The Thin Red Line 1998

Reviews (55)

1. P

   Patrick Willems 8 月 23, 2026

   The moment Terrence Malick realized voiceover narration could be whispered

   1,840 1
2. Y

   YI JIAN 8 月 23, 2026

   Nature as witness to men’s destruction. Trees as tombstones circling us, venomous snakes interrupting gun battles, shy plants withdrawing from a soldier’s touch. Sunlight piercing through layers of green and landed on an injured man’s face as he listened to his comrade telling him that he’s going to die, a lizard watched quietly… unaffected, unforgiving. Do you imagine your suffering will be any less because you loved goodness and truth? An epic emotional journey showing the lunacy and unreality of war, where every bullet whooshing past is a jumpscare, every explosion a trauma. Watch, digest, lie down and think. You will cry, if not at the realization that there is no such thing as a numbness to death, then at the beauty of every scene. Go hug a tree, let the melanesian choirs flow through and cleanse you. (I swear I heard them before. When I was very young. Where was it? Where was it?)

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3. M

   Mike Flanagan 8 月 23, 2026

   As the next installment in our unofficial Malick festival, we revisited THE THIN RED LINE last night. This was the first Malick film I ever saw, and I’d never seen anything like it. This is a movie in which a pacifist contemplates the nature and cost of war, and I think represents the maturation of Malick’s aesthetic. This movie fully defines the cinematic language he will utilize for the rest of his career. I love it for its soul-searching writing, humble and searing performances, gorgeous cinematography, and the spell it casts while it contemplates the soul of mankind, our relationship to nature, and the conflict within our spirits between violence and grace. THE TREE OF LIFE will put this to…

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4. C

   CinemaVoid 🏴‍☠️ 8 月 23, 2026

   Poetic Cinema is what happens when a full-time philosopher writes his own scripts. Poetry is seeing Jared Leto get shot in the face.

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5. B

   Brianna 8 月 23, 2026

   sitting up and pointing at the 30-second cameos of A-list actors that were cut from this like it’s a marvel movie

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6. S

   SilentDawn 8 月 23, 2026

   98/100 “I seen another world. Sometimes I think it was just my imagination.” Terrence Malick’s mystical purgatory, flooded with smoke carried through the winds and continuously mournful of its own narrative. Angels visit and embrace those who leave in peace while rays of light shown through tattered leaves greet the souls of men who perish in battle. Guadalcanal’s sweeping hills and humid jungles provide a backdrop where Heaven and Hell clash, raging their eternal war over distinctly human events. All the soldiers are permanently woven with varying expressions of lost, forgotten qualities, dashing among the tall grass while quiet shrieks of agony reverberate towards a blue horizon. Nature is a dangerous passageway, and the serpents can kill just as swiftly…

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7. N

   Neil Bahadur 8 月 23, 2026

   God’s eye view cinema

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8. L

   Lise 8 月 23, 2026

   I heard people talk about immortality, but I ain’t seen it. l wondered how it’d be when l died. What it’d be like to know that this breath now was the last one you was ever gonna draw. l just hope l can meet it the same way she did. With the same… calm. Cos that’s where it’s hidden – the immortality l hadn’t seen. What’s it like to be lying in the middle of an unfamiliar jungle with birds singing around you, the sun making it’s way through the trees to lightly shine on the guy next to you, dying of a bullet wound to the gut, knowing you will be next if you get up and run towards…

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9. M

   matt lynch 8 月 23, 2026

   “Come out where I am.” hopefully heaven forgives us for not seeing it.

   693
10. P

    Paul Elliott 8 月 23, 2026

    It’s apparent right from the beginning that this is not a conventional war film. Adapted from the 1962 James Jones novel of the same name, screenwriter and director Terrence Malick concentrates on the consequences of war; there are no dramatic acts of courage and no proclamations of patriotism, instead it explores the notion that war is an exceptionally personal and isolating experience in which each soldier undergoes the subjective atrocities of war by himself. Seldom are war movies this lyrical and introspective, and this continues to endure as one of Malick’s culminating accomplishments.

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11. P

    PopcornIdeology 8 月 23, 2026

    Terrence Malick was definitely the type of kid that would’ve gotten distracted by a butterfly in the middle of a soccer game. My thoughts while watching the movie: “Wait is that John Travolta?” “Wait is that Woody Harrelson?” “Wait is that John C. Reilly?” “Wait is that Jared Leto?” “Wait is that John Cusack?” “Wait is that George Clooney?”

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12. A

    alyehf 8 月 22, 2026

    “This great evil, where’s it come from? How’d it steal into the world? What seed, what root did it grow from? Who’s doin’ this? Who’s killin’ us, robbin’ us of light and life?”

13. C

    champagne_didi 8 月 22, 2026

    like with his other works, malick narrates the introspection of his characters through sensational visuals and indiscriminate violence how can you not be in awe at the shots of the rolling hills, with the wind beating the tall grasses these images momentarily suspend you from the pointless violence taking stage also one to watch if you like birds

14. D

    DaveBate 8 月 22, 2026

    Tries a wee bit too hard with the deep poetic lines. Really good presentation of war. Some cast. Bit long.

15. D

    dg_cse 8 月 22, 2026

    a very heavy movie. beautifully shot. my only problem was the pacing

16. G

    georgedickie 8 月 22, 2026

    Malick presents war brilliantly, highlighting the primal instincts and complex morals behind every soldier. Ego, nature, love, pride, disillusionment.

    1
17. A

    arcaeous 8 月 22, 2026

    Seen on the big screen. Really liked the quiet, picturesque nature shots followed by intense shaky violence. A little too long though, it does begin to drag a little towards the end, but still, a great watch

18. D

    Dom 8 月 22, 2026

    I was looking for an explosive, unimportant action film that I could watch hungover and ended up getting a brutal meditation on war that questions it from almost every angle. The logistics, the emotion, the fear, the anguish, the morality, the aftermath, the right and wrong, the anger, the search for meaning. I will admit to not understanding the poetry of it all at times but Terence Mallick can truly make you feel what he wants you to feel. And right now I’m tired.

19. B

    Bats 8 月 22, 2026

    FOX 2000 Cinema (Prince Charles) DCP DTS 2.35:1 35mm (Eastman EXR 100T 5248, Vision 500T 5279) / Vision 2383 “Kisama mo itsuka shinun da yo!” Every actor ever is in this.

    2
20. J

    Jakelaud 8 月 22, 2026

    There’s something deeply comforting about feasting your eyes on Sean Penn

21. T

    tessiewestside 8 月 22, 2026

    I did not vibe with this but I can certainly appreciate it- the cinematography and colouring are gorgeous and it is appropriately gruesome.

22. S

    StarSmythe 8 月 22, 2026

    Grim but a great movie.

23. D

    Duarte Mendonca 8 月 22, 2026

    After many (many!!) years of putting this movie off, I finally got to see it – on the big screen at Prince Charles Cinema no less. “The Thin Red Line’, based on a book with the same name, which had already been adapted into a movie in 1964, came out in 1998 at the same time as “Saving Private Ryan”. It marked one of the most exciting head-to-head campaigns given that these two war inspired motion pictures were seen as…

    1
24. M

    mortenleerhoey 8 月 22, 2026

    Måske en af de bedste krigsfilm jeg har set. Der er action i filmen, men det er ikke det der bærer filmen, tværtimod. Det er virkelig mange kontraster i filmen, men intet facit, hvilket hele tiden for en til at tænke, hvad er det rigtige? Man ser ikke kun amerikanere, faktisk efter hvert slag, ser man mest rædslerne fra japanernes side, hvilket udvider argumentet for ikke bare den bedste krigsfilm, men endnu vigtigere en anti-krigsfilm. Også vildt hvor mange stjerner der er med.

    1
25. G

    Gerenzo 8 月 22, 2026

    My guess is that I’d find this a masterful movie if I had never seen any movies about war before. Unfortunately I’ve seen my fair share. Although this movie is somewhat unique in its portrayal of death as a subject, the literary narration around which this film is centered didn’t quite connect with me. The pace is slow and sometimes too fast, it’s calm and then also bloody chaotic in some way. I liked those things but missed more texture and depth actually. Might have to watch it again some day.

26. N

    Nojus 8 月 22, 2026

    They chewing the fuck outta that gum 😭

    1
27. A

    AMAlessa 8 月 21, 2026

    Struggling with sleep. Easy fix, watch this

28. C

    Coomer 8 月 21, 2026

    Best World War II movie

29. I

    iWonderMike 8 月 21, 2026

    Terrence Malick tendría que haber puesto un chiste de pedos para balancear la densidad lírica del filme

    4
30. D

    Dylancrowl73 8 月 21, 2026

    You could cut an hour and a half off of this movie and it would be the best war movie ever.

31. L

    luiginathan98 8 月 21, 2026

    Even in most typical war films, they either have some sort of happy resolve or observe different aspects of the process of going into war is like (Full Metal Jacket and it’s first half being spent on the military camp). But by far, this is probably one of the most devastating war films I’ve seen. Yet it’s also one of the most real war films out there adding a layer of humanity to the characters I haven’t seen in any…

32. R

    Robin Illy 8 月 21, 2026

    “Are you righteous? Kind? Are you loved by all? Know that I was, too.”

    1
33. A

    Aayush Patkar 8 月 21, 2026

    A stunning, devastating film that explores various degrees of suffering experienced by soldiers at war. I think what stood out to me was how the film seems to capture these battles as bubbles, moments in time on Earth as a greater, larger organism that continues to operate and move forward independently of one’s own individual experience. The wildlife and nature persist, the family you left behind continue to live, experience, and act. Dozens of atrocities compound and impact what are…

34. A

    Axel_Ishii 8 月 21, 2026

    Terrence Malick qui a pas compris qu’il fallait choisir quand on lui a proposé une liste avec trente acteurs

35. J

    jakub blank 8 月 21, 2026

    Masterpiece.

    2
36. J

    Julian Zane Bowlin 8 月 21, 2026

    Criterion Challenge 2026 Week 33 Part 1 War Film Probably the most visually striking and gorgeous war film I’ve seen. Just has that Malek touch that makes all his films look that good. This one really really worked for me. It never once glorifies war, but glorifies the beauty of nature that surrounds it. There are several shots in this film where Malek decides to cut away from the gunfire and explosions to a shot of a bird. One in…

    1
37. W

    wyattparra 8 月 21, 2026

    Couldn’t imagine running a death mission up a hill with incoming enemy fire coming at me, to then have to deal with a cobra in the midst of that

38. S

    Shawn 🪓 8 月 21, 2026

    War ranked I would say THE most spiritual, philosophical, thought provoking, star studded, and cinematic war movie ever. Or atleast that I’ve seen. Why isn’t this brought up more often? I had never heard of it and I only watched because of the Terrance kick I’m on right now. The first War film (or any film recently) I’ve watched that INSTANTLY goes into future rewatches as soon as I finished watching. Definitely not something you can fully take in on the first watch. Wow!

    1
39. P

    phoebestorch 8 月 21, 2026

    I did not really know what was going on for much of this but I don’t think I needed to, and it was great

    1
40. K

    kikepainz 8 月 21, 2026

    Just pain and chaos in every scene. With or without action.

41. R

    Reyne Derrick 8 月 21, 2026

    Great movie, but it’s one of those movies I felt like needed more editing. There were so many plots and characters I felt were very under-utilised and under developed. George Clooney was paid 1.5 million dollars for a one minute cameo. There is no way that was the original intention.

42. J

    JudPomVodk 8 月 21, 2026

    Sympa

43. M

    mtijaniz_ 🎞️ 8 月 21, 2026

    J’aime énormément le cinéma de Terrence Malick, et je comprends ce que The Thin Red Line cherche à explorer au-delà de la guerre : l’amour, l’humanité, la violence et ce qui se passe à l’intérieur de l’homme face à l’horreur. Pourtant, malgré toute la beauté du film, je suis resté assez déçu. Mon principal problème vient de la direction d’acteur. Chez Malick, j’aime justement ce cinéma où les silences, les regards et les corps suffisent à faire ressentir quelque chose,…

    4
44. M

    Mirham 8 月 21, 2026

    Emotionally left me a bit colder than the other Malicks I’ve seen, and it definitely feels it’s length towards the end, but I mean it’s still Malick. Just look at the fucking thing.

    1
45. P

    pease_11 8 月 21, 2026

    Watching this after seeing Saving Private Ryan must’ve made people so confused in 1998

46. N

    Nokcho Colata 8 月 21, 2026

    Alors qu’ils auraient pu se faire des bisous.

47. L

    lcyccl 8 月 20, 2026

    Both amazing and wildly bloated. Terrence still a king of collabing with DPs who produce mouth dropping photography.

48. B

    Bando 8 月 20, 2026

    “No matter how much training you got, how careful you are. It’s a matter of luck whether you live or get killed. Makes no difference who you are, how tough a guy you might be. If you are in the wrong spot at the wrong time, you’re gonna get it.” That, ladies and gentlemen, is war in a nutshell. The Thin Red Line was a great war movie whenever it was showing me war, and a frustrating one whenever it…

49. J

    june 8 月 20, 2026

    i was totally entranced by this film it’s really beautiful and as well as a visual pleasure to experience it is spiritually pleasing too. a lot of very sad moments tho so if you’re feeling emotionally fragile maybe give this one a miss

    1 1
50. J

    JK 8 月 20, 2026

    The static shot towards the end, where the shrouded Japanese soldiers cross the low tide river.

51. A

    austintp 8 月 20, 2026

    There’s nobody like Malick. There’s so much that could be said about this one. It’s an amazing display of the beauty, pain, light, darkness, heartbreaks, victories, questions and sacrifice that we experience as humans. Malick is concerned with things of real substance and that’s why I appreciate him so much. “Know that I was too.”

    2
52. N

    Naga Sai Abhiram 8 月 19, 2026

    It’s a good war drama

53. S

    Serge Bellens 8 月 19, 2026

    1 hour of Low angle grass shots 🌱 Tree leaves against lens flaires 🌳 Super cliché is-war-just-human-nature voice-over 🙄 Nature keeps moving on indifferent of man & war, we get it, I don’t need to get it shown every 2 minutes. Predictable flashbacks to the girl back home, even with voice-over, in case you missed the point 🤷‍♂️ @JenniferLame to the rescue ! A late 90’s who’s who of great male actors in every shot , and still wasn’t caring about any of it. Sometimes the Nolte scenes electrified things though. Obviously not a big Mallick appreciator here…

54. M

    Mt_78 8 月 18, 2026

    Magnifique ✨🌿

55. O

    Ouessaniketos 5 月 15, 2020

    Pas de mise en scène, on est au milieu des soldats, on a peur dans leur regard, on souffre dans leurs blessures, on devient fou comme eux. La guerre est inhumaine, donc nous ne sommes pas humains? Un film sans histoire, ce n’est même pas un documentaire, il n’y a aucune distance. Difficile de s’en remettre, tant mieux.