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 enlarge | Director: Terrence Malick
Actors: Kirk Acevedo, Penelope Allen, Benjamin Green, Simon Billig, Mark Boone Junior
Studio: 20th Century Fox
Category: DVD
List Price: $14.98
Buy New: $3.71
You Save: $11.27 (75%)
New (66) Used (50) Collectible (2) from $1.72
Avg. Customer Rating:  905 reviews
Sales Rank: 10447
Format: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Dts Surround Sound, Dvd-video, Widescreen, Ntsc
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Subtitled), Spanish (Subtitled)
Rating: R (Restricted)
Number Of Items: 1
Running Time: 170
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.3
Dimensions (in): 7.5 x 5.1 x 0.6
MPN: D2003000D
UPC: 024543030003
EAN: 0024543030003
ASIN: B00005PJ8T
Theatrical Release Date: January 8, 1999
Release Date: May 21, 2002
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
 Worst war movie out there February 29, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
I've seen some bad propaganda war movies made during WW2 that look fantastic next to this confusing mass of drivel. Luckily, it's on TV a lot, so you can avoid getting burned buying the DVD. Use matchsticks to keep your eyes pried open while you watch it, or if you have insomnia, it's the perfect cure. One very small action segment early on, and then a lot of meaningless anti-war blather and choppy flashbacks are all you have left. After the early action segment where they assault some bunkers and a Japanese base camp, you can go ahead and turn it off and watch a Simpson episode. You won't have missed anything.
 Moby Dick goes to war February 17, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
Movies are all about expectation management. If you go into this one expecting a thrilling war movie, you will be sorely disappointed. I think most of the criticisms given here are justified. There is not much character development; the pacing is slow; the story doesn't seem to go anywhere.
So why four stars? Well, I don't think "The Thin Red Line" is really about war. It's a meditation on the nature of reality. Is the universe good, evil, or random? Like "Moby Dick", many different philosophies are presented in the midst of a wandering plot. The watcher is forced to search for some rhyme or reason, but at the same time you can argue that there isn't much there. Your answer might correspond to your own ideas about the meaning of life. Our own lives have defined beginnings and ends, but most don't follow neat plot lines. Many people spend their entire lives searching for their own meaning and purpose.
I'm not crazy about how these philosophies are conveyed. Rule #1 of movie making is "show, don't tell." The characters here only exist to voice their particular worldview, either in long voiceovers or abstract arguments with other soldiers. However, despite the questionable technique, many of these voices are profoundly moving.
***MINOR SPOILER***
I was espcially struck by scenes involving dying baby bird. The camera closes on the bird in close range after a scene of terrible mayhem. Later in the movie, the main character muses that "one man can look at a dying bird and see nothing but unanswered pain... another man looks and sees glory... something smiles back at him." This is the key to the movie and the driver behind the shots of nature in all its beauty and brutality.
***
I didn't really see this movie as an indictment of war. In the words of Robert E Lee, ""It is well that war is so terrible, lest we grow too fond of it." Even a war fought for the best intentions is horrific when it comes to the battle field and individual suffering. In keeping with that, I didn't think Nick Nolte's character was meant to lampoon the evil petty officer, though he's certainly unsympathetic. At the end of the day, I think the movie uses him the same way it uses everyone else, as a mouthpiece for a particular point of view.
Bottom line: requires a lot of patience, but ultimately quite provoking. The cinematography and Pacific Islander singer are quite lovely. Worth watching.
 20 years later.... February 10, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
Terrence Malick decided to come back from self imposed exile after 20 years (!) and made this film. While it does ramble a bit at times, it is one of the most unique, poetic, transcendtal war films ever made. There are such etheral, extraordinary moments here. I saw this in a theater, and despite the fact that some audience members making really stupid remarks during the film (someone said "shoot that son of a bitch" real loud during the film...a**hole), it didn't detract from the fact that this is one of the most artistic films ever made about war. Many people compared this film to Saving Private Ryan, which was released the same year. Private Ryan was a Hollywood film, this film is an art film. It may sound a little pretentious, but The Thin Red Line captured the reality of war a lot more accurately than Spielberg's film did. This was the better of the 2 films, and while many dislike this film intensely, I don't understand why.
I find it remarkable that despite a 20 year layoff, Malick came back and made such a memorable film. I read somewhere that the original version of this was rougly 6 hours. I don't know, but if that is true, I would very much like to see that, because I believe it would be an ultimate masterpiece. But this 3 hour version is the only one that's been released to date, so hopefully a longer director's cut (if it does exist) will emerge.
Profound achievement January 26, 2008
I feel that this movie is magnificent and certainly worthwhile for someone to go see. I am struck by the fact that there exists such a polarization in audiences with their varied reactions to this film. Perhaps art and interpreting aesthetics is a lot more subjective than some of us believe. There is no universal or objective conclusion we all collectively reach, merely divisive reactions we all harbor (which are especially true for "The Thin Red Line").
Terrence Malick graduated from Harvard with a degree in Philosophy, so naturally his screenplays and direction in general are unique and not commonplace to mainstream cinema. Personally, I do not hold any type of aversion for Philosophy or Poetry to be melded into a film. I find that abstract approaches can be just as meaningful as a more conventional approach would yield. The first time I saw this movie, I had somewhat of an ambivalent reaction. I realized I had witnessed some of the most powerful and sublime scenes created, yet, my mind wanted a big finale that most war films have, and I wanted a better structure for the disjointed story to embody. I know that I have been conditioned by all the films I have seen before, and wanted this one to follow roads predetermined by my own discrimination... I almost wrote the film off as "artsy" or even "pretentious", but so much of it resonated with me long after I watched it. I began thinking more about some of those beautiful scenes, and I found that my mind had been stimulated.
I don't believe all people can appreciate "The Thin Red Line" the first time they watch it. They almost have to be prepared for it, in the sense that this is not a run-of-the-mill war or action film. This is much deeper and cogitative than standard fare. I would surmise that most audiences generally want to turn off their minds and prop their feet up when they watch movies. Most don't seem to be interested in looking deeper, or considering abstract notions that transcend stock entertainment.
Maybe "The Thin Red Line" was not marketed accurately, and many viewers were caught off guard at what unfolded.
I think this movie is outstanding and worthy of film goers who are going to give it some deserved thought and consideration. I feel weary of patrons who deem this film as 'pseudo-intellectual' or 'dreck'. I think that an open mind is essential in understanding "The Thin Red Line" and other art forms that reach for virtuosity.
 Is It Done Yet? December 17, 2007
1 out of 3 found this review helpful
Sorry - I grant everyone scads of talent all around: it takes EXCEPTIONAL talent to turn such naturally exciting and interesting material into such a soporific wet noodle. But this movie is a huge snooze. First comes storytelling and THEN you can get artsy all over the place, OK? There are better war films... but not a huge number of worse ones. This is one of those DVD's where you keep checking the "time remaining" to see how much longer this can go on. Trust me, it'll seem longer than the clock indicates.
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