A bloated, cliche-ridden look at the horrors of war.

Rating: 1/10 (31 December 1998)

Anyone who hopes to find, in the words of Fox executives, the "most anticipated movie of the year" will be sorely disappointed with The Thin Red Line. In its almost three hour running time, so little unfolds onscreen that it's hard to believe Malick even needed a script at all to shoot this overblown opus. While audiences can appreciate the wonderful visuals Malick provides in abundance, the metaphoric shots of trees, flowing grasses and jungle life soon become intrusive and obvious, snuffing out the already thin wisp of a story. Equally annoying are the many voice-overs in which the characters whine about war and human nature. Yes, James Jones' novel is a different creature from Saving Private Ryan so it's not surprising that a film adaptation would also be very different. But instead of a unique perspective on World War II, The Thin Red Line leaves us with a pretty but ultimately empty exercise in cinematography.