#310 - Days Of Heaven
We’re going all the way back to the early days of the career of mythic director Terrence Malick with our first viewing of Days of Heaven (1978), starring Richard Gere, Brooke Adams, and Sam Shepard. The film follows an impoverished couple posing as siblings while working on a wealthy farmer’s land in the 1910s, where a deceptively simple plan gradually develops into a tragic love triangle. Its journey to the screen was tumultuous, with the script largely abandoned during shooting, the production going over budget, and Malick spending two years piecing together the final edit, all before the film struggled at the box office and caused his 20 year exile from filmmaking. Nearly 50 years later, however, we found an incredible piece of work. Its brisk editing creates a remarkably efficient and flowing 90 minute experience, painting a portrait of the impoverished working class against much larger biblical themes. The film’s extraordinary, Oscar winning cinematography is among the best we’ve seen, capturing both the beauty and destruction of the countryside and its wildlife in unforgettable images. The narrative itself is fascinating in its simplicity, leaving plenty of room to read between the lines as we break down the characters, their motivations, and what Malick is ultimately trying to say. Needless to say, we came away from this discussion incredibly impressed with Days of Heaven. Join a crew of wannabe film critics review a different movie every week, and discuss other nonsense. Listen to new episodes every Monday. Record your own podcasts with Zencastr at https://zencastr.com/?via=cinemaeffect to get 30% off today. Timestamps ;) 0:00 - Days Of Heaven Review 1:16:10 - News Chat 1:27:57 - What We've Been Watching 1:36:24 - Question Of The Week
