Representation of American Invasion of Japan in Malick’s The Thin Red Line

Abstract

The film The Thin Red Line rejuvenates the genre of epic war film in moral, sensual, and philosophical terms; and does mirror the historical background of the World War II. In it, the dark sides of the war and the power politics have been intertwined. The director of the film, Terrence Malick has been successful in showing the politics of war as much as it was in contemporary time. War is evil and yet the power holders, for the benefits of them, utilized and victimized the other. The director being American shaded the Japanese as a whole and portrayed the Japanese very weakly showing the bravery of Americans. Not only that many soldiers like Witt, who is clear that he is unenthusiastic about serving in army, is the victim too. The war in the film is a war for Colonel Tall that determines the promotion and is his last chance to command a victorious operation. The film has intertwined its story around the marginalized characters and is triggered by the power-holders. Though the film is all about war, the microscopic analysis of the film reveals the politics of power and the impacts of it on the marginalized people.