THE TREE OF LIFE PUZZLES SOME FILMVIEWERS
The Tree of Life, written and directed by Terrence Malick, may provoke single members of audiences to walk out, as they did recently at a screening in chic West Los Angeles. Those who are married and have kids will remain, transfixed. Memories of childrearing combined with a lyrical filmscore of classical music will keep them in their seats for nearly 2½ hours without much of a dialog and very few faint voiceovers. A hidden plot, however, may escape their attention as they view middle class Mr. O’Brien (played by Brad Pitt) try to bring up three boys in a suburb of Waco, Texas, as a strict father who goes to Catholic mass, enjoys a little fun, and focuses on the piano, organ, and classical music from an LP recordplayer as if he wished music had been his career choice. Set in the 1950s, the film begins with a funeral for their 19-year-old son, presumably in the Korean War, and the impact of that death on the family. Among the three boys, the focus is on 11-year-old Jack (played by Hunter McCracken), who tries to reconcile his father’s demands with the more precious view of life from his mother (played by Jessica Chastain). From the way O’Brien treats his kids, one might infer that Malick wants to explain why the 19-year-old died. But instead the impact of the O’Briens’ childrearing on Jack comes in the form of a flashforward to a Jack (now played by Sean Penn) as an executive in Houston who is still searching for his identity. The screen begins with a quotation from Job, features a preacher who tries to explain misfortune, and has artistic visuals that suggest the beginning of the universe and end of the planet earth. The Tree of Life should best be viewed at home, where parents can guide their children—and themselves—through an exploration that prefers cinematic realism to storytelling. MH