Oct 23rd   
The Thin Red Line*  
(US/Australia 1998)                         

Experiences of American soldiers in and around the Battle of Guadalcanal in World War II.
Sprawling ecological war epic with a who's-who of American actors in the all-star cast (some of whom are cut - see below) in reverence to their director, who stages a rough, tough novel about combat soldiers his own way within the context of nature itself. The result is beautiful to look at and listen to, but not quite as baffling as Malick's later work.

Written and Directed by: Terrence Malick, based on the novel by James Jones.
Producers: Robert Michael Geisler, Grant Hill, John Roberdown.
Starring (in no particular order): Jim Caviezel, Sean Penn, Ben Chaplin, Nick Nolte, John Travolta, Elias Koteas, Woody Harrelson, Jared Leto, Adrien Brody, John Cusack, John C. Reilly, John Savage, George Clooney, Miranda Otto.
Photography: John Toll.
Music: Hans Zimmer.
Editing: Billy Weber.

+ the original first draft cut ran 5 hours. Among those notables on the cutting room floor: Lukas Haas, Viggo Mortensen, Jason Patric, Bill Pullman, Mickey Rourke, Martin Sheen (narrator) and Billy Bob Thornton

++ previously adapted into a film in 1964