The New World
Directed by: Terrence Malick
(New Line)
Terrence Malick is a real filmmaker, but his fans used to drive me crazy. His pacifying compositions, I’d argue, are meaningless other than they’re the most beautiful of the 400 hours he shot. Whether that holds for past films, The New World can be enjoyed without weighty philosophical pretext. It’s the Pocahontas and John Smith story stripped of nearly everything but hypnotic imagery cut to classical music. It plays well on DVD, where audiences aren’t a distraction.
Mark Palermo
Categories: Best of the year (2006)
This article appears in Dec 6-12, 2007.
