To the Wonder

The film was announced in February 2010, and was set to star Christian Bale. Bale ultimately dropped out of the production and was replaced by Ben Affleck.When the film entered production it did not have a title, and was referred to by the crew as Project D. Filming took place primarily in Bartlesville and Pawhuska, Oklahoma, and began in September 2010. Additional shooting took place in early 2011 in Bartlesville and Paris, France. Malick and his crew adopted an experimental approach. Actors described working without a screenplay or the use of lights. Emmanuel Lubezki called the film `abstract` and described it as being less tied to theatrical conventions and more purely cinematic than any prior film directed by Malick.All footage of the performances by Jessica Chastain, Rachel Weisz, Amanda Peet, Barry Pepper and Michael Sheen was removed from the final cut.The film has received mixed reviews in the United States, as it holds a 41% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 94 reviews with the consensus, To the Wonder demonstrates Terrence Malick`s gift for beautiful images, but its narrative is overly somber and emotionally unsatisfying.At the Venice Film Festival, as Javier Bardem s character (a priest), appeared, the audience started to laugh, although he was not a comical character. In the same way, the audience laughed at scenes featuring the Italian actress Romina Mondello (who spoke phrases like I am my own experiment) however, a similar response was afforded Malick s former film upon its Cannes premiere, despite that film going on to win that festival`s Palme d`Or, as well as a Best Picture Oscar nomination. Watch To the wonder for free was the final film reviewed by Roger Ebert, prior to his death on April 4, 2013. His review was published on April 6, two days after he died. He awarded it three and a half out of four stars. A more conventional film would have assigned a plot to these characters and made their motivations more clear. Malick, who is surely one of the most romantic and spiritual of filmmakers, appears almost naked here before his audience, a man not able to conceal the depth of his vision.The film opened with $130,000 in select screens and was in the top 10 itunes rentals the week of its opening.