Monday, August 22, 2011 at 5:14PM Sean Penn Criticizes Malick and 'The Tree of Life'
We all know Sean Penn speaks his mind all too often and now he's criticizing his role in Terrence Malick's latest film The Tree of Life. Penn complains of his characters purpose in the scenes set in the present where his younger portrayer Hunter McCracken acted across Brad Pitt's as the son who had a particular dislike for his father. The New Yorker posted the dialogue from the French newspaper Le Figaro: "I didn't at all find on the screen the emotion of the script, which is the most magnificent one that I've ever read," said Penn.
Sean Penn goes on to say that:
A clearer and more conventional narrative would have helped the film without, in my opinion, lessening its beauty and its impact. Frankly, I’m still trying to figure out what I’m doing there and what I was supposed to add in that context! What’s more, Terry himself never managed to explain it to me clearly.
All is not lost for any sort of good will towards Terrence Malick and The Tree of Life: "It's a film I recommend on the condition that one go only without preconceptions. It's up to each to find a personal emotional or spiritual connection. Those that reach this generally leave very moved." Certainly this method of viewing the film described has worked for me, receiving great reviews (even from yours truly at Get The Big Picture) and it currently sits atop my top 5 films of 2011.
Even Brad Pitt had only good things to say about Malick, that "working with Malick had a lasting effect on his career". On his shooting style: "It’s changed everything I’ve done since,” he said, describing Malick's shooting style: "He’s like a guy standing there with a butterfly net, waiting for that moment to go by."
The Tree of Life was in post-production for three years and had gone through 5 editors until the film was released theatrically by Fox Searchlight this past May. Here's hoping to a beautiful box set edition soon.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
Reader Comments (2)
Here's hoping for one of those versions that those five editors came up with to make it to video release, at least. My feelings about the movie are about like Penn's and I figured a better movie was SOMEWHERE. HE says it was in the script, I THOUGHT it was on a file in the editing storage somewhere.
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