9th December, 1999

Dear Terry,

How are you? Are you busy  studying? I am fine here in Hong Kong. Recently I have watched several movies and I am fond of all of them! One of them impressed me deeply and led me to be more considerate, and that is The Thin Red Line.

The Thin Red Line was directed and written by Terrence Malick. Do you know him? He is a very famous director but frankly I have never heard of him before watching this fantastic movie. Why do I love it? Simply it is very heart breaking. I have never experienced such frustration when I was watching a  film. The story is about a few American soldiers in the Second World War. Each of them has experienced  a different background and agony. They hate wars but are forced to fight against the Japanese, their enemies. This is against their will. Their captain tells them that the war is inevitable in order to protect the world. But on the other hand, their hands are full of blood just like the Japanese. Are you interested in the plot? Maybe you will think it is a little boring. I also thought that before going into the cinema. But I changed my mind completely when I was coming  out of the cinema.

Apart from the story, this movie was filmed with a marvelous group of crews. It got an excellent director Malick, a brilliant cinematography which is the best this year, outstanding art direction and costumes, powerful film editing, persuasive sound editing and visual effects, and good music. How can you miss it?

Maybe you are still  not  interested in this movie. But  it is really very good! I hope you will watch it and love it like me! I will give four reasons why it is  worth watching.

First, the writer accuses America entering of the War. The movie tells the horrible side of wars. It sets  the Second World War as the background. In the beginning, you will feel the depressing atmosphere. Later you will be scared by dead bodies. In the middle of the movie, killing starts. It is really heart sinking when you see so many people die in front of your eyes. The movie asks a question why we need to start a war? Why do we want to invade others and then find a very good excuse to cover our ambition? Why do we have to be culprits? The director does not understand that, neither  do I. So many wars and conflicts happened in the past and then so many people died. But what is the reason for that? This movie inspires me to think about the dire consequences of wars.

Apart from wars, the movie also shows peace. At the very beginning of the movie, a few naive children are playing. They are living in an innocent world. Peaceful atmosphere is clearly shown. But soon the atmosphere turns tense as the war begins on the other side  of the world. A short period of peaceful scenes has made me understand peace is a gift of nature but sometimes it will be taken away. During the war, soldiers think about their past, their families, their wives, their friends and their homes. They treasure peace in the war. But in front of them, there are dead bodies. How can one feel nothing from this scene? In the ending, the naive children appear again on the same island. They share joy after the war ends. But I was crying at  this scene. I thought that they had paid so much for peace, which should be given from birth. The movie inspires us to treasure peace.

In my opinion, one of the merits of this movie is that, the director does not take the side of his nation. He accuses the cruelty of the Americans. Although the Pan-American Hollywood may not admire him, he does something that can inspire every American, every Japanese and everyone in the world. This movie, The Thin Red Line, does not support either the US or Japan. Everyone thinks that the Japanese are cruel. They treat people as their properties. They kill people without sympathy. Americans, on the other hand, are the crusaders who maintain peace in the world. Is it the truth?  Americans kill Japanese without sympathy. They kill civilians without sympathy. They take revenge on the Japanese but they have never thought of others. They are, actually, as cruel as the Japanese. A scene impresses me as  a soldier meditates on their behaviour. Have they done anything encouraging?

In addition, the movie shows human relationships. Among soldiers, they help one another physically and psychologically. They even die for the lives of others. This happens not only in the bloc of Americans but also Japanese. Between soldiers and their families or friends, a precious caring  relationship is shown. No matter if it is war or peace, such humanity appears everywhere in our hearts. We find love in the world.

Last but not least, this movie has  marvellous background music. The music is very heart rending. I cried when I heard the music. With the music, the story goes more smoothly and leads to a better expression. If you like music, you must try to watch this movie. Moreover, as I have mentioned, this movie is a film with an excellent collaboration of crews and actors. It is outstanding and extraordinary. The quality of the movie is extremely high. It is worth watching, as there are few movies that can inspire you deeply!

All in all, this movie, The Thin Red Line is a good production. It reflects life! It tells us  about war and peace, faith and destiny. We are living in such a cold world. Communication between people becomes less and less. We always distance ourselves from one another. All of us cover ourselves. This movie breaks my own chains. Love, actually, still lives! I have become interested  in movies after watching it. Maybe you will  too!

Write to me if you are free and try to watch this movie! It is simply great!

All my best,

Chris