Malick’s To The Wonder Goes To Magnolia As Badlands Is Confirmed(?) For A Criterion Release

Well this was surely not expected.

Just a day after Criterion revealed (possibly?) that they have a release of his iconic debut film, Badlands, coming down the pipeline, Deadline is reporting that Malick’s latest effort, To The Wonder, has seen its domestic rights nabbed up by Magnolia. That’s right, the VOD giant has picked up the film for what will reportedly be a ‘multi-platform strategy that starts with a theatrical release, in 2013.’

Personally, I find this news to be extremely odd. The last filmmaker I would ever want to see go the multi-platform route is Malick, a filmmaker who crafts his films entirely to be seen on the big screen.   Admittedly, the film has seen oddly mixed-to-negative reviews come out of its festival run, so this news may not be entirely as shocking as we’d previously thought. It’s been called an expressive and almost dialogue free feature, so the fact that people will mostly check the film out in the comfort of their home isn’t the worst story. However, this writer still hopes that people rush to see this thing, as Malick is unlike any visually-inclined filmmaker around.

Source Deadline