Top 10 performances from the films of Terrence Malick

10. Linda Manz, "Days of Heaven" (1978) 
We're guided through Malick's second feature by a young narrator named Linda, sister to an opportunist named Bill, played by Richard Gere. Manz comes in as the first entry on this list because she is the beacon of innocence throughout Days of Heaven. Her narration, often unreliable, is insightful, playful, and at times puzzling. As her brother and his lover make advances toward thwarting a rich farmer, Manz' laid-back observations ring honest and true throughout the film.

9. Jessica Chastain, "The Tree of Life" (2011)
Chastain is someone who I'd previously thought wouldn't make the list, but given the more I think about the film and her angelic performance, she deserves a spot here. An actress who is about to breakout, Chastain's Mrs.O'Brien is the perfect contrast to her authoritative husband played by Brad Pitt. Completely inhabiting the role of "grace" as a loving and forgiving force, Chastain leaves a quiet, yet impacting mark on the viewer.

8. Elias Koteas, "The Thin Red Line" (1998)
Always reliable in any role, Koteas' performance as Staros, a Captain facing inner turmoil over leading men to their death, is one of the standouts in Malick's third feature. Staros is probably the most identifiable character in the film, as his doubts and fears creep up and get the best of him. His rift with a particular supervisor serves as the crux of Staros' frailty. Koteas delivers mostly on body language, as he suffocates under the weight of his own duty.

7. Martin Sheen, "Badlands" (1973) 
Sheen's Kit Carruthers is a James Dean esque rebel molded in the makeup of a typical Malick character. Sheen was able to blend bold charisma with disillusionment and recklessness, proving that he would be a huge talent in the years following Badlands. Ultimately, what makes Sheen great is his natural portrayal of a sociopath with a hunger for grisly violence, while also blindly leading an innocent youth down his own path to hell.

6. Hunter McCracken, "The Tree of Life" (2011)
Like Linda Manz before him, the young Hunter McCracken is further proof that Malick is dynamite when it comes to dealing with young non-actors. While the film often shifts viewpoints, it's mainly seen through the eyes of young Jack O' Brien, the oldest of three boys. McCracken hits all the right notes, as his awkward adolescence causes him to question the mysteries in life.

5. Colin Farrell, "The New World" (2005) 
Farrell's portrayal of John Smith relies less on bravado, and more on the quiet, meditative quality that Farrell brings to the role. Perhaps an unlikely fit for the role, Farrell proves that when in good hands, he is a wonderfully potent actor. All of Smith's ponderings, heartbreak, and disappointments are fully realized as the actor turns in his most natural performance. Farrell is able to ditch the perceived image of a Hollywood leading man, and wholly disappear in Malick's vision.

4. Brad Pitt, "The Tree of Life" (2011)
Continuing on with the theme of Malick transforming "leading men" into something completely subtle and different, comes Brad Pitt's portrayal of Mr. O'Brien. A "Job" like figure serving as the embodiment of "nature." Pitt's stern father is at once cold, but ever-loving, as his "fierce will" way of upbringing is frowned upon by his wife, and loathed by his children. We come to understand the plight of this broken man, as Pitt delivers a performance completely out of left field. Proof that good actors only get better with age.

3. Nick Nolte, "The Thin Red Line" (1998)

There's nothing subtle about Nolte's portrayal of Lt. Col. Gordon Tall, a grizzled career military man who finally gets "his own war" in The Thin Red Line. Easily the most boisterous of performances in Malick's filmography, Nolte's rift with the aforementioned Staros, played by Elias Koteas, is one of the many highlights in the film. Nolte's performance may comes across as scenery chewing to some, but we're still able to identify with this man whose been passed over, and now seeks his moment in the sun.

2. Jim Caviezel, "The Thin Red Line" (1998) 
Of the plethora of characters featured in this film, I find myself relating most to Pvt. Witt, who as the film opens, is AWOL from his unit and living with Melanesian natives in the South Pacific. Witt meets his match in Welsh, played by Sean Penn, as each share contrasting views on the meaning and nature of life. It's another quiet Malick performance, but Witt's awareness of "another world" rid of violence makes Caviezel's tranquil turn in this film tragic and hopeful.

1. Q'orianka Kilcher, "The New World" (2005)
This really wasn't a hard decision to make, as Kilcher's portrayal in the crucial role of Pocahontas is second to none throughout Malick's five features. Another unknown at the time the film came out, Kilcher devastates us with her quiet, wide-eyed and complex take on such a large figure. Kilcher's offering is the quintessential Malick performance, gently running the gauntlet of human emotion, without much dialogue. I've yet to see the extended cut of the film, but I hear her character and the film is giving more room to breathe.