Arguably Terrence Malick's greatest achievement as a filmmaker is his 1973 Badlands, which stars Martin Sheen and Sissy Spacek as two young lovers and outlaws who take flight into a beautifully-shot Americana after committing murder in order to live out their romance. What most people tend to remember about Badlands are its cinematography or musical score, but Badlands's most admirable achievement is its sense of mood; it's akin to a visual poem. Indeed, Badlands feels otherworldly in the way that small-town America and the surrounding country are portrayed. It's also one of the greatest crime movies that also happens to work as a deeply affecting romance - it just happens that this particular romance involves the act of killing. The lead characters, brilliantly played in the banality by Sheen and Spacek, are the epitome of bored teenagers who choose a life of crime because, hey, there's little else for them to do.
Sam Hill is an ardent cinephile and has been writing about film professionally since 2008. He harbours a particular fondness for western and sci-fi movies.
