Yeah, To The Wonder isn't so much experimental (for Malick at least, it would be for anyone else) so much as just a bit weak. Tree of Life, The New World and Thin Red Line are the must-sees in my book, the older films focus more on rambling, disjointed narrative and stream-of-consciousness than the love of life and nature that elevates his later work.

They also suffer from lack of Emmanuel Lubezki's cinematography. He's gone on to DoP Children of Men, Gravity, Birdman and The Revenant, and has one or two more Malick projects in the works.