Review of Days of Heaven (1978) by Chris K — 01 Jan 2010

Days of Heaven... a milestone in filmaking, and certainly one of the best films ever. Mallick is the most underrated director of all time, perhaps because he escapes being a public figure. His second movie, and the last before a twenty year absence (until "The Thin Red Line" in 1998), has much of Mallick's trademarks: communion of Man and Nature, fantastic cinematography, balletic camerawork, voice-over narration.

Suposedly shot with only a one-page screenplay, Days of Heaven has only enough dialogues (much improvised) for you to follow the story. The rest is filled with poetic images, most of them shot at sunset or at sunrise, giving the movie an amazing look.

And the innocent narration of the story by the child is real and down-to-earth, with a flavour that antecipates the poetic narrations of "The Thin Red Line" and "The New World" (2005).

Here Mallick tackles, as in the above, the conflict of Man between himself, in this case through a love triangle between Shepard, Richard Gere (maybe his best role ever) and Adams, in the beautiful setting of a wheat plantation.

But the story is unimportant. The camera goes straight to the soul of the characters, and we understand their plight, even if they don't speak much. The way they "dance" around each other and the camera is enough.

It is so simple and pure. It is filmaking at its best. Man is only a part of nature, and nature will always remain, despite the strugles of Man. And no one understands more this than Mallick, the philosopher, the filmaker.

The most beautiful movie ever shot. Period. And only the other three Mallick's pictures come ever close in serene beauty.