Terrence Malick and the Knights of Columbus: Voyage of Time (2016)

The Criteria crew continues its series on the films of Terrence Malick, jumping ahead to the experimental documentary Voyage of Time, which was co-produced by the Knights of Columbus! Voyage of Time portrays the history of the cosmos, the Earth, and the living creatures on it from the beginning of the universe to its end. The main point of the film is simply to evoke wonder at creation with its gorgeous photography, sound design and music.

The film exists in two versions: a 45-minute version narrated by Brad Pitt (Voyage of Time: The IMAX Experience), and a 90-minute version narrated by Cate Blanchett (Voyage of Time: Life’s Journey). James, Thomas, and Nathan Douglas all agree that the long version is generally superior. However, they debate over the content of the narration (which, in both films, is of an existential rather than scientific nature). Thomas contends that the narration in the long version, rather than inspiring the viewer to seek the truth about the meaning of the universe, seems to leave us swimming in a muddled and uninspiring metaphysical soup. James defends the narration as a “phenomenological” portrayal of primitive man’s varying interpretations of the cosmos, rather than a set of consistent truth propositions.

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Music is The Duskwhales, “Take It Back”, used with permission. https://theduskwhales.bandcamp.com