Rating: 
Summary: Still don't know if WAR is HELL?!?!?
Review: If you're a veteran, like me, you will hate this movie. If your a self-defined intellectual, who believes you can figure out the very nature of mankind, no matter what time period he is from, or where he was raised, this is for you. If you really want to know what went through a soldier's mind during WWII, ask a WWII vet, before they have all passed on and you have to learn our history through Hollywood's eyes.
Rating: 
Summary: Malick's tribute to himself
Review: This was one of this year's biggest dissapointments. I watched the film slowly over 3 sessions and bent over backwards to give it every chance.Thecinematography was wonderful and was the only thing that earned the film 2 stars from me. I understood the various interpersonal and universal messages that Mallick was trying to send BUT the self-indulgent slow sequences really make me yearn for Sam Peckinpagh (really!). At points, I felt embarrased for Malick having directed such an unentertaining and unengaging movie. This is a film that is easy to ignore and is not compelling in the least. I think it's utter lack of direction and confusing edits will turn-off many viewers. The overdone slow motion, mumbling, muttering and other overly dramatic devices were all successfully incorporated in the classic brooding film "Apocaplyspe Now" which infused the viewer with the directors feelings and mood. I know this film will appeal to a small niche audience of liberal revisionist self-proclaimed film buffs but the majority of rational cinemaphiles will steer clear of this.
Rating: 
Summary: Great; philosophical statement
Review: Those who don't get the film seem to have wanted an action movie instead of an actual film. I have nothing too much against Saving Private Ryan, but where that film had a straight-forward story and sometimes mundane script (the beginning and ending bookend scenes of the vet at the grave was such poorly written, overly sentimental pandering that I nearly got sick), The Thin Red Line is far more accomplished. Yes, it isn't a conventional film; but imagine if all we ever had was 'conventional.' The world would be a pretty boring place. TRL is not a typical war movie--we have far too many of those as it is. This film is a philosophical statement about the nature of humankind. The nature shots are contrasted with the action and dialogue in order to convey the sense that war brings humans closer to their original natural state than ever before; the original, natural savagery. That some chracters are more developed than others is a deliberate choice. If critics had listened to the film, they would have heard a character wonder whether 'everyone belonged the same face/same spirit.' The fact that some characters seem to blend together proves to be a perfect visual dramatization of this philosophy. Those who attack the film based on it being to intellectual reveal a fact about themselves that I would rather not know; they don't have the patience for much thought at all, and would rather have more of the same, than try anything different.
Rating:
Summary: Awesome
Review: Truly one of the best. For those who did not see through to the deeper meaning of this film... it only proves the pathetic state of public education in this country. The chickens have come home to roost!
Rating:
Summary: Never mistake a slow pace for profundity
Review: Never mind what chin-stroking "intellectuals" say about this overweight monstrosity of a film. The first order of any movie is to entertain and enlighten. This movie utterly fails in the first task, and succeeds only partly in the second. If you liked this then you'll love nature films. You'll also like watching molasses drip down and iceberg.
Rating:
Summary: What's the problem?
Review: Wha't wrong with saying, I just didn't understand this movie. I mean come on, even if you didn't like it, you had to at least recognize some brilliant film making here. What's wrong with just saying "It was over my head" ?. People tend to insult everything else in this world before they look at themselves. Usually, when something is "stupid" or "dumb" it's just a way of that person saying, "I am unable to comprehend what is going on". In any case, this is certainly a great movie and I hope all that did not understand try watching it another time.
Rating:
Summary: I WAS AWESTRUCK!!!
Review: This is one amazing movie!!! There is no way for me to explain what it is about, I guess it just enlightens you is all. It's hard to explain, but I assure you that if you have any intelligence whatsoever, you will love this movie!
Rating:
Summary: "DEEP THOUGHTS" The Movie!
Review: War as group therapy. Man, I've seen shell-shock, but this is the first time I experienced snore-shock! Get "The Dirty Dozen" instead and feel no guilt about it: it is as unbelievable as this one, and far more entertaining!
Rating:
Summary: Maybe this plays well with the Art-House crowd, but...
Review: What a lousy movie. Not only do the characters endlessly pontificate (to themselves, no less!), but the director chose to portray American GIs as nothing more than brutal animals. The Japanese, however, are never shown committing atrocities or engaging in misconduct of any kind. History shows otherwise. Such a demeaning, one-sided portrayal of a pivotal Pacific battle could only come from a spoiled Hollywood elitist.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing
Review: To even try to "defend" this film against the nay-sayers is an exercise in futility. The average movie-goer wishes to be entertained, not enlightened. Beautifully shot between sweepingly lyrical dialogue, this is a masterpice that kept me thinking about it days after I viewed it.
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