james jones , one of the major novelists from the middle of the twentieth century , has written a number of fictional works about the effects of war on the individual .
a veteran of world war ii , and a witness to the pearl harbor bombings , his novels are not only grounded in realism but poetic in nature .
they are reminiscent of stephen crane in their blunt eloquence , a trait which lends itself to razor - sharp focus .
but perhaps none matches the scope of his autobiographical novel , the thin red line ; now a cinematic masterpiece from director terrence malick .
the book 's principal cast , some thirty characters , has been trimmed down for this rendition , but it still retains its most endearing value .
each of the roles has an everyman quality , emphasizing jones ' examination of world war ii on the american soldier .
there 's a definitive chain of command present , and this also plays on the motivations of the cast .
but most importantly , and perhaps intrinsic to the novel but not to the movie , a dynamic and effective voice - over is used .
malick has several characters relating their thoughts , giving the viewer a greater perspective of the issues at stake .
the issues at stake are many and one .
told from a limited third - person perspective ( as opposed to a top - down , omniscient view ) , the movie entails the struggle of an american infantry company ( " c - for - charlie " ) to take a hill during the conflict at guadalcanal .
the south pacific island is seen by the top brass as the key position for american armed forces to hold if they want to win the war . and want to win the war they do .
in an excellent performance , nick nolte plays c - for - charlie 's commanding officer , lt .
col .
gordon tall .
he 's an aging soldier who embodies the win - at - all - costs mentality , if only to impress his superior ( john travolta , in a questionable cameo ) .
this philosophy is opposite that of captain bugger staros ( elias koteas ) , who dearly values the life of each and every one of the men under his command .
at the front are the privates and corporals ( adrien brody , james caviezel , ben chaplin , et al ) , lead by 1st sgt .
welsh ( sean penn ) , who must actually execute the suicide orders handed down to them .
the thin red line is filled with intense , visual poetry , but it 's nearly three hours long .
although the interest level is high throughout the first two hours , the climax comes forty - five minutes before the end of the movie ; it goes without saying that the movie drags on the back end .
the thin red line will doubtless be compared to 1998 's other masterpiece of war , saving private ryan a countless number of times .
but to do so is to belittle both films , for
although similarities abound , so do differences .
director malick has a story to tell , and for those interested in listening , this can be a very outstanding movie .
a cinematic masterpiece a very outstanding movie the interest level is high filled with intense , visual poetry