bopper show on MTV.)
Haven't seen em. Used to work with a guy who raved and raved about Mallick but I still don't see it. May have to get the soundtrack though!
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