To the Wonder
Struck this time by the deep similarities of the three most significant characters (excepting Rachel McAdams), people who have a desire for love but who cannot figure out how to maintain it. The film strikes me as maybe the most explicitly theological of Malick's works (and that's saying something), given its explicit movement "to the wonder," its mirroring of human marriage with the biblical marriage metaphor of Christ and the church, as well as the lengthy priestly prayer late. In all of this, Malick roots love in the ascent to God, rather than in the descent to earthly desires (which is what is so devastating about the McAdams section, as well as the interlude with the handyman). In all of this, there is something downright "medieval spirituality" about the whole approach here.
Mini Review: The images here are stunning, as is the usual for Malick and his team. The film nicely parallels the commitment to the other in religion with that of marriage. While earlier Malick efforts flow effortlessly from one locale to the next, there are edits in this film that feel downright violent, lyrical beauty mixed with the banal suburbia of track houses and fast food restaurants. The film seems to lack the kind of material context that Malick's earlier efforts do a better job of capturing.
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