RottenTomatoes.com
Log In | Register | What is RT?
Found a Bug? Squash It! Report Bugs Here
  • Home
  • Movies
  • DVD
  • Celebrities
  • News
  • Critics
  • Trailers & Pictures
  • CommunityBeta
  • Box Office
  • | Best Of
  • | Certified Fresh
  • | Showtimes
RT Search Powered by Google
help icon Enhanced RT
searches on Google
Click here to turn on enhanced search results from RT on your Google searches.
 
Movies / On DVD / The Thin Red Line
The Thin Red Line

Rate this Movie Help Icon

  • Write a Review
  • Read Reviews
  • Add to List
  • Buy Poster External Icon
  • Visit Official Site External Icon
Bookmark and Share

The Thin Red Line (1998)

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
78 %
Tomatometer
Template ImageTemplate Image

How does the Tomatometer work Help Icon

Reviews Counted:78

Fresh:61

Rotten:17

Average Rating:7.1/10

Consensus: This is a complex but powerful work with high intensity.

Runtime: 2 hrs 50 mins

Genre: Dramas

Synopsis: Terrence Malick returns to Hollywood after a two-decade hiatus with this adaptation of the classic WWII novel by James Jones. The story follows the efforts of an army platoon to capture the... Terrence Malick returns to Hollywood after a two-decade hiatus with this adaptation of the classic WWII novel by James Jones. The story follows the efforts of an army platoon to capture the Japanese-controlled island of Guadalcanal in the Pacific Ocean, which will have a major effect on the outcome of the war. The members of C-for-Charlie Company are all fighting for different reasons: some to achieve glory, some to fight for democracy, and some simply to remain alive. They spend the quieter moments reflecting upon their existence, searching for meaning amid the senselessness of war. Malick's reputation as one of cinema's most brilliant directors, based on his masterworks BADLANDS and DAYS OF HEAVEN, enabled him to pull together one of the largest ensemble all-star casts in Hollywood history. The result is a sprawling epic that carries itself like a poem read in a dream, a feeling that is greatly enhanced by John Toll's floating camerawork and Hans Zimmer's haunting score. Rather than concentrating solely on the violence and destruction of war, Malick uses the situation to address philosophical questions such as man versus nature, war versus peace, and good versus evil. THE THIN RED LINE proves that after a 20-year layoff, Malick hasn't lost a step. [More]

Starring: Jim Caviezel, Nick Nolte, Sean Penn, Ben Chaplin

Starring: Jim Caviezel, Nick Nolte, Sean Penn, Ben Chaplin, Elias Koteas, Dash Mihok, John Cusack, Adrien Brody, Tim Blake Nelson, John Savage, Woody Harrelson, John C. Reilly, Jared Leto, Arie Verveen, David Harrod, Nick Stahl, Thomas Jane, Miranda Otto, John Travolta, George Clooney

Director: Terrence Malick

Director: Terrence Malick
Screenwriter: Terrence Malick
Producer: Grant Hill, John Roberdeau, Robert Michael Geisler
Composer: Hans Zimmer

[See More Credits]

Reviews for The Thin Red Line

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by source; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 6 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
01/01/00
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
01/01/00
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Sight and Sound | comment Comment
03/05/02
Geoffrey Macnab
Geoffrey Macnab
Sight and Sound
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
02/09/06
Geoff Andrew
Geoff Andrew
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: UK Critic | comment Comment
01/01/00
Ian Waldron-Mantgani
Ian Waldron-Mantgani
UK Critic

Makes 'Apocalypse Now' look like a focused and concise piece of work

Full Review Source: AboutFilm.com | comment 4 Comments
01/01/00
Carlo Cavagna
Carlo Cavagna
AboutFilm.com
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Aisle Seat | comment Comment
01/01/00
Mike McGranaghan
Mike McGranaghan
Aisle Seat

It's a thin (red) line between love and hate

Full Review Source: Apollo Guide | comment Comment
01/01/00
Dan Jardine
Dan Jardine
Apollo Guide

Although Malick hasn't made a movie in two decades, he hasn't lost his touch for eye-catching vistas and the poetics of conflict.

comment Comment
01/01/00
Bob Fenster
Bob Fenster
Arizona Republic

...a film of sublime power and beautiful tedium.

Full Review Source: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette | comment Comment
12/08/02
Philip Martin
Philip Martin
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
01/01/00
Marjorie Baumgarten
Marjorie Baumgarten
Austin Chronicle

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Big Picture Big Sound | comment Comment
07/14/07
Joe Lozito
Joe Lozito
Big Picture Big Sound

Malick hasn't lost his knack for impressive visuals!

comment Comment
01/01/00
Jay Carr
Jay Carr
Boston Globe
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
03/24/02
Boston Phoenix
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The Thin Red Lineasks more questions than it answers and violates more rules than it obeys, ultimately prodding audiences to engage in a far greater level of intellectual participation than any film since 2001: A Space Odyssey.

Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
01/01/00
Wade Major
Wade Major
Boxoffice Magazine

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Bryant Frazer's Deep Focus | comment Comment
01/01/00
Bryant Frazer
Bryant Frazer
Bryant Frazer's Deep Focus

A visually enchanting, philosophically murky meditation on war.

comment Comment
01/01/00
Lawrence Toppman
Lawrence Toppman
Charlotte Observer
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
01/01/00
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Chicago Reader

Fascinating!

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
01/01/00
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

One of the most curious and perversely brilliant films ever made!

comment Comment
01/01/00
Michael Wilmington
Michael Wilmington
Chicago Tribune
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by source; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 6 >> >|
See All

More DVDs

Top Rentals
Tomatometer Percentage Movie
15% 15% The Ugly Truth
98% 98% Up
36% 36% G.I. Joe: The Rise of …
52% 52% The Taking of Pelham 1…
45% 45% Ice Age: Dawn of the D…

More Rentals…

New On DVD This Week
Tomatometer Percentage Movie
36% 36% Angels & Demons
68% 68% Funny People
25% 25% Four Christmases
45% 45% Shorts

More New Releases…

What’s Hot On RT

Twilight Saga: Eclipse

Twilight Saga: Eclipse

5 facts straight from the cast.

Disney Animation

Disney Animation

We chart the studio's classics.

Avatar

Avatar

An exclusive look at the human hardware.

Eric Bana

Eric Bana

The Star Trek star talks cars with RT.

Other News

  • Top Stories
  • Popular
  • Interviews
 
 

Comments

 
 
Top Stories
Headlines Comments
  
  • First Look (Sort Of) at New Nightmare's Freddy Source: ShockTillYouDrop.com
24
  • First Look at Shrek Forever After Source: USA Today
48
  • Woody Harrelson Will Battle Zombies in 3-D Source: Moviehole
26
  • Natalie Portman Says Kat Denning Is in Thor Source: MTV
34
  • Disney Restructuring Has Broad Implications Source: Los Angeles Times
10
  • Joel Silver Talks Ninja Assassin, Sgt. Rock, Lobo, and More Source: Collider.com
1
  • Weekly Ketchup: Idris Elba cast in Thor, more Spider-Man 4 rumors
118
  • Idris Elba Joins Thor Source: Hollywood Reporter
112
  • Jackass 3D Coming in 2010? Source: Collider.com
32
  • 6 Reasons 'Twilight' Is Doomed Source: The Wrap
64
Popular
Headlines Comments
  
  • Box Office Guru Wrapup: New Moon Shatters Records
178
  • Total Recall: John Travolta's Best Movies
85
  • Weekly Ketchup: Idris Elba cast in Thor, more Spider-Man 4 rumors
59
  • 5 Facts About The Twilight Saga: Eclipse
45
  • Critics Consensus: Flee From Ninja Assassin
43
  • Friday Harvest: New Moon, Avatar, and more!
32
  • Ban Them All! 10 Infamously Controversial Movies
29
  • Five Favorite Films With Zombieland Director Ruben Fleischer
21
  • "I Don't Hate Women": Lars von Trier on Antichrist
14
  • Ho, ho, ho! It's RT's Great Big Gift Guide!
0
Interviews
Headlines Comments
  
  • "I Don't Hate Women": Lars von Trier on Antichrist
14
  • Eric Bana talks Love the Beast - RT Interview
10
  • Fight Club Sound Designer Reflects on Film's 10th Anniversary
20
  • James Schamus talks Taking Woodstock - RT Interview
7
  • John Hurt Talks Harry Potter, Quentin Crisp and Alien - The RT Interview
15
  • Terry Gilliam Talks Doctor Parnassus
20
  • Wes Anderson Talks Fantastic Mr. Fox - RT Interview
8
  • Wolverine Creator Len Wein Talks About the Film
28
  • Gavin Hood Talks Wolverine; Possible Sequel
28
  • Duncan Jones talks Moon, Sam Rockwell, and Mute
14
 
 

Sponsored Links

Around The Network

  • The Thin Red Line at Rotten Tomatoes
  • The Thin Red Line at IGN

Fresh Links

Featured
RT on YouTube
RT on YouTube External Link

Subscribe to RT's YouTube channel and don't miss a second of our cracking video content.

RT on Twitter
RT on Twitter External Link

Follow Rotten Tomatoes and join us as we tweet about the week's releases.

 
 
About| Site Map| Help| RT To Go| Contact Us| Critics Submission| Linking to RT| Licensing| Movie List| Celebs List| Newsletter
IGN Logo

IGN.com | GameSpy | Comrade | Arena | FilePlanet | GameSpy Technology
TeamXbox | Planets | Vaults | VE3D | CheatsCodesGuides | GameStats | GamerMetrics
AskMen.com | Rotten Tomatoes | Direct2Drive | Green Pixels


By continuing past this page, and by the continued use of this site, you agree to be bound by and abide by the User Agreement.
Copyright 1998-2009, IGN Entertainment, Inc. About IGN | Support | Advertise | Privacy Policy | User Agreement | Subscribe to RT's XML feed! IGN RSS Feeds
IGN's enterprise databases running Oracle, SQL and MySQL are professionally monitored and managed by Pythian Remote DBA
Certain product data ©1995-present Muze, Inc. For personal use only. All rights reserved.