The Thin Red Line, directed by Terrence Malick, remains one of the more brilliant war movies. Nominated for seven Oscars® against “Saving Private Ryan”, it holds up under repeated viewings.
Mr Caviezel plays Private Witt, who for many serves as the heart-and-soul personification of the waste of war.
Terrence Malick
This is the rare film director storyteller who, as Mr Caviezel puts it, cared for us kindly, as a farmer might for his crop. And who “...kept you by him like you were a paint and that’s how he did it. And then, when he was done, he’d just kind of painted this piece of art, this film”.
Mr Malick was awarded the 11th Annual Chicago Film Critics Award as Best Director in 1999 for “The Thin Red Line”.
Added May 28, 2002
At the end of the 49th Berlinale International Film Festival, Mr Malick was awarded the Golden Bear for the “Thin Red Line” as the festival’s best movie.
Mr Caviezel with Will Wallace accepted the award in Berlin on behalf of Mr Malick.
Malick’s other movies include “Badlands” and “Days of Heaven”. Apparently he’s also an Antarctic buff, having produced Carolyn Alexander’s 2000 movie version of “Endurance: Shackleton’s Legendary Expedition”.
Added September 14, 2002
Variety reports from the Venice Film Festival that the documentary “Rosy-Fingered Dawn: A Film on Terrence Malick” contains not one frame of the reclusive Malick. Mr Caviezel, however, contributes one of 22 English-language interviews as he discusses his experiences working on “The Thin Red Line”.
The Malick documentary is a Citrullo International/ Misami Film/ Campinella Productions production. We found no distributor listed, nor can we find a way...yet to view this documentary.
Added January 15, 2003
We read a confirmation in The New York Times Education Supplement (January 2003) that Terrence Malick is a Rhodes Scholar.
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Character Private Witt
One curiosity about the character Private Witt is what appears to be his consistent ability to befriend the native people, especially the children, with an authenticity and abandon that’s hard to miss.
Witt provokes many of the moral conversations that occur in this story. His self-assured and confident manner wins him the friendship and respect of other characters.
As you seek to learn more from Malick’s story, Mr Caviezel’s performance bears repeat viewings during which it always stands up.
Watch for a full-on head shot near the last of Private Witt’s scenes. This shot is rumoured to have earned Mr Caviezel a ticket to play Catch Lambert in “Angel Eyes”, which was punched by Jennifer Lopez.
Added July 10, 2004
We understand from a recent interview, that Mel Gibson was also drawn to Mr Caviezel’s performance in this film.
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Interviews and Reviews
Interviews
Interviews for “The Thin Red Line” are numerous, perhaps because Web sites became a more viable medium for documenting them at the time. Or perhaps here, Mr Caviezel occupied his first central storytelling role in a film, thereby making him more interview-worthy.
Reviews
We prefer to let Mr Caviezel speak for himself and his work in this film, although in truth, all the reviews we found are complimentary. We highly recommend this film.
Added September 14, 2002, Updated September 22, 2002
Premier Magazine’s Fifteenth Anniversary list of the Best 100 Movies on DVD 1987-2002 includes “The Thin Red Line” with this commentary:
“War movies don’t generally aim for the poetic, but that’s exactly where director Terrence Malick set his sights for this adaptation of James Jones’s novel. Though its battle scenes are brutal, the movie remains reflective, unrushed, and tragically beautiful.”
You can find the list in the October 2002 edition of the magazine, in a shopping-list like pull-out, the back cover of which is an advert for “The Count of Monte Cristo”.
Premier also named “The Thin Red Line” as the best war movie in the past 15 years, the age of their English language edition. (A French language edition appeared 10 years prior to the English edition.)
Added January 9, 2003, thanks to HS, link fixed January 15, 2003
More ranking news from the Sydney Morning Herald, whose film critic ranked ‘Thin Red Line’ as the 42nd all-time best movie ever.
Also, please check our In Print page for reviews.
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Tidbits and Grace Notes
From V April 19, 2002
The Chicago Film Critics also nominated Mr Caviezel in its 1999 list of Most Promising Actor for his work in “The Thin Red Line”.
From a period article, we excerpt “...Witt becomes as much a Malick creation [compared with the James Jones character]: part rebel, part hero, [and] he’s given a kind of tragic serenity by Caviezel, who plays him as a man seemingly at peace with his impending death”.
Of casting, Elias Koteas says, “I think that [Malick] cast guys for their particular essence and what they could bring to the role that’s individual,...” a sentiment that Mr Caviezel has echoed in interviews about his own participation in the film.
“...Caviezel, imitating the director’s drawl, adds, "(Malick) often says, ‘Jim, do whatever’s real, whatever’s natural’. There is a kind of controlled chaos, but within that chaos you have many real moments”.
Apparently Mr Caviezel who “...couldn’t speak a lick of Southern dialect” completed much of his research for this role in Kentucky and the Black Hills, absorbing speech patterns. He also spoke to World War II vets.
“One such man talked about the difference between killing a man with his own hands and using a weapon”, recalls the actor. “How kinesthetically different it is feeling somebody’s life leave their body as a direct result of your own actions. And each of them says, ‘Well, something in me died’”.
Added July 7, 2004
From Film Comment, here is their article about this film. Mr Caviezel is featured on the cover. For details, see our In Print page.
Added October 10, 2004
We’ve come across an astonishing book that contains what may come as close as one might want, to a ‘script’ for this film. Of course, this is totally subjective, since there may be no script.
The book, “Forms of Being: Cinema, Aesthetics, Subjectivity” by Leo Bersani and Ulysse Dutoit presents four films, this among them. The authors propose and show visually the relationship between subjectivity and the world. The publisher is the British Film Institute with two ISBN numbers:
1 84457 015 9 (pbk)
1 84457 016 9 (hbk)
The section on this film focuses on the “reflection of evil in the world”, with the character Witt at the center of most of the discussion. It is lavishly illustrated, pointing out visually what cannot be described in words to support the focus. As well, Mr Caviezel’s image as Witt can be seen on both front and back covers of the book.
Note You can order your copy from Cinema Books in Seattle, Washington by calling 206.547.7667. [Our first source for all books, cards, calendars, and magazines related to film: please forgive the plug—our site would not be so well informed without the help and support of Cinema Books. ed.]
Added August 4, 2005
Here we go again, adding another book resource. Michael Chion has written a book with the same name as the title of the film. In his review, Ben McCann writes:
“Overall, this is a witty but bitty work, placing reflection over sustained analysis. Chion's insights are never dull, and his style alternates between punchy and meditative.”
The book, again, does not offer what many film fans want, that is a script, casting notes, or other documentation about Malick’s thinking as he worked. But we believe telling site visitors about the book is worthwhile..
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FAQ
Question
Where can I find the official site?
Answer
This is the official “The Thin Red Line” Web site.
Question
Where can I find a script or a book about the film?
Answer
We have not been successful in finding a script for this film. This does not mean that one does not exist: just that we are not able to find one.
Question
Wasn’t this supposed to be Adrian Brody’s breakout film?
Answer
Adrian Brody plays Corporal Fife in this film. Probably because Mr Malick crafted his film more from the footage he shot than from any script, Malick informed Mr Brody before its release that most of his work ended up on the cutting room floor.
This is pure editorial, but upon seeing “The Pianist”, Roman Polanski’s truly personal film about Wladyslaw Szpilman, it’s possible to say that in ‘Pianist’, Mr Brody may now have found his breakout film: his work here is breathtaking. –ed.
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