How do you even begin to describe a film like Tree of Life? Words such as “art-house film,” “sweeping,” and “transcendent” are accurate, but misleading in their connotation. Typically they evoke the image of a self-important, storyless mess, mired in ambiguity and bereft of substance.

In its defense, the tone is humble. The story is of a son recalling childhood memories of his father and reconciling the differences between them. The clarity is in the simplicity and beauty of its scenes. And the substance is in the detailed moments it creates to evoke our own similar experiences.

With an opening shot of the universe itself, director Terence Malick (Badlands, The Thin Red Line) implies mammoth importance, but he avoids pretension by never forcing a message. This shot and others show an awe and respect (to say nothing of their magnificence) for the subject matter that ask us to appreciate rather than tell us what to think.

Similarly, Tree of Life has a message, but it doesn’t preclude the audience from appreciating its scenes on their own terms. A small sequence accompanied by Gorecki’s Symphony number 3 had a very deep impact on me. Other audience members laughed and were then were quiet when one of the boys tries to accompany his father on the guitar.

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There has been a lot of talk about Terrence Malick’s Tree of Life film of late, and Fox Searchlight has announced that it has acquired the U.S. rights to the highly anticipated film. Tree of Life is written and directed by Malick, who’s past credits include Badlands with Martin Sheen and Sissy Spacek back in 1973.

That film went on to become a respected and iconic film about the true life Starkweather-Fugate killing spree in the 1950′s. More recently, Malick directed such films as The Thin Red Line (1998) and The New World (2005.)

Tree of Life stars Brad Pitt and Sean Penn and has been finished for a while (it was first announced back in 2005.) It was originally supposed to appear at the Cannes film festival earlier this year, but was not ready.  Some people were hoping it would debut at Telluride last week since Brad Pitt attended the festival, but it did not.

Now there are some hopes/rumors (unsubstantiated) that it could sneak into Fantastic Fest. Guess we’ll find out in a few weeks.

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A new teaser trailer for the highly anticipated film Black Swan has been released and is up over at Apple Trailers. Aronofsky will direct a primarily female cast that includes Natalie Portman, Mila Kunis, Barbara Hershey, and Winona Ryder.

I’ll admit that I thought a psychological thriller set in the world of competitive ballet seemed pretty silly, but this trailer has me sold. Portman plays Nina, a ballet dancer who has been chosen to replace the principal dancer in Swan Lake. Just as she is settling into her new role a new dancer, played by Mila Kunis, shows up and lots of eerie things start unfolding.

The film plot has been tightly guarded, so that is about all I can tell you. What do you suppose is going on with the whole skin condition? How does that factor in? We’ll have to wait until December 1st to find out. The film will make a few festival stops at the Toronto Film Festival and the Venice Film Festival prior to its official release.

I find the career trajectory of Darren Aronofsky so interesting. He is one director who is never going to be pigeon-holed into one genre. His filmography is amazing. He started with Pi, which blew my mind, then moved on to Requiem for a Dream, The Fountain, The Wrestler, and now Swan Lake.

He’s a great talent, and he has yet to commit a career misstep, so I can’t wait to see what he does with this one. Check out the new teaser after the break.

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Cyrus is the kind of independent movie that makes me love independent movies, so it might seem paradoxical that I don’t want to write this review. I just want to tell you to go directly to your nearest theater and see it, without knowing anything about it beforehand. But I do have to write something, so as much as possible, I will eschew plot summary, and only endeavor to persuade you to go see it, right away.

Cyrus is made by the Brothers Duplass (Mark and Jay), who have climbed into Hollywood by way of the Mumblecore trapdoor. The Duplasses made their name with their first two features, Puffy Chair and Baghead, but they’ve matured with incredible speed, and Cyrus is a big step up.

A love triangle such as you’ve never seen before, Cyrus is the story of John, a shambling mess of a man (John C. Reilly) who describes himself as “like Shrek,” Molly, the lovely woman who accepts him as he is (Marissa Tomei), and Cyrus, the twenty-one-year-old son (Jonah Hill) who still lives with her.

Those are capsule character descriptions, and as such, they are wholly inaccurate. For this movie is all about character, and the ways character can manifest and change, all in an instant. You would think this movie was a thriller, the way it places you on alert. The tone is so wobbly (which is not to say inconsistent, or uncontrolled) that from moment to moment, scene to scene, I literally had no idea what was going to happen next. It made me realize how formulaic almost all scripts are. They follow the three-act or five-act rules and the audience obediently holds on for the predictable ride.

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Even though Mark and Jay Duplas’ Cyrus was already a hit with audiences at Sundance this year, Fox Searchlight is taking the film to SXSW as well to help build awareness and excitement for the film. Seeing as we’re big fans of the entire creative team involved with Cyrus, we’re happy to bring you info about it right here.

Basically, the film follows the life of John (John C. Reilly) a depressed, recently divorced guy who is pretty much a complete loser, desperate for attention. At a party, he manages to hook up with the hot Molly (Marisa Tomei) who, it turns out, has an adult son: Cyrus (Jonah Hill).

Cyrus and his mom have a somewhat interesting and open relationship and he will go to pretty much any lengths to protect her from anyone, especially John. Before long, the two are locked in a battle of wits for the woman they both love and only one man can be left standing when it’s over.

Everyone involved with this film seems to be at the top of their game, even Hill who seems to finally be coming into his own opposite two fantastic pros like Reilly and Tomei. Plus, it just looks really funny — which, sadly, you can’t always say about some “comedies” these days.

Be sure and check out the trailer after the jump. Fox Searchlight releases Cyrus on July 9th.

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