Director Terrence Malick’s highly anticipated, and long in the works, The Tree of Life is finally being released this May, and now word comes that the film will have its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival earlier that month. Variety reports that it's still unclear whether Malick will screen the film in-competition or not, but The Tree of Life will definitely be there. Back in 2010, it looked like the film might screen at that Cannes Film Festival, but the ever-meticulous Malick didn’t feel that the flick was ready just yet.The Tree of Life stars Brad Pitt, Sean Penn and Jessica Chastain and follows a life from childhood in the 1950’s to adulthood in the modern day. If the trailer is any indication, audiences are in for a very characteristically Malick experience (visceral, thought-provoking, etc.). If you missed it, be sure to check out Steve’s interview with Chastain in which she describes the experience of working with an auteur like Malick. The Tree of Life hits theaters on May 27th. The 2011 Cannes Film Festival takes place from May 11th - May 22nd.  Hit the jump for the official synopsis.

From Terrence Malick, the acclaimed director of such classic films as Badlands, Days of Heaven and The Thin Red Line, The Tree of Life is the impressionistic story of a Midwestern family in the 1950’s. The film follows the life journey of the eldest son, Jack, through the innocence of childhood to his disillusioned adult years as he tries to reconcile a complicated relationship with his father (Brad Pitt). Jack (played as an adult by Sean Penn) finds himself a lost soul in the modern world, seeking answers to the origins and meaning of life while questioning the existence of faith. Through Malick’s signature imagery, we see how both brute nature and spiritual grace shape not only our lives as individuals and families, but all life.

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