This latest work by Terrence Malick is as divisive as it is artsy, as random as it is romantic. Frankly, Knight of Cups is one of the strangest movies I have ever watched.
Luckily, I decided to read up a little bit on Malick before I watched, and discovered his varied and long history in filmmaking. The man is known for movies that are a little off-kilter, but this one goes through with almost no way for the viewer to figure out, well, what the movie is about.
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The film is split into six chapters, with Rick (Christian Bale) as the lead. He interacts with mostly a solitary character in each chapter, and the only audio is heavily muted conversation and frequent but randomly and slightly creepy whispered narration. Bale is never really introduced as Rick, in fact it was so poorly articulated who this man was that I had to look on the box directly after the movie ended to remember his name. Rick goes through these different phases in his life searching for something. He interacts heavily with his brother, but Rick also has a factory line of girls he is interested in. They come and go, and it is obvious to the viewer that Rick is never completely content.
But knowing the characters names aren’t important in a Terrence Malick film. Following the plot is not important in this film. The film is less a movie in the traditional sense, and more a piece of art. The camera angles and shots are nothing short of spectacular, and hardcore fans of artsy movies are likely to be sucked up into this world without a seconds pause. It is open to interpretation in tons of different ways, with the viewer being guided often only by murmured lines.
This is a much more visual film. It is quiet, but there is constant motion and changing camera angles. The camera gets very up close and personal in every scene, and shows all of the emotion portrayed. It also doesn’t hurt having tons of close ups of gorgeous actress after actress for almost two straight hours. This is not a movie for the standard moviegoer, but it is definitely one that can captivate a viewer. If you love artsy films that are more about the director than the actors, then this is the one for you. But if you are an everyday, standard entertainment junkie, then I’d probably give this one a miss.
The special features on this blu-ray consist of a gigantic “making of…” section that goes through interviews with the cast. They give tons of insight on their experience with the movie, and provided for me the best part of this whole experience. The actors spoke of a tremendous atmosphere and creative energy. If this is what you are expecting, it is a great one, if not, you may want to move back into the mainstream for your next choice.
