Director Terrence Malick’s new film Tree of Life is getting people interested in a way that Terrence Malick films never, ever do. You might assume it’s because of the cast, which contains such luminaries as Brad Pitt and Sean Penn, but if you’ve read or listened to any of the discussion already boiling between critics who’ve seen it, you’ve probably noticed that they’re barely mentioned. There’s something else going on here, something far more worth your time than his last movie, The New World.

The film is reportedly epic in scale, spanning massive time periods and even containing dinosaurs. That’s not normally what you expect from a Malick film and in fact, it’s not what you’ll see here in seven minutes worth of clips from Tree of Life.

Instead what you will see are intimate moments between two parents and their kids. Brad Pitt and Jessica Chastain play a father and mother living in Texas during the 50s, raising a family. You’ll see them teaching their kids about life and then, eventually you’ll see one of those kids grown up and played by Sean Penn, living the life his father wanted for him. Presumably, the dinosaurs come later.

Watch all seven minutes from Tree of Life below.











Even as someone who absolutely hated The New World and vowed never to waste time with one of Malick’s movies again, this gets me interested. What about you? Let me know in the comments section below.

For more on Tree of Life visit its page in our Blend Film Database and watch for Katey’s full review of the film coming later this week.