Le traitement de l’espace dans Badlands et 
Days of Heaven, de Terrence Malick
This Master’s thesis studies the treatment of space in Terrence Malick’s films Badlands (1973) and Days of Heaven (1978). First I apply myself to show how the treatment of space in these films distinguishes itself from classical cinematographic conventions, developing on the multitude of strategies used by Malick to make space (both visual and sound) sensitive and reflexive in the two films. Space here is created to be literally «inhabited» by the characters as well as the spectators. I then observe and comment on the implications (esthetical, narrative, iconological, philosophical, poetical, etc.) of this peculiar treatment of film space by showing how the filmmaker creates different types of sensations and constructs his discourse with and through space of his films. The thesis pays special attention to the concept of «film landscape» and structures itself in three chapters, which respectively study space in Malick’s work in terms of «sensation» (space sensitivity, «mise en vue» of the landscape in both films studied), of «relationship» (relationships between the different spaces and relationships between characters and space), and of «memory» («iconological» density of the landscape). In the project I also touch other important questions, coming back several times on the «poetical» dimension of Malick’s cinema and on the «space reflexivity» of his films (reflexivity and «attractional» aspect of the landscape, reflexivity of the voice-over, reflexivity of the organization and space structure of the story, iconological reflexivity). Finally, throughout the thesis I try to show that through filmmaking, and therefore through space and landscape, Malick creates a true space of thoughts that goes «beyond» his films.
Terrence Malick Badlands Days of Heaven cinema space and cinema landscape and cinema landscape and iconology cinema and reflexivity cinema and poetry