The Tree of Life presents too much to process during one viewing...and like most other Serious Films, what you get out of it probably depends on where you're at in life. As a new parent (and former child, of course), glimpses of Jack's early childhood and his parents' conflicting behavior are realistic and relatable on certain levels. Additionally, our journey through time often provides an effective and visually rich backdrop. Modern scenes with middle-aged Jack are much less effective, however: there's too much of a gap to consider this an effective character study. More attention given to his further upbringing (instead of, say, distracting CGI dinosaurs, if we're allowed to pick and choose) would have made The Tree of Life much easier to fully connect with. My other main gripe was the overuse of Malick's trademark "whispered voice-overs"; in this case, they often distract from the stunning visuals instead of amplifying them. If I could hear one film with a music-only audio track, this would be it.

As it stands, it doesn't feel like we're getting the whole story here...but then again, The New World got a director's cut in 2008, so perhaps we'll see a more complete version somewhere down the road. For now, we'll have to settle for Fox's puffy three-disc package, which favors a reference-quality A/V presentation and format convenience over special features. Like The Tree of Life itself, it's a thoughtful effort that still manages to hold us at arm's length. Let's take a closer look, shall we?

Presented in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio, The Tree of Life looks completely jaw-dropping on Blu-Ray. This 1080p transfer preserves every detail of the film's rich cinematography, from quiet suburban landscapes to the far reaches of outer space. Shot primarily with natural light, The Tree of Life boasts wonderful shadow detail, solid black levels and a pleasing layer of film grain. Digital problems are non-existent. Simply put, there's virtually nothing to complain about here, because The Tree of Life is the best-looking live action Blu-Ray in recent memory. Feel free to pause and marvel.

The Tree of Life's substantial 7.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track is equally impressive, especially if you follow the Blu-Ray's on-screen request to play it at high volume. This is an incredibly spacious and enveloping audio mix from start to finish, especially during the film's classically-tinged soundtrack. Boasting strong channel separation, thunderous LFE, a tight dynamic range and crisp dialogue, this is as perfect an audio presentation as I've heard in quite some time. An optional Dolby Digital 2.0 mix, as well as English SDH and Spanish subtitles, is offered during the main feature.

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Also here is the film's Theatrical Trailer (2 minutes), as well a matching DVD and Digital Copy disc. Otherwise, all bonus features are presented in 1080p and do not include optional subtitles or Closed Captions. Some may feel that this theatrical cut of The Tree of Life stands on its own, but I disagree. Perhaps Criterion will eventually come to the rescue, as they did with The Thin Red Line.

The Tree of Life is a beautifully shot, carefully composed and richly detailed film that nonetheless feels maddening and incomplete at times. Eye-rolling philosophical voice-overs routinely grind our story to a halt on many occasions...but if that's the price we have to pay for Malick's stunning visuals, it's almost a fair trade. Fox's three-disc package is satisfying in some areas: a reference-quality technical presentation is the obvious standout here, but the below-average collection of extras suggests a more substantial (Criterion?) double-dip in the future. At such a high asking price, I'd recommend that most viewers---aside from die-hard fans, of course---dip their toes in the water first. Rent It.

NOTE: The above images were obtained from promotional outlets and do not represent this release's native resolution.