London Film Festival Day 5: Voyage Of Time, Bleed For This, Certain Women & More
Tripping balls, courtesy of Terrence Malick.
Day 5 of the London Film Festival didn't feature any buzzed-about Oscar big-hitters, but it still served up a number of highly entertaining and thought-provoking efforts.
The fifth day saw Terrence Malick's long-awaited documentary Voyage of Time finally land in London, while Miles Teller bulked up for boxing drama Bleed for This, Kelly Reichardt returned with her latest minimalist film, and Spinal Tap's legendary Christopher Guest served up his first feature film in a whole decade.
Quite the eclectic array of selections, then, even if the little gold guy probably won't be paying any of these films much attention.
Here's our coverage from day 5 of the 60th annual BFI London Film Festival...
4. Voyage Of Time: Life's Journey
Terrence Malick's examination of the relationship between nature and humanity has been gestating for decades, and now it's finally here, narrated by Cate Blanchett.
If you love Malick's work, you'll probably love this, and if you're not a fan, this will do little to change your mind. Full of faux-deep poetry alongside the undeniably eye-popping visuals (ranging from natural scenery to the CGI-created cosmos), this is basically the epitome of everything the legendary filmmaker has ever made, even if it's certainly not one of his better films overall.
The sheer scale and beauty on display will almost unavoidably prompt audiences to consider their own tiny place in the universe, even if at just 90 minutes the pic still feels rather shapeless and meandering for the most part.
Rating: This is clearly Malick free of any restraint whatsoever, and while the narration is eye-rollingly pretentious at times, it's an experience still best viewed on the biggest screen you can find. You needn't enjoy everything about Voyage of Time to nevertheless appreciate its tranquil qualities. 6/10