Badlands

CHICAGO – Any list of the most influential films of the ’70s that doesn’t include Terrence Malick’s brilliant “Badlands” is incomplete. It’s one of those cinematic works that’s so important to its era and how it influenced filmmakers that saw it that it’s hard to put into reviews in a brief review such as this one. It is iconic in the way Malick took the familiar (it’s based on a true story that was well-known at the time) and made it artistic. It’s also a great selection for The Criterion Collection, joining Malick’s “Days of Heaven” and “The Thin Red Line” in the most important series of Blu-rays ever released.

CHICAGO – Writer/director Richard Ayoade is one of the most unassuming, soft-spoken subjects with which I have ever spoken. He is modest beyond measure and seems completely unaware that he has made a film, the coming-of-age comedy “Submarine,” that has already started the kind of buzz that turns an indie film into a cult hit. People will love this movie. And Ayoade may not be quiet for much longer.

CHICAGO – The cinema of Terrence Malick has been a process of discovery, for its director and his devoted audience. His work is fueled by spontaneous miracles, typified by the moment when an illuminated cloud formation creates an image of astounding, temporary beauty. His films aren’t just breathtakingly brilliant and hauntingly provocative. They’re also curiously soul-cleansing.