Days of Heaven (Malick, 1978): BFI Southbank, NFT3, 1.50pm
This Terrence Malick classic is on an extended run at BFI Southbank. Details here.
Time Out review:
Asking a colleague how anyone could encapsulate the exquisite,
earthy poetry of Terrence Malick’s cinema in a mere 180 words, he
responded: ‘It’s easy! “Blah, blah, magic hour. Blah, blah, voiceover.
Blah, blah, the awesome power of nature. Hyperbolic sign off”.’ Fans of
the director’s small but perfectly formed oeuvre will know that these
are all indeed typical Malick motifs. But fans will also know that they
were put to their most sublimely sensuous and conveniently approachable
use in ‘Days of Heaven’, his peach-hued masterwork from 1978 which opens
ahead of the BFI’s full Malick retrospective. Richard Gere and Brooke
Adams take time out from life to frolic in the swaying wheatfields of
the Texas Panhandle, hawkishly overseen by Sam Shephard’s tragic Jay
Gatsby figure who eventually lets his suspicions get the better of him.
Theirs is a tale of almost biblical profundity: a furtive love allowed
to bloom momentarily in this glowing, golden paradise before commerce,
responsibility, law and violence put a heartbreaking end to their
innocent bliss. Visually and thematically, it’s still one of the most
beautiful films ever made.'
David Jenkins
Take a look at the wonderful opening credits.
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