Voyage of Time: Life's Journey

In discussion of cinematic "world-building," contemporary conversation tends to drift towards comic-book movies, the fantastical creations that populate the multiplexes, or the self-contained refractions of reality crafted by the likes of Wes Anderson and the Coen brothers. However, few American auteurs have managed to construct as singular a filmic universe as Terrence Malick. His is a world of hushed whispers and natural wonder, a cinema of poetry. The cadence of its voice-overs, the rhythms of its editing and photography, and the ideas that permeate it are all uniquely his.

And now Malick has delivered his magnum opus, a years-in-the-making ode to the wonder of creation. The wildly ambitious Voyage of Time: Life's Journey is every bit as epic as its name implies: Malick leads us on a temporal trip through the history of the universe. After witnessing the birth of stars and the evolution of life on Earth, we pause to wonder at the sun and planets before plunging into the inky depths of the oceans, where incandescent creatures float in the darkness. Featuring soulful narration by Cate Blanchett, the film brings a contemplative and speculative tone to the grandeur of its subject; it sprawls across the screen with glorious images both real and fabricated, both earthbound and celestial.

A visual wonder and an intellectual treat, Voyage of Time: Life's Journey continues Malick's recent resurgence and stands among the most remarkable cinematic experiences of the year.

JESSE WENTE