A Hidden Life, which premiered at Cannes this year, represents something of a return to form for the director. Many of Malick’s flourishes are here, including a relaxed pace of storytelling, and a focus on natural scenery. There is little to suggest the growing threat to their world except the far-off sound of airplanes and, more metaphorically, the occasional gathering storm clouds. If you don’t know what became of Franz, A Hidden Life serves as a powerful reminder of the cost and consequence of taking a principled stand. The film takes its title from the last words of George Eliot’s 1871 novel Middlemarch: “That things are not so ill with you and me as they might have been, is half owing to the number who lived faithfully a hidden life, and rest in unvisited tombs.”2.5 starsA Hidden Life opens Dec. 20 in Vancouver, Montreal and Toronto, and Jan. 17 across Canada.

Source: National Post December 20, 2019 19:07 UTC