Whether you loved it or hate it, please explain why.

Wow, this film divides opinion like no other! We watched this with our (adult) daughter last night and the result was one early bail out and two who stuck with it and got something out of the film. If the pre-'evolution' scenes had continued much longer I'd have bailed out too but during the wonderful 'evolution' scenes I settled down with genuine intrigue and then, for me, the true story started with a wonderful dreaminess and cinematic style before a short but stunning finale that allows the viewer to interpret the total film and draw their own conclusions. I've seen better films but not many that have really made me think about what I've just seen.

I didn't like it simply because I found it boring. I can understand why it got some acclaim but, seriously, I was struggling to keep awake for it.

It's been a while since I saw this film, but what made me dislike it is it makes little to no effort in explaining itself to its audience. It gives 20% then lets the audience draw their own conclusions for whatever the 80% means. The director then takes credit for the creativity of the audience.

Speaking of drawing conclusions, the only thing I "got" from my first viewing (like a lot of people) is it tries to contrast a tiny speck of humanity and what it means to be human against the vast, mysterious, and ever-evolving universe. While that's a workable premise, I felt the director wasted too much time on something that could be explained succinctly. Once you got the idea, you could pretty much just leave the theater and experience the world yourself.

If you enjoyed this film, you would probably like Love (2011). They are quite similar that I dislike both equally. Flashbacks, reality, fiction, space and finally viewer confusion. Time sink.

FWIW.. I connected with some parts of the film at a very intimate emotional level.

I have kids. If you dont have little kids yes, maybe you won't understand this.

There are scenes in the beginning of the film where the Pitt and Christinsin characters are new parents. The way it was filmed totally captured the feeling of that experence for me.

The feeling of bringing a first child into the world is fascinating and overwhelming. Its indescribable. To feeling to witness a new child that is yours, that has your genes, that has slight discernable traces of your features and your traits be brought forward in front of you into the world. The feeling that overcomes you as a new parent is you never want to leave this child ever -- and you dread every time you get reminded of the truth that you will one day have to die and you will have to leave them and never see them again and that is just the way life is.

There is also the scene where the new born child is growing up and shots of the feet and curtains. Totally captured the feeling of bringing up a new child in the world and the feeling of loss when you think back and ask yourself, "where did the time fly and go and what was i doing? I swear they were a new born just yesterday and they could barely stand up.. why did I not spend more time with them when they were growing up at that age -- I will never be given a chance to re-live that ever again" and the regrets that go through your mind every ones in a blue moon.

Stuff like that.

it hits right at the heart strings.



"Oh, Mama, can this really be the end, to be stuck inside of mobile
with the memphis blues again"

This is my favorite movie.

I respond strongly to films with religious/spiritual themes (i.e. The Seventh Seal, The Passion of Joan of Arc, Balthazar) and that is certainly one reason I love this film. Never has a movie made me want to be a better person like this one.

The communicative possibilities of film fascinate me. Few filmmakers attempt to convey an idea or a story primarily through images, but that is precisely what Malick is doing here. The images have great meaning, such as the dinosaur who chooses not to eat that other dinosaur, which I take to be the first act of grace on our planet. Sure the images are beautiful, but they serve a purpose, which may be lost on people who are too precipices with the film's visual beauty.

Many claim this film is 'too personal' and cannot be appreciated by the general public, but I felt in the scenes of Jack as a child that I was watching myself grow up. I felt the wonder of childhood and the loss of that innocence again, which I found to be apowerful and impactful experience.

The film is different. It's like Malick was filming poetry where everyone else was filming prose. A lot of people don't like Frost, Cummings, or Eliot, but that doesn't mean they weren't masters of their craft. Watching this film is like reading great poetry; it is evocative and often difficult, but beautiful if you are open to it.

Also shout out to the soundtrack, which I think is beyond perfect.

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