THE NEW WORLD is part of daylong tribute to Terence Malick at BAM
THE NEW WORLD (Terrence Malick, 2005)
BAMcinématek, BAM Rose Cinemas
30 Lafayette Ave. between Ashland Pl. & St. Felix St.
Sunday, April 28, 8:00
212-415-5500
www.bam.org
When The New World was released in 2005, it was only iconoclastic American auteur Terrence Malick’s fourth film in a forty-year career that also included the gems Badlands (1973), Days of Heaven (1978), and The Thin Red Line (1998). Now, following the success of 2011’s The Tree of Life and its polarizing follow-up, To the Wonder, the very next year, BAMcinématek is presenting a daylong tribute to Malick that is appropriately titled “Day of Heaven.” Spectacularly photographed by Malick’s longtime cinematographer, Emanuel Luzbeki, The New World reimagines the story of Captain John Smith (Colin Farrell) and Pocahontas (Q’orianka Kilcher) as an epic tale of unrequited desire, a fiercely passionate, if not completely accurate, love story for the ages. In 1607, a crew led by Captain Christopher Newport (Christopher Plummer) has landed in what will come to be known as Jamestown. The disgraced Smith, who was nearly hanged for mutiny, is ordered to meet with “the naturals” in order to develop a favorable relationship. But Smith falls deeply for Chief Powhatan’s (August Schellenberg) beautiful young daughter, who shares his feelings, leading to a dangerous love that threatens to leave death and destruction in its wake. Large stretches of the film feature no dialogue, instead consisting of gorgeously framed shots with gentle, poetic narration from Smith, Pocahontas, and, later, John Rolfe (Christian Bale). The scenes between Farrell and Kilcher nearly ignite the screen, their eyes burning into each other. Malick and Luzbeki focus on lush, rolling fields and rushing rivers that are more than just beautiful scenery; the gorgeous landscape of this new world is filled with promise, with hope, even though we know what eventually, tragically happens. The film bogs down considerably when Smith’s place in the newly named Rebecca’s life is taken over by Rolfe, but it all builds to a heart-wrenching conclusion. The New World is screening at BAM on April 28 at 8:00, preceded by Days of Heaven at 2:00 and The Thin Red Line at 4:15.