Tag Archives: jessica chastain

“The Tree of Life” Filming Locations

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Malick, What is the Meaning

Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life takes us on a passage through the Heavens, and then we are carried above volcanoes and then plunge below the surface into the deep ocean.

We see a few of our most celebrated scientific images of all time. I have wondered why we are on this journey with Malick. I don’t think this concept received an answer.

During the movie, we visit diverse locations, including Waco, Texas; Villa Lante; Death Valley; and the Sun. Malick reminds us of space, living things, and the significance of our humanity. Bringing up such questions: Being raised by a violent father and an angelic mother, does it balance a person? Does history shape our existence?

I had the opportunity to watch the movie the other night. A viewing experience that sometimes bewildered me with visual and aural beauty. Almost bored with wandering attention, I was surprised to see dinosaurs in the movie, which I believe was meant to explain why man is so violent, but I’m not sure.

The DVD comes with a 30-minute featurette about the behind-the-scenes look at the making of the movie. I watched the featurette, and it didn’t help explain Malick’s choice of locations.

“The nuns taught us there are two ways through life: the way of nature, and the way of grace. You have to choose which one you’ll follow.”— Mrs. O’Brien (Jessica Chastain) in Terrence Malick’s “The Tree of Life”

Death Valley

In the Mojave Desert, located in Eastern California, lies Death Valley. Records indicated the area registers the lowest, driest, and hottest locations in North America. The valley gained fame in 1849 during the California Gold Rush. Its title, “death,” didn’t hold much weight in the era, with only one death recorded during the Gold Rush.

On July 10, 1913, the hottest air temperature ever recorded was 134 degrees Fahrenheit at Furnace Creek, a perfect name for the event. During this period, the desert reached 129 degrees Fahrenheit for five days.

At one point (2.588 million to 12000 years ago), the area was a succession of inland seas called Lake Manly. A freshwater lake that eventually evaporated as the temperatures in the region grew hotter. How this relates to Malick’s movie, I don’t know.

Texas

The second-largest state in the United States is Texas, nearly twice the size of Germany and Japan combined. The large size of Texas brings divergent climatic regions, and rivers form three of its borders. Thus, the state is diverse yet beautiful, with deserts, prairies, grasslands, forests, and coastlines. For this reason, the large state resembles the American South and Southwest.

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Villa Lante

The Villa Lante is a historical garden of wonder near Viterbo in central Italy. Construction of Villa Lante started around 1566. The estate has changed owners many, many times since its development. Families lived in the Villa until around the 19th century.

The property is famous for its architectural design and water fountains, drawing thousands of visitors for centuries.

In 1944, Allied bombing heavily hit the estate due to the fall of Rome. In the late 20th century, Dr. Angelo Cantoni purchased the Villa. He managed a very long restoration process. As of 2014, the Villa belongs to the Republic of Italy.

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The Sun

The Sun is a star at the center of our Solar System. It has a mass 330,000 times that of Earth. The Sun emits sunlight that supports all life on Earth and shapes Earth’s climate and weather. Because of the Sun’s godlike nature, it controls Earth’s well-being. Some societies have believed the Sun to be a deity.

Mauna Loa Volcano

Mauna Loa, located in the tropical paradise of Hawaii, is one of the largest volcanoes on Earth. One of the five volcanoes that form the Islands of Hawaii, the volcano has remained active for roughly 700,000 years. However, Mauna Loa’s most recent eruption in 1984 caused no deaths, whereas those in 1926 and 1950 devastated villages.

Hilo, Hawaii, has been built on lava flows from Mauna Loa since the 19th century. Because Mauna Loa is still active and evolving, the volcano is watched continuously for the safety of its inhabitants.

“I film quite a bit of footage, then edit. Changes before your eyes, things you can do and things you can’t. My attitude is always ‘let it keep rolling.'”— Terrence Malick

Malick: A Hidden Life

I have shown you scenes from Malick’s movie, hoping it helps you understand his overall message about the nature of man and his many forms.

Malick said once, “Perhaps when I have ten films behind me, I will have something worth saying.”

A pivotal part of Malick’s films is the music he uses for the score. We cannot hear his music now; it plays only in the movie, where the soundtrack plays a vital part in The Tree of Life. The visual locations with the significant compositions by the greatest composers, including Mozart, Brahms, Berlioz, and others, experience the nature and grace of humankind.

Molly’s Game with Jessica Chastain & Idris Elba

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Written and directed by Aaron Sorkin, the writer who brought us The Social Network, Moneyball, A Few Good Men, and the popular television series The West Wing, takes a turn in the world of Molly Brown with Molly’s Game. A true story about an Olympic hopeful skier’s career is wrecked. At the age of 26, Bloom uses her tenacity, stamina, wits, and perspicacity and takes over the ultimate boys club of exclusive high-stakes poker and builds an empire.

Sorkin directorial debut received an Oscar nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay.  His speed and energy can clearly be felt and seen as we watch Jessica Chastain, two-time Oscar-nominated actress for The Help and Zero Dark Thirty, plays Bloom. Chastain embodies Bloom like she does all the characters she plays.

In an interview, Sorkin talked about how he wanted Chastain to play this role. He envisioned her as Bloom and wrote with her in mind. Clearly, Chastain commands the movie, and Sorkin choice of casting is pristine. As a powerhouse, Chastain becomes Bloom as she runs a high-stakes poker game for a decade before becoming a target of the FBI.

Idris Elba, known for Star Trek: Beyond and Beasts of No Nation, joins Chastain as her only ally and criminal defense lawyer Charlie Jaffey. It is through Jaffey’s story that we learn there is much more Bloom than what was printed in the tabloids. But, this isn’t new news to the audience. We are wiser than Sorkin allows us to be.

Perhaps, that is where the story drops and we are lost among the charismatic supporting characters of the story.  I ask myself, “How did such a bright person alike Bloom get mixed up with a bunch of tainted characters?”

I am not sure if the scene with her father, played by Kevin Costner, answers that question, though I was hoping it would.

Her undoing was Russian gangsters and her abuse of Adderall, Xanax, cocaine, alcohol, and more becoming a drug addict.  She is also abused and kicked, which Sorkin cuts to her skiing accident in the movie. Are these justifiable reasons for her demise?

The movie has a drive and energy coming from Chastain, and I admire her ability to portray such a complicated woman. Perhaps, you will see where Bloom took the wrong turn and ended up going against the Russians and FBI with the help of Jaffey.

Daniel Pemberton’s electronic soundtrack with titles like “Starring Down a Mountain,” “Play Your Hand,” and “All the Beauty in the World” adds to the intensity of the story. Pemberton has an impressive repertoire of both movies and television including Black Mirror, King Arthur: Legend of the Sword, Steve Jobs (Sorkin wrote the screenplay,) and Peep Show.

Chastain and Elba are surrounded by a stellar supporting cast, including Michael Cera, Jeremy Strong, Bill Camp, and Chris O’Dowd.

The bonus features are light with Building an Empire – Sorkin, and Chastain commenting on Molly Bloom’s true story.

In the final analysis, the positive aspect of Sorkin’s writing and directing is he did not glorify Bloom’s adventure. He presented a tapestry of anticipation, deception, and repartee.

 

“Miss Julie” Storyline and Trailer

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MissJulie

Miss Julie is not a movie to get excited about because of the slow pacing, which turned me off. At times, the stellar acting kept me interested. If you are not familiar with the play’s setting, you will most likely have a hard time liking or even understanding the movie.

Both Jessica Chastain (from my hometown) and Colin Farrell kept me watching the movie despite the stark production. The undertones between the characters came off very strongly. I was curious about each character’s next move or motive. The cinematography created a visual masterpiece with darkness in light.

Directed by the legendary actress Liv Ullmann, the story takes place in Northern Ireland in 1890. Miss Julie, a daughter of a Baron, lives a very privileged life. She was raised to be independent, like a man of this era. The movie doesn’t make it clear why she behaves this way, but I hear the stage play makes it clear what drives her to be so independent. In the movie, she is still a strong woman who feels she can flirt with men the way men would usually flirt with her.

The movie begins with a flashback scene of her as a child, which I totally enjoyed. Here we see her reading one of her books as the story implies loneliness and neglect in an empty house. The story flashes forward to mid-summer’s night in 1890.

There are only three characters in the movie. Miss Julie (Chastain) is an adult. John (Farrell) is the Baron’s Valet, and Kathleen (Samantha Morton) is John’s fiancée and the cook.

Like the stage play, the dialogue moves the story. John and Kathleen are having a conversation in the kitchen. John grumbles about his duties and Miss Julie’s behavior. He explains to Kathleen how she stooped below her station, dancing with the gamekeeper and even ordering him to dance. John takes on the air of Miss Julie and orders Kathleen to clean and fetch. As he talks to Kathleen, he longs for faraway places like Paris. He is well-traveled for a servant and has taken care to get educated. Miss Julie enters the kitchen, and the dialogue shifts to include her presence as the mistress of the house and a potential romantic or sexual interest. She becomes more assertive and takes charge of what happens between her and John.

Now the story is arranged for what the battle is really about.  Who will maintain the upper hand as it sways back and forth? The power change in the story is a bit confusing if the viewer overlooks the nuances and fundamental symbolism the stage play offers.

All in all, Miss Julie is an intellectual story that needs a bit of spice in its pacing to keep me interested.