Knight of Cups
This tale of a man drinking from a cup that puts him in a deep sleep parralels* Socrates in multiple respects, with the one just mentioned coalescing with the existential detachment of Bale being an 'alien' in both his body and world, disconnected and unsure of what purpose and experiences lie outside.
It really made clear to me the merit of Socrates' argument pertaining to reincarnation of the human soul, in modern terms translating to a genetic code being transcribed into DNA by our ancestors and passed on to us, forming our identities and personalities in a mismatch, of which existential crises and detachment are consequences.
The move to an even more internalist perspective feels like a natural progression of his work and delivers some the powerful scenes of Malick yet, but does so in a sometimes unnecessarily repititious and kitschy plot. This latter adjective relates to the escapist narratives surrounding drugs and other such things we have now already become familiar with through many other works, though unlike the clipped versions of reviews I read on RT this only was of negligible importance to the plot as a whole. A work like Stroszek (1977) much better depicted that entrapment of the human condition and the failings attempts to escape it.
(My review for Stroszek: A tale about how misunderstanding the world, its inhabitants and the self implies miscommunication and subsequently leads to a bleak state of loneliness and despair. Lost in the world, the inhabitants of Stroszeks universe seek to reach the end of a road they don't know the location of. We see them try and fail various paths and we see them try and fail paths they have taken before in a way that only sends them adrift, farther into the dark with every step they take.)
Admittedly, Knight of Cups is more about connecting with reality, living true experiences and knowing who you really are (he doesn't want to love, he wants to love experience).
* just to confirm: in one scene we see fish swimming towards the light/ beauty/ truth while Malick talks about the soul remembering his love. This truth and beauty everyone seeks after, Socrates argues, is eternal life. Knight of Cups, though quite disjointedly, is a tale of a father somewhat dementing, his son and eventually we see a shot of the grandson, each living on in each other fragmentedly by passing on the parts that determine who they are. Even more specific: they die, and come back in that fragmented form not fully in touch or cognizant of themselves or the reality surrounding them (there is one knight and multiple cups (deaths)).
Rating it is pretty difficult, as I know precisely jack-shit about all the tarot stuff that seemed to have significant symbolic importance and I know too little about for example the tale of the holy grail or even Socrates for that matter to adequately assess its value. I'm sure some scholar months from now will have a proper analysis on it after which Malick will get the redemption he knew he would have to wait some time for.
It really made clear to me the merit of Socrates' argument pertaining to reincarnation of the human soul, in modern terms translating to a genetic code being transcribed into DNA by our ancestors and passed on to us, forming our identities and personalities in a mismatch, of which existential crises and detachment are consequences.
The move to an even more internalist perspective feels like a natural progression of his work and delivers some the powerful scenes of Malick yet, but does so in a sometimes unnecessarily repititious and kitschy plot. This latter adjective relates to the escapist narratives surrounding drugs and other such things we have now already become familiar with through many other works, though unlike the clipped versions of reviews I read on RT this only was of negligible importance to the plot as a whole. A work like Stroszek (1977) much better depicted that entrapment of the human condition and the failings attempts to escape it.
(My review for Stroszek: A tale about how misunderstanding the world, its inhabitants and the self implies miscommunication and subsequently leads to a bleak state of loneliness and despair. Lost in the world, the inhabitants of Stroszeks universe seek to reach the end of a road they don't know the location of. We see them try and fail various paths and we see them try and fail paths they have taken before in a way that only sends them adrift, farther into the dark with every step they take.)
Admittedly, Knight of Cups is more about connecting with reality, living true experiences and knowing who you really are (he doesn't want to love, he wants to love experience).
* just to confirm: in one scene we see fish swimming towards the light/ beauty/ truth while Malick talks about the soul remembering his love. This truth and beauty everyone seeks after, Socrates argues, is eternal life. Knight of Cups, though quite disjointedly, is a tale of a father somewhat dementing, his son and eventually we see a shot of the grandson, each living on in each other fragmentedly by passing on the parts that determine who they are. Even more specific: they die, and come back in that fragmented form not fully in touch or cognizant of themselves or the reality surrounding them (there is one knight and multiple cups (deaths)).
Rating it is pretty difficult, as I know precisely jack-shit about all the tarot stuff that seemed to have significant symbolic importance and I know too little about for example the tale of the holy grail or even Socrates for that matter to adequately assess its value. I'm sure some scholar months from now will have a proper analysis on it after which Malick will get the redemption he knew he would have to wait some time for.
Mini Review: There was supposed to be purpose. But, drunk, he no longer sees, and is now an alien in his world, disconnected and unsure. Seems to involve a harsh meta-narrative on the very place and community he films the movie at.
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