Date: Oct. 31, 2011
Contact: Carol Connelly, Director, Media & Communication Services, ext. 5267, cconnelly@pnc.edu

PNC, Library to Host “Tree of Life” Film Screenings

WESTVILLE – Public showings of the film " Tree of Life” will be offered through collaboration between the Purdue University North Central Odyssey 2011 - 2012 Arts and Cultural Events Series and the Michigan City Public Library. The showings are free and open to the public. Free popcorn will be available at PNC.

The film will be shown on Sunday, Nov. 13 at 2 p.m. at the Michigan City Public Library, 100 E. Fourth St., and on Wednesday, Nov. 30 at 5 p.m. at PNC in the Library-Student-Faculty Building Assembly Hall, Room 02, on the building's lower level. The film is rated PG-13 for some thematic material.

“Tree of Life” was written and directed by Terrance Malick, his fifth film in 38 years. Roger Ebert gave this film four stars and called it “a film of vast ambition and deep humility.”

The film is said to explore the meaning of life through Malick's look at his own life. When the film opens, Sean Penn is featured as Jack O'Brian, Malick's alter ego. But the film soon moves to the past and Malick's memories of his childhood in Texas and we meet Young Jack, his parents and two brothers.

The parents are simply “Mr. and Mrs. O'Brian” and are given no first names. Mr. O'Brian is played by Brad Pitt. Ebert noted that the film expertly captures life in a small town and the ebb and flow of everyday life with carefree children, a “regular guy” father and an aproned mother.

“I don't know when a film has connected more immediately with my own personal experience,” wrote Ebert.

The film also tackles larger issues. It includes a dramatization of the formation of the universe as well as the end of life on Earth.

The Odyssey Arts and Cultural Events Series continues throughout the year. A complete schedule can be found at www.pnc.edu/odyssey . For information about this film or the Odyssey series, contact Judy Jacobi, PNC assistant vice chancellor of Marketing and Campus Relations, at 785-5200, ext. 5593. Persons with disabilities requiring accommodations should contact Jacobi.