Malick’s take on the story of Pocahontas, John Smith, and the founding of Jamestown is one of his most fully realized works, a poetic meditation on love, colonialism, and the eternal duel between civilization and nature. Upon arriving in the New World, Smith (Colin Farrell) is sentenced to death for mutinous behavior but is pardoned by Captain Christopher Newport (Christopher Plummer), then captured by natives and once again has his life spared, this time by young Pocahontas (Q’orianka Kilcher). Smith soon falls in love with her and wins the trust of her tribe, but violent conflict between the English settlers and the region’s natives seems all but fated. Emmanuel Lubezki’s swirling camera captures the majesty and sensuality of the natural world, yielding an enthralling epic that’s both historical and metaphysical.