942 The Tree of Life

[ianungstad]

I wouldn't be surprised if the reason for the delay is that Apparition Films is pretty much bankrupt. I doubt they have any money to give this film any kind of wide release, never mind cash to advertise it. I'm fully expecting to see them announce at Toronto or one of the fall film markets that the company and it's half dozen films are up for sale. A pessimistic view...but I think the CEO resigned back in the spring and the company fired a majority of it's employees as part of it's "restructuring". Maybe they'll partner with Sony or some other company to get this out.

[Cde.]

I wouldn't be surprised if the reason for the delay is that Apparition Films is pretty much bankrupt. I doubt they have any money to give this film any kind of wide release, never mind cash to advertise it. I'm fully expecting to see them announce at Toronto or one of the fall film markets that the company and it's half dozen films are up for sale. A pessimistic view...but I think the CEO resigned back in the spring and the company fired a majority of it's employees as part of it's "restructuring". Maybe they'll partner with Sony or some other company to get this out.

Probably right.
Malick's new film is moving very quickly toward production (if it's not there already, as some rumours suggest), so it stands to reason that The Tree of Life is finished.
If Apparition folds, I think their slate goes to Sony. They picked up the only other unreleased film Apparition held the rights to when Apparition collapsed.
Sony own the url thetreeoflife-movie.com, by the way. Probably means nothing, but it's a possibility. Anne Thompson mentioned Summit as another possible distributor in her article.

[MyNameCriterionForum]

Seriously though, fuck this wait. Bullshit, piled higher and deeper.

[swo17]

Just for that, I'm going to make you wait another three months.

[Alphonse Doinel]

Give the guy a break. You don't want the CG Space Vampires to end up looking fake, do you?

[MyNameCriterionForum]

[godardslave]

I heard that "Terry"
waited for the right moment
to make his tackle!

[John Cope]

An early, supposedly legit reaction. It's from a Home Theater Forum poster so take that for what it's worth.

[colinr0380]

Give the guy a break. You don't want the CG Space Vampires to end up looking fake, do you?

Did someone say space vampire film?

EDIT: I love that by far the least plausible aspect of Lifeforce is the idea of an international space programme run out of Britain! (Though it does add to the Quatermass vibe!)

[Kellen]

An early, supposedly legit reaction. It's from a Home Theater Forum poster so take that for what it's worth.

Man, I wish this would just get released already. I don't think that my anticipation can get any higher.

[Alphonse Doinel]

October seems beyond unlikely since we have yet to see a trailer, poster, or even a legit synopsis.

That Lifeforce trailer is epic. If I had to see one Space Vamp film, that would be it.

[MyNameCriterionForum]

I heard that "Terry"
waited for the right moment
to make his tackle!

I hope no birds made their home near the playing field.

An early, supposedly legit reaction. It's from a Home Theater Forum poster so take that for what it's worth.

Nothing there that hasn't already been rumored or assumed. Why do people bother writing a "review" without even one particular description or attribute? Not saying it's fake, just pointless. Give us a bit of dialogue, a few specific shot transitions, etc. "Brad Pitt was stunning" tells us nothing.

[Jeff]

Brad Pitt is in Telluride this weekend, at a festival known for its last-minute surprise screenings. Unlikely, but who knows.

[MyNameCriterionForum]

According to the IMDB boards, several other people from the film's production team have shown up as well, but I don't know if there's any way to confirm any of this, and of course it doesn't necessarily indicate the film (or even a trailer or other footage) will air.

[flyonthewall2983]

It's a good omen, at least.

[aox]

is anyone over this and just ready for Bela Tarr's new film?

[Fiery Angel]

is anyone over this and just ready for Bela Tarr's new film?

who?

[Tark]

is anyone over this and just ready for Bela Tarr's new film?

Certainly these are the top 2. Nothing else is even close.

Tarkovsky's dead, right?

[MyNameCriterionForum]

is anyone over this and just ready for Bela Tarr's new film?

Certainly these are the top 2. Nothing else is even close.

Tarkovsky's dead, right?

I dunno, is Richard Widmark still dead? Ah, it's all coming together now.

[flyonthewall2983]

Good News/Bad News.

[MyNameCriterionForum]

"Soon" is not a date. I need a date, and a ring on my finger, Terry. NOW!

[ianungstad]

Will be interesting to see who the new distributor on the film is.

I wouldn't be surprised if whoever picks it up, buys the rights to all the titles released under Apparition as a lump sum, instead of just for Tree of Life.

[Cde.]

Fantastic news for the film, terrible news for Bill Pohlad/indie distributors in general.

I imagine we'll get a release date as soon as a distribution deal is made.

Will be interesting to see who the new distributor on the film is.

I wouldn't be surprised if whoever picks it up, buys the rights to all the titles released under Apparition as a lump sum, instead of just for Tree of Life.

Apparition have a partnership with Sony, giving them home video rights to all of Apparition's previous theatrical releases. There also seems to be some sort of first-look deal involved, since Sony snapped up Welcome to the Rileys very quickly when things turned hairy for Apparition. I wonder if Sony Pictures Classics will wind up as the distributor for The Tree of Life.
Anne Thompson's recent piece suggested Summit also might pick up the film.

[flyonthewall2983]

Summit has really done it right as far as balancing out the commercial and the more artistic stuff. You'd think with a goldmine like the Twilight series, they'd just be content putting out a whole glut of genre movies (not unlike Lionsgate has done). But thankfully they haven't, with films like The Hurt Locker and The Ghost Writer to name a few. This would be definitely a good acquisition for them.

[dad1153]

Fox Searchlights to release "Tree of Life" in 2011. So, either it's going to be shelved until Fall '11 (for Award consideration in the 2012 Oscar telecast) or be released in the Spring hoping it catches a "Silence of the Lambs" streak of luck that keeps it memorable in voters' minds a few months down the road. All of this, of course, assuming the movie itself lives up to the Malick hype.