Slow Films

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I was talking with my friend Kim today about her love of slow-moving films, like the Iranian movie The White Balloon. Though I'm generally not a fan, there are a couple of slow ones that I do love:

The Thin Red Line, by Terence Malick. This was a story about (mostly) one long day of combat during WWII in the South Pacific. Like real war, there was a lot of waiting. The sound of the grasses swaying in the wind is the dominant motif in the film. It was also the first time I'd seen Jim Caviezel in a role, and he's really amazing.

The New World, by Terence Malick. This is Malick's retelling of the Pocahontas story, though that name is never used. It strikes me as one of the better imaginings of what life must have been like, for both the native Indians and the settlers---pretty scrappy.

The Straight Story. This is based on the true story of a somewhat poor elderly man who drives his riding mower across several Midwestern states in order to visit his ailing brother. The film moves at the pace of the transport, but it's lovely and calming and alternately melancholy and sweet. The actor who played the old man, whose name escapes me at the moment, was nominated for an Oscar for the role.
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