... The Thin Red Line emerged in 1999, more visceral than any of Malick's previous work, presenting audiences with an artfully crafted, beautiful film. This was Malick taking his films to a more ambitious scale, taking everything to the next level, and whether or not the viewer enjoys the film, ... Read review
One of the cinema's great disappearing acts came to a close with the release ofThe Thin ... more
Red Linein late 1998. Terrence Malick, the cryptic recluse who withdrew from Hollywood visibility after the release of his visually enthralling masterpieceDays of H...
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One of the cinema's great disappearing acts came to a close with the release ofThe Thin ... more
Red Linein late 1998. Terrence Malick, the cryptic recluse who withdrew from Hollywood visibility after the release of his visually enthralling masterpieceDays of H...
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A powerful front line cast including Sean Penn Nick Nolte Woody Harrelson and George ... more
Clooney explodes into action in this hauntingly realistic view of military and moral chaos in the Pacific during World War II. Nominated for seven Academy Awards ...
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A powerful front line cast, including Sean Penn, Nick Nolte, Woody Harrelson and George ... more
Clooney, explodes into action in this hauntingly realistic view of military and moral chaos in the Pacific during World War II. Nominated for seven Academy Awards, ...
The Thin Red Line is the film from acclaimed director Terrence Malick, set during the ... more
struggle between American and Japanese forces for Guadalcanal in the South Pacific during WWII. This title explores the philosophical aspects of Malick's film. It is suitable for students interested in philosophy and film or phenomenology and existentialism.
'The Thin Red Line' is the third film to have been directed by Terence Malick. In this ... more
book, Michael Chion traces the connections to Malick's earlier work. He links 'The Thin Red Line' not only to James Jones's novel on which it is loosely based, but also to a tradition of American thought.
Production Year: 1954 - War - Director: Guy Hamilton - Original Language: English - Classification: Universal - Starring: John Mills, Eric Portman, Lionel Jeffries, Bryan Forbes, Ian Carmichael
Production Year: 1970 - War - Director: Brian G. Hutton - Original Language: English - Classification: Parental Guidance - Starring: Clint Eastwood, Telly Savalas, Carroll O'Connor, Donald Sutherland, Don Rickles, Gavin MacLeod
Advantages: Visually beautiful; emotionally raw and deep; stunning battle sequences; reflective and poetic Disadvantages: An acquired taste
Nature and philosophy is the trademark of Terrence Malick. He artfully presented it in his two films of the 70s, Badlands and Days of Heavens, but retreated from the directing scene to go on a sabbatical which would last for twenty years. The Thin Red Line emerged in 1999, more visceral than any of Malick's previous work, presenting audiences with an artfully crafted, beautiful film. This was Malick taking his films to a more ambitious scale, taking ... ...viewer enjoys the film, it is not to be denied that the Thin Red Line is sheer film making genius.
Retrieved by the army from the exotic island of Melonesia, deserter Private Witt (Jim Caviezel), a humanistic, thoughtful man, is transferred directly back to his previous outfit; Charlie Company. A wide array of men, all with their own issues, make up the unit. They are thrown directly into the 1943 battle of Guadacanal, a turning point ... more
Nature and philosophy is the trademark of Terrence Malick. He artfully presented it in his two films of the 70s, Badlands and Days of Heavens, but retreated from the directing scene to go on a sabbatical which would last for twenty years. The Thin Red Line emerged in 1999, more visceral than any of Malick's previous work, presenting audiences with an artfully crafted, beautiful film. This was Malick taking his films to a more ambitious scale, taking everything to the next level, and whether or not the viewer enjoys the film, it is not to be denied that the Thin Red Line is sheer film making genius.
Retrieved by the army from the exotic island of Melonesia, deserter Private Witt (Jim Caviezel), a humanistic, thoughtful man, is transferred directly back to his previous outfit; Charlie Company. A wide array of men, all with their own issues, make up the unit. They are thrown directly into the 1943 battle of Guadacanal, a turning point in the war between the Americans and Japanese in the Pacific. But strategy is not the focus of the Thin Red Line. It is a psychological study of how humanity handles pressure, using war as its canvas. The rather loose story interweaves between its study of individual characters, ranging from Dash Mihok's naive soldier, to Elias Koteas' noble captain, to Arie Verveen's psychotic trooper, to Ben Chaplin's desirous husband, to Nick Nolte's impetuous, ambitious colonel, to name a few. Sean Penn particularly stands out as the enigmatic company sergeant whose tough and callous demeanour clashes with the gentle persona of Witt, when in fact it is a way for him to hide the admiration he has for the soldier. The characters, their relationships with one another, their attitudes, their hopes, their fears, all tie together in a complex but compelling web of psychology and emotion.
The best artists, in my opinion, are those who are able to make the viewer not just see and hear what is going on, but to be able to feel and smell it. Terrence Malick successfully does this in the Thin Red Line, presenting us with a film that is truly epic in how it is pure cinematic story-telling. So much of the film is told without words, merely with shots of the beauty of the landscape, or expressions of the troops, which is all backed by Hans Zimmer's subtle but incredibly powerful score. Indeed, a lot of the film is wordless. This is the Thin Red Line's first disadvantage; it doesn't appeal to all audiences, as many will find it's relaxed pace and frequent absence of action tedious. It's a film that handles itself poetically and philosophically, with reflective voice-overs of various members of Charlie Company delicately woven in with the passing of events. Many people pointlessly compare the Thin Red Line to Saving Private Ryan, when they are so different, as the former has human psychology in war as its core issue, as opposed to the latter which is the perilous journey and survival of a group of soldiers against their enemy. The Thin Red Line is a picture that asks rhetorical questions and remains open-ended, whilst building up like a classical piece of music to a climax, then winding down. It's certainly not easy viewing, but it does what all good films do; leaves you thinking about it afterwards, and if you enjoy it, drawing up back in to appreciate its genius once again.
The emphasis on nature is strong in the Thin Red Line. Not only does it visually stagger the viewer with shots of long grass swaying in the wind; beautiful and weird animals in the lush, green jungle; sun-baked villages; shafts of lights seeping through the cover of the thick, twisting trees of the jungle -- the list goes on -- but it poses questions of war being a conflict part of nature. The philosophy is intriguing and adds an underlying subtext to the story. On the other end of the spectrum, we see Charlie Company struggle through bitter and suicidal warfare, brought to life with authentic and earth-shaking battle sequences. A neutral stance is taken, with the viewer building up demonic images of the ghostly Japanese until we discover, like the Americans, that they are but hungry boys. The film is able to create a mutual feeling of fear and brutality between them, but more in a fight to survive, rather than to kill. It is only after that they stop and reflect on the morality of what they are undertaking. It all provides for a powerful and thought-provoking viewing.
The cast put together is impressive, with many notable names as well as performances. Indeed, cameos come from John Cusack, Woody Harrelson, John Travolta, George Clooney, John C. Reilly, Adrien Brody, Jared Leto and John Savage being the biggest names. Although these characters give some scene-stealing performances, the best and most stirring acting come from the main names in the film, especially Caviezel, Penn, Nolte, Koteas and Chaplin. All portray completely different characters, showing the versality of the types of people in the film and really hammering home the main message amongst many of the film; how different men deal with psychological pressure under extremes.
On the other hand, the Thin Red Line does plod along at a slow pace and it's certainly a movie that many viewers might be expecting something completely different from. It does, however, require to move at the pace it does to fully convey its messages effectively and thoroughly; besides, it is an epic (footage shot amounted to 6 hours!). Terrence Malick clearly didn't and still doesn't care whether or not people adapt to it, as it is very much an acquired taste and considering that there lacks a tight, streamlined plot focusing on one thing would not appeal to everyone. It has to be appreciated both as a piece of art, as well as a film. Personally, I think it a great achievement that Terrence Malick could combine visual beauty and complex human emotion into one thing, as that's something that is easy to slip up on; but in the Thin Red Line it's balanced perfectly. People who enjoy deep meaning and find psychology and philosophy in a group of men interesting would surely enjoy the Thin Red Line. It's more of a cult film than a commercial one, despite big names.
The Thin Red Line is an example of a masterpiece of film-making in modern cinema. Whether or not one enjoys it for its pace and content, as art and cinematic story telling it works perfectly, critically combining stunning cinematography with complex and raw emotion.
Advantages: The film is presented in usch a way that I really can't explain it. Just take my word for it and go and watch it now. Disadvantages: I think audiences will find it that bit too slow to start with, just bear with it and you will love it.
...later, Terrence Malick returns to the big screen with this with this visually, emotionally and outstanding film which looks down at Saving Private Ryan with a big grin on it’s face and dumps on it’s head.
Due to the terrorising ways of Hollywood and the huge competition, The Thin Red Line and Saving Private Ryan were released at around the same time, which unfortunately didn’t get this little beauty noticed and give it the attention that it deserved.
... ...art that totally soars above the usual level of film making we have learnt to live with and takes us to another level that’s just never been seen in a film before.
The Thin Red Line was not really based around the war but the people who won it, the soldiers, the casualties and the generals that are willing to sacrifice every last man to win.
The characters are the main part of the film and make you almost realise the ‘feel’ of war and just how ...
Trino 20.09.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of The Thin Red Line (DVD)
Advantages: Well acted, moving, powerful, well filmed, original Disadvantages: A bit too long for some (although not for me)
...I thought I'd go throught the main characters
Nick Nolte - Colonel Tall, the highest ranked character who plays a main role, he gives a very good performance, as the person who gives the orders but doesn't fight himself, performance 9/10
Elias Koteas - Captain Staros, takes his orders from Colonel Tall, he's the Greek commanding officer of Charlie Company, and is at odds when he refuses to obey Tall's orders. he gets relieved of his position later ... ...9/10
George Clooney, plays the man who replaces Captain Staros but only appears for a few minutes at the end 7/10
Sean Penn - Sergeant Welsh, a cynical sergeant who's the highest ranked person who actually fights, and doesn't believe in Witt's "other world" in the credits it says he is the main character but this is arguable 9/10
Woody Harrelson - Sergeant Keck, an excellent performance as a tough guy sergeant who commands the attack on the hill ...
Yeahmate 09.04.2001 (29.08.2001)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of The Thin Red Line (DVD)
Advantages: moving and beautiful Disadvantages: some find it boring
...we are about to see. The usual aspects that are now practically standard are: young impressionable soldiers clearly horrified by the ferocity of war, despicable soldiers getting their comeuppance, and of course no war film would be complete without a blood spattered sequence with classical music in the background.
War films tend to fall into two categories, either they show the horror of war or they show the psychological effects of the fighting ... ...best example of the horrors of war, whilst “Platoon” shows the effects it has on the emotionally weak.
“The Thin Red Line” then is pretty confused when it comes to finding it a slot as it tries to depict both the physical and emotional costs of war. Shot on a stunningly beautiful location the director Terrence Malick was clearly interested in showing beauty as well as ugliness. It basically follows one soldier through his ...
willgould 31.05.2001 (21.07.2001)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of The Thin Red Line (DVD)
Advantages: stunning photography, makes you think Disadvantages: poor extras, too long for some people
The Thin Red Line was the other war movie that came around the same time as Saving private Ryan and as a result wasn't as widely recieved. This is a shame as it's actually in many ways a better film. It centres around soldiers at the conflict of Guadalcanal but is more about the personal struggles of the mind rather than the harsh brutalities of war. Men reflect on what they have left behind, fearing for their lives and wondering if they'll ever ... ...lot happening. if this is the case then you need to find somethnig with a bit more action and less to think about. The film is in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen on this disc and the picture looks stunning. There is a lot of colour in this film and it's all shines through. John Toll's amazing cinematography is a sight to behold. Soundwise there is a Dolby Digital 5.1 mix. The film is very dialogue heavy so most sound is restricted to the front speakers ...
utero 06.06.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of The Thin Red Line (DVD)
Advantages: amazing locations, brilliant cast, thoughtful take on war Disadvantages: quite long?!
...'boring' and not up to the standards of 'Saving Private Ryan'. This only added to my utter disbelief at how outrageously thoughtful, well written, well filmed and beautifuly shot this picture actually is.
It has possibly the least likely start to a war film since 'Apocalypse Now', with Private Witts relationships with local tribes whilst hes AWOL beautifuly setting the scene for this film about wars effects on everybody, including those who dont ... ...stage, the director, Terrence Malik's, use of lighting and the beauty of the pacific islands natural terrain is phenomonal.
Although the action sequences are amazing, and well filmed, at no point does this film descend to becoming an action flick, a la 'Saving Private Ryan'. The action sequences only serve to show the audience how futile some battles are, and these conflicts effects on the people who are forced to fight them. They portray the battle ...
sinbad182 29.08.2001
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Advantages: great sound, respectful extras Disadvantages: not the best of films after the opening invasion
at the time which was The ThinRedLine.
This dvd is by no means feature packed, it came at a time when Spielberg wasn't as forthcoming in putting effort into his films dvd releases. But maybe he just wanted the film's subject to be the main point without all the behind the scenes stuff detracting from it.
The film is presented in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen. The transfer is very good. Of course a lot of it is shot in a very gritty style with bleak colour schemes and washed out scenery. The trasnfer has no problems handling the shaky kinetic handheld style with no real signs of the halo effect. In fact top marks all round.
The same can be said with the sound. Region 2 owners have to be content with a Dolby Digital 5.1 mix, Region 1 versions are available in 5.1 or DTS versions. Personally I have never heard the DTS version but opinion ...
The Future series and others) and Frequency does not make any new inroads into the genre.
Also, in order to properly enjoy this type of film, viewers really have to temporarily suspend their beliefs and logical faculties. (I mean, comments like "Hey! That's not possible, right!" Look, nobody can really sort out all the paradoxes of time travel, not even scientists!” shouldn't even cross your mind). Come on people, this is a movie and anything's possible, right? Even in the real world!
Frequency stars Dennis Quaid(last seen in Any Given Sunday—a great dvd as well!) and Jim Caviezel(the ThinRedLine) It's directed by Gregory Hoblit (Primal Fear) and the screenplay is written by Toby Emmerich. So, basically, we have a New York cop, John Sullivan (James Caviezel), who, through extraordinary solar activity phenomena is able to speak ...
pakalang 22.01.2001 (24.01.2001)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Frequency (DVD)
Czech, Danish, Finnish, Hebrew, Hungarian, Icelandic, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Swedish
Hearing Impaired Language
English
Technical information
Special Features
Interactive Menus, Scene Access, Original Theatrical Trailer, Melanesian Songs
Aspect Ratio
2.35 Wide Screen, 16:9 Anamorphic Wide Screen
Sound
Dolby Surround 5.1
Dubbing Sound
Dolby Digital 5.1 English
Professional reviews
Review
"...[Malick's] intoxication with natural beauty, fused so palpably with the psychic sleepwalking of his human characters, remains exactly as it was....Here is a visceral reminder of all that made his past work so hauntingly majestic..." (New York Times, p.E1, 23/12/1998)
"...Malick's return is a cause for celebration. His harsh, haunting film shuns the platitudes to expose war as a crime against nature..." (Rolling Stone, p.83-4, 21/01/1999)
"...An extraordinary achievement....THE THIN RED LINE is hugely effective as a film about the absurdity of war..." (Sight and Sound, p.53-4, 01/03/1999)
"...[A] masterpiece of poetic flourish and grand ambition..." -- 4 out of 5 stars (Total Film, p.98, 01/10/1999)
"...Terrence Malick's first movie since 1978's DAYS OF HEAVEN is just as sensual, subliminally stirring and magnificently photographed..." -- 4 out of 4 stars (USA Today, p.4D, 24/12/1998)
DVD Description
Terrence Malick returns to Hollywood after a two-decade hiatus with this adaptation of the classic WWII novel by James Jones. The story follows the efforts of an army platoon to capture the Japanese-controlled island of Guadalcanal in the Pacific Ocean, which will have a major effect on the outcome of the war. The members of C-for-Charlie Company are all fighting for different reasons: Some to achieve glory, some to fight for democracy, and some simply to remain alive. They spend the quieter moments reflecting upon their existence, searching for meaning amid the senselessness of war. Malick's reputation as one of cinema's most brilliant directors, based on his masterworks BADLANDS and DAYS OF HEAVEN, enabled him to pull together one of the largest ensemble all-star casts in Hollywood history. The result is a sprawling epic that carries itself like a poem read in a dream, a feeling that is greatly enhanced by John Toll's floating camerawork and Hans Zimmer's haunting score. Rather than concentrating solely on the violence and destruction of war, Malick uses the situation to address philosophical questions such as man versus nature, war versus peace, and good versus evil. THE THIN RED LINE proves that after a 20-year layoff, Malick hasn't lost a step.
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