A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick, 2019)

Discussions of specific films and franchises.
Post Reply
Message
Author
MongooseCmr
Joined: Sat Dec 15, 2012 11:50 pm

Re: A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick, 2019)

#151 Post by MongooseCmr » Thu Jan 16, 2020 3:18 pm

whaleallright wrote:
Wed Jan 01, 2020 2:22 pm
Which French critic was it who said something like, the only interesting films about fascism will have been made by people who felt the temptation?
Malick sets himself up for this criticism when the painter says he can’t paint Christ suffering because he hasn’t suffered. I know he intended it differently but it sums up my own problems with it too.

User avatar
HJackson
Joined: Wed Jul 20, 2011 7:27 pm

Re: A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick, 2019)

#152 Post by HJackson » Fri Jan 17, 2020 9:09 pm

I love late Malick. To the Wonder and Tree of Life were my #1 and #2 on the 2010-14 List Project and Knight of Cups and Song to Song will without question feature on my full decade list when that comes around. But this movie was by far the worst thing he’s ever made, one of the worst things I’ve ever subjected myself to in a cinema, and an utterly irredeemable waste of three hours of my time. The last few minutes were quite beautiful but I wish I’d done like mfunk and just walked out.

It’s beyond belief that this thing is sitting on 83% on Rotten Tomatoes while his last three are all languishing in the 40s. For years he’s been mocked for being indulgent, pretentious, making glorified perfume commercials etc - and then he turns around, keeps the exact same “perfume commercial” style while stripping out all the mystery, poetry, and the underlying dramatic ebb and flow of the human relationships depicted in favour of a totally, unrelentingly one-note “meditation” on how much this guy hated Hitler (ie Trump) - one that grinds on and on for THREE FRIGGIN HOURS - and the critics, insofar as it was covered, seem to be lapping it up.

User avatar
JamesF
Joined: Thu Mar 04, 2010 1:36 pm

Re: A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick, 2019)

#153 Post by JamesF » Sun Jan 19, 2020 6:05 am

I found Song to Song pretty insufferable, so was relieved to find this... sufferable? A step back in the right direction for Malick, anyway.

User avatar
furbicide
Joined: Thu Dec 29, 2011 4:52 am

Re: A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick, 2019)

#154 Post by furbicide » Sun Jan 19, 2020 9:33 pm

HJackson wrote:
Fri Jan 17, 2020 9:09 pm
I love late Malick. To the Wonder and Tree of Life were my #1 and #2 on the 2010-14 List Project and Knight of Cups and Song to Song will without question feature on my full decade list when that comes around. But this movie was by far the worst thing he’s ever made, one of the worst things I’ve ever subjected myself to in a cinema, and an utterly irredeemable waste of three hours of my time. The last few minutes were quite beautiful but I wish I’d done like mfunk and just walked out.

It’s beyond belief that this thing is sitting on 83% on Rotten Tomatoes while his last three are all languishing in the 40s. For years he’s been mocked for being indulgent, pretentious, making glorified perfume commercials etc - and then he turns around, keeps the exact same “perfume commercial” style while stripping out all the mystery, poetry, and the underlying dramatic ebb and flow of the human relationships depicted in favour of a totally, unrelentingly one-note “meditation” on how much this guy hated Hitler (ie Trump) - one that grinds on and on for THREE FRIGGIN HOURS - and the critics, insofar as it was covered, seem to be lapping it up.
I'm fascinated by how even a director as divisive as Malick manages to divide his own fans with his films. Personally, I feel like I should hold my tongue as my only exposure to Malick has been Badlands, The Thin Red Line and The Tree of Life, all of which I kind of liked in parts, but, like many, by the end of the last of these I was feeling a bit done with his schtick (and I think that's what's kept me away from his successively more poorly received follow-ups). But maybe, based on this, I should take my chances with To the Wonder or Knight of Cups? Certainly, I'm more drawn to them than this new one, which really does look insufferable.

User avatar
Drucker
Your Future our Drucker
Joined: Wed May 18, 2011 9:37 am

Re: A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick, 2019)

#155 Post by Drucker » Sun Jan 19, 2020 11:26 pm

Furbicide, I caught a double feature of Badlands and Days Of Heaven in 35 last month. These were the first times I watched since viewing both on home video. I found the former a bit dull and not that special, but the latter one of the most engrossing and spiritually beautiful films I've ever seen. I really thought it perfectly accomplished everything he tries to do in his films. Don't sleep on it!

nitin
Joined: Sat Nov 08, 2014 6:49 am

Re: A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick, 2019)

#156 Post by nitin » Mon Jan 20, 2020 6:36 am

Yeah I mean even if you want to write off Malick, at least do it after watching Days of Heaven.

User avatar
aox
Joined: Fri Jun 20, 2008 12:02 pm
Location: nYc

Re: A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick, 2019)

#157 Post by aox » Mon Jan 20, 2020 6:32 pm

furbicide wrote:
Sun Jan 19, 2020 9:33 pm


I'm fascinated by how even a director as divisive as Malick manages to divide his own fans with his films. Personally, I feel like I should hold my tongue as my only exposure to Malick has been Badlands, The Thin Red Line and The Tree of Life, all of which I kind of liked in parts, but, like many, by the end of the last of these I was feeling a bit done with his schtick (and I think that's what's kept me away from his successively more poorly received follow-ups). But maybe, based on this, I should take my chances with To the Wonder or Knight of Cups? Certainly, I'm more drawn to them than this new one, which really does look insufferable.
Agreed. I don't think I have observed it with any other directors. Maybe Godard, but I think any comparative argument I would make would be flimsy at best.

I own and adore Days of Heaven and To the Wonder. The former is one of the most beautiful films I have ever seen.

I absolutely loath everything else he has done from Badlands up through Knight of Cups. Didn't see Song to Song because I felt completely done after KoC, but I'm curious about this one.

User avatar
therewillbeblus
Joined: Tue Dec 22, 2015 3:40 pm

Re: A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick, 2019)

#158 Post by therewillbeblus » Mon Jan 20, 2020 6:40 pm

Count me among the crowd that thinks this is Malick’s weakest film. To furbicide’s point on Malick dividing his own fan base, it’s something I’ve struggled to pinpoint myself. Because his late-career works are so stylistically similar, for me it comes down to how my own subjective relationship to the images, music, voiceover provoke a completely personal experience. I think this happens with Malick in ways different than many other films because the impact is geared at the spiritual so when it fails it’s like deflating a balloon - the rest of the pieces crumble, but when it succeeds it’s like no other film could do this. That’s not to say that there’s no middle ground but there’s conflict in that because at least in my experience there’s a recognition more of how the film fails to me rather than its own specific flaws, and then becomes a reflection on myself and only myself. Also since these kinds of reactions are based on transient moods based on time and place, every time I see one of his films I’m risking that film wildly changing in my esteem. For example, I’ve gone from thinking Tree of Life and The Thin Red Line are the worst to best to good to meh to great but not the greatest, etc on every viewing. At times I just want to leave them be but I keep pulling out the goods in the hope that one day they will become my favorite films and I can leave it there, which of course I won’t because I haven’t when they did reside in those top spots.

User avatar
DarkImbecile
Ask me about my visible cat breasts
Joined: Mon Dec 09, 2013 6:24 pm
Location: Albuquerque, NM

Re: A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick, 2019)

#159 Post by DarkImbecile » Mon Jan 20, 2020 8:02 pm

therewillbeblus wrote:
Mon Jan 20, 2020 6:40 pm
Because his late-career works are so stylistically similar, for me it comes down to how my own subjective relationship to the images, music, voiceover provoke a completely personal experience. I think this happens with Malick in ways different than many other films because the impact is geared at the spiritual so when it fails it’s like deflating a balloon - the rest of the pieces crumble, but when it succeeds it’s like no other film could do this. That’s not to say that there’s no middle ground but there’s conflict in that because at least in my experience there’s a recognition more of how the film fails to me rather than its own specific flaws, and then becomes a reflection on myself and only myself. Also since these kinds of reactions are based on transient moods based on time and place, every time I see one of his films I’m risking that film wildly changing in my esteem.
I tried to get at the extremely personal and idiosyncratic nature of reactions to Malick's work as well in my thoughts on this film, and this wild variability in responses even among fans of his (to say nothing of those experiencing one when unfamiliar with his style) is why — despite wildly disagreeing with about 90% of the responses in this thread — I haven't tried to respond or refute any of it. His work is more dependent than most on what you bring to it and what you're vulnerable to, and if a particular piece of the score or a particular image or a brief piece of dialogue or voiceover — whether individually or in combination with each other — does or doesn't melt you to your core, what is anyone else going to say to convince you otherwise?

I will say, I've found that I'm somewhat rare in that I think every single one of his films are at least very good, and at least four of them are among my all-time favorites, from his divisive late period (this and To The Wonder) to his more widely accepted classics (The Thin Red Line, Days of Heaven).

User avatar
therewillbeblus
Joined: Tue Dec 22, 2015 3:40 pm

Re: A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick, 2019)

#160 Post by therewillbeblus » Mon Jan 20, 2020 8:09 pm

I’ve found merit in everything he’s done, even if this one didn’t work for me I trust that I very well could on a rewatch down the road. Other than this and Knight of Cups, which I had an incongruous experience with for whatever reason, I agree that everything he’s done is very good to great. Though if I had never seen a Malick film and my expectations weren’t set, maybe I would have been blown away by this one instead of numbed to his methods and getting hung up on the lack of personal access in what I was looking for from his brand of lyrical potential?

User avatar
tenia
Ask Me About My Bassoon
Joined: Wed Apr 29, 2009 11:13 am

Re: A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick, 2019)

#161 Post by tenia » Tue Jan 21, 2020 6:41 am

DarkImbecile wrote:
Mon Jan 20, 2020 8:02 pm
therewillbeblus wrote:
Mon Jan 20, 2020 6:40 pm
Because his late-career works are so stylistically similar, for me it comes down to how my own subjective relationship to the images, music, voiceover provoke a completely personal experience. I think this happens with Malick in ways different than many other films because the impact is geared at the spiritual so when it fails it’s like deflating a balloon - the rest of the pieces crumble, but when it succeeds it’s like no other film could do this. That’s not to say that there’s no middle ground but there’s conflict in that because at least in my experience there’s a recognition more of how the film fails to me rather than its own specific flaws, and then becomes a reflection on myself and only myself. Also since these kinds of reactions are based on transient moods based on time and place, every time I see one of his films I’m risking that film wildly changing in my esteem.
I tried to get at the extremely personal and idiosyncratic nature of reactions to Malick's work as well in my thoughts on this film, and this wild variability in responses even among fans of his (to say nothing of those experiencing one when unfamiliar with his style) is why — despite wildly disagreeing with about 90% of the responses in this thread — I haven't tried to respond or refute any of it. His work is more dependent than most on what you bring to it and what you're vulnerable to, and if a particular piece of the score or a particular image or a brief piece of dialogue or voiceover — whether individually or in combination with each other — does or doesn't melt you to your core, what is anyone else going to say to convince you otherwise?
I strongly believe it simply, indeed, has to do with these movies needing to find something in each viewer that resonates - and if it doesn't, you might quickly feel left out of it.
I absolutely love The New World and The Tree of Life, because I feel they bring me something very deep, they resonate in me, and often soothe me (something only a handful of artworks do), but it isn't the case with some of his latest works, but also some of his earlier works. I never really liked Days of Heaven, and The Thin Red Line leaves me pretty cold (though I find it very good). And while I quite liked Song to Song, I strongly disliked Knights of Cups, because I couldn't relate to it at all and quickly felt unconcerned and uninterested by what was happening to the characters. As for To The Wonder, I love the first half, but don't care much for the second half, because these characters and stories don't resonate in me while the first half one's do.

That's just how it is, and it's sometimes, IMO, that simple. I like his poetic style, but there is, for me, a need for something there to exacerbate and that resonates in me. Otherwise, it just falls flat.

A Hidden Life fell, to me, somewhere in between : it certainly isn't bad, but it felt overlong and kind of empty for what it tried to achieve and narrate, and I certainly understood, after watching it, the concerns voiced here. It felt heavily superfluously repetitive at times.

accatone
Joined: Thu May 04, 2006 8:04 am

Re: A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick, 2019)

#162 Post by accatone » Tue Jul 07, 2020 5:09 am

I am not sure (anymore) if i can stand another one, but:

https://www.pandorafilm.de/filme/ein-ve ... leben.html

I do not own this but the "Details" say sound in German and English. Subtitles German.

User avatar
FrauBlucher
Joined: Mon Jul 15, 2013 8:28 pm
Location: Greenwich Village

Re: A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick, 2019)

#163 Post by FrauBlucher » Fri Jul 10, 2020 10:46 pm

I just finished watching this. Count me in for a yes. It has left me profoundly sad. I don't have much to add right now. It has to settle in for me. I am grappling with whether the acts are selfless or selfish. I need more time.

imperialwi
Joined: Thu Dec 10, 2020 3:30 pm

Re: A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick, 2019)

#164 Post by imperialwi » Fri Dec 11, 2020 11:15 am

This movie is fantastic, and I would love to see it given the Criterion treatment. Since they've done so for all (?) his movies, I hope they release this soon.

User avatar
willoneill
Joined: Wed Mar 18, 2009 10:10 am
Location: Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

Re: A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick, 2019)

#165 Post by willoneill » Fri Dec 11, 2020 1:35 pm

imperialwi wrote:
Fri Dec 11, 2020 11:15 am
This movie is fantastic, and I would love to see it given the Criterion treatment. Since they've done so for all (?) his movies, I hope they release this soon.
I assume, at this point, that Criterion is going in order, which means there's still To The Wonder, Knight of Cups, and Song to Song first.

User avatar
therewillbeblus
Joined: Tue Dec 22, 2015 3:40 pm

Re: A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick, 2019)

#166 Post by therewillbeblus » Fri Dec 11, 2020 2:06 pm

Isn't A Hidden Life a Fox title? I'm not sure what Malick's level of control over his films is, but either way- if you really want it, just grab the current blu

User avatar
willoneill
Joined: Wed Mar 18, 2009 10:10 am
Location: Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

Re: A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick, 2019)

#167 Post by willoneill » Fri Dec 11, 2020 2:28 pm

therewillbeblus wrote:
Fri Dec 11, 2020 2:06 pm
Isn't A Hidden Life a Fox title? I'm not sure what Malick's level of control over his films is, but either way- if you really want it, just grab the current blu
And do that quickly ... it's pretty much only available from third-party sellers at this point. I've had the blu sitting on my self for nearly a nearly a year, since it came out. The theatrical release in Ottawa was announced for late March, then cancelled because of COVID. When the theatres re-opened in July, it was listed as coming soon but I heard that Disney refused to re-book it for them. It's the only Malick I haven't seen in a cinema. But I think over the Christmas holidays I need to give in and watch it at home.

User avatar
therewillbeblus
Joined: Tue Dec 22, 2015 3:40 pm

Re: A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick, 2019)

#168 Post by therewillbeblus » Fri Dec 11, 2020 2:59 pm

This isn't the only Malick I've watched at home, but it is the only Malick I've flat-out hated

User avatar
domino harvey
Dot Com Dom
Joined: Wed Jan 11, 2006 2:42 pm

Re: A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick, 2019)

#169 Post by domino harvey » Fri Dec 11, 2020 3:01 pm

Seeing the three hour running time for this one was a great reminder that just because I've already seen all of Malick's films up to it doesn't mean I need to keep that streak going

User avatar
DarkImbecile
Ask me about my visible cat breasts
Joined: Mon Dec 09, 2013 6:24 pm
Location: Albuquerque, NM

Re: A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick, 2019)

#170 Post by DarkImbecile » Fri Dec 11, 2020 3:07 pm

Oh, OK, very interesting, thanks!

<adds two more names to the purge list>

User avatar
Brian C
I hate to be That Pedantic Guy but...
Joined: Wed Sep 16, 2009 11:58 am
Location: Chicago, IL

Re: A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick, 2019)

#171 Post by Brian C » Fri Dec 11, 2020 3:53 pm

I didn’t like it either, and I see that I commented on it upthread back when I didn’t have this terrible case of viewers’ block that’s been afflicting me for months.

So go ahead and put me on your purge list - in the spirit of the movie, my own self-satisfaction over my defiance is the only thing that matters to me.

User avatar
HinkyDinkyTruesmith
Joined: Mon Aug 07, 2017 10:21 pm

Re: A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick, 2019)

#172 Post by HinkyDinkyTruesmith » Fri Dec 11, 2020 4:01 pm

This was one of the last films I saw in theatres before the pandemic, and although I'm a big admirer of Malick it'd been years since I'd last seen one of his films (for some reason). I also wasn't in a good frame of mind while watching it, I found it slow and repetitive, and had a hard time grasping the 'why' of the film beyond the obvious point that the film marked. I even had a headache at one point. But I remember, very vividly, around the last twenty minutes, suddenly a slow dawning coming over me as everything about the film came together and in the end, especially as the Eliot quote appears on the screen, being extraordinarily moved. I'd like to watch it again––rewatches of films where I didn't really get the point until the end the first time tend to be very successful for me––but it seems to me one of Malick's most important films.

User avatar
swo17
Bloodthirsty Butcher
Joined: Tue Apr 15, 2008 10:25 am
Location: SLC, UT

Re: A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick, 2019)

#173 Post by swo17 » Fri Dec 11, 2020 4:17 pm

Good news, DI, I sorta liked this film, so we get to be friends!

User avatar
TheKieslowskiHaze
Joined: Fri Apr 03, 2020 10:37 am

Re: A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick, 2019)

#174 Post by TheKieslowskiHaze » Fri Dec 11, 2020 4:21 pm

domino harvey wrote:
Fri Dec 11, 2020 3:01 pm
Seeing the three hour running time for this one was a great reminder that just because I've already seen all of Malick's films up to it doesn't mean I need to keep that streak going
I appreciate long movies; even when digressive and overstuffed, I usually like the experience of the long trek. I rarely finish a long movie and think: That should have been shorter.

I finished A Hidden Life and thought: That should have been WAY shorter.

It's quite good, otherwise. Not exactly a triumphant return to form, but legitimately moving.

User avatar
Pavel
Joined: Fri Aug 07, 2020 2:41 pm

Re: A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick, 2019)

#175 Post by Pavel » Fri Dec 11, 2020 4:51 pm

domino harvey wrote:
Fri Dec 11, 2020 3:01 pm
Seeing the three hour running time for this one was a great reminder that just because I've already seen all of Malick's films up to it doesn't mean I need to keep that streak going
Since you have no intention of watching it, I'll summarize it for you: "I would prefer not to fight." [repeat for 3 hours]
(I actually kinda like it btw.)

Post Reply