Rent Days of Heaven (1978)

Visual Marvel - But Disappointing - Days of Heaven review by griggs

Days of Heaven is a visual marvel, boasting painterly cinematography and extraordinary use of natural lighting. The unforgettable locust scene is a standout, with close-ups of the swarming insects showcasing their eerie beauty, followed by chaotic shots from their perspective as panicked farmhands scramble to eradicate them. It’s a brilliant mix of tension and artistry, but such moments are rare. The story feels thin and emotionally distant, more a canvas for the visuals than a compelling narrative. I’d eagerly awaited to see this film, but Malick’s focus on beauty ultimately prioritises prettification over substance, which left me slightly disappointed.

Light Fantastic - Days of Heaven review by Steve

Its reputation promises a near plotless sequence of beautiful photographic images. But that's not the case... There is a slim narrative about a calamitous love triangle set in rural Texas- 1916- between a couple of poor itinerant lovers (Brooke Adams, Richard Gere) and a rich landowner (Sam Shepard) who the woman marries for money...

Except she also continues the affair with the man she calls her brother. There's even a cross country manhunt! But certainly it's the Oscar winning cinematography that haunts the memory with the the ephemeral farmhands at work in the wheat fields, captured in the golden hours of dawn and dusk, wistfully scored by Ennio Morricone.

Everything feels eerily transient. This is about a moment in time when the machinery of modernism begins to leave its scars on the timeless pastoral landscape. We see the withered men come home from the industrial war in Europe, while the three lovers linger on in their unspoiled paradise, soon to be cast out of yet another Eden...

...And into a biblical apocalypse of plague and fire! Terrence Malick spent months in the editing suite and eventually held the story together with a voiceover; though it still feels erratic. While there's a hazy aura of mankind losing its innocence, yes, it's the honey yellow hues of Néstor Almendros'  dreamy photography that captivates.