Lanton Mills is an American comedy short film written and directed by Terrence Malick and starring Malick, Warren Oates, Harry Dean Stanton (in a leading role), and Paula Mandel. The film was Malick's thesis project for the American Film Institute, was completed in 1969, and is known to have screened in 1974.

Summary

The story concerns two apparently 19th-century cowboys (Stanton and Malick) plotting to rob a bank in Texas, which they do in the 20th century. A film writer who viewed a VHS copy at the American Film Institute described it: "Visually, it is rich in elements that would become Malick's trademarks. Daylight assumes a tactile presence — though here it is not the diffuse 'magic hour' light (i.e., malick-light) of later films, but a bold late afternoon sun that streams through leaves, creating shadow and dappled highlight on the characters' faces. The camera angles tend to be either wide or wider, even in dialogue scenes. Also familiar from Malick's later films is the attention to landscape and nature. ... But what makes 'Lanton Mills' feel completely different from Malick's later work is its unrestrained, anarchic comedy. ... Though the jokes play out in an absurdist, disconcerting key, they still make us laugh (or at least shake our heads with a puzzled smile)." The producer was John Roper, the cinematographer Caleb Deschanel, and the editor John Palmer, with Malick composing the music. The film was influenced by Don Quixote and classic westerns.

Cast