Perhaps the most appealing element of Terrence Malick‘s long awaited The Tree of Life is his collaboration with Douglas Trumbull. The special effects guru helped Stanley Kubrick attain his vision with 2001: A Space Odyssey and has also worked on Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Star Trek: The Motion Picture and Blade Runner. After directing Brainstorm in 1983, the iconic figure hasn’t had a feature film credit in 27 years. That’s all about to change this May, when The Tree of Life debuts.

It was revealed last year he would be working on the film, but very few details were revealed. He mentioned the CG-less effects Malick was attempting, and as we can see in the trailer, they seemed to have nailed it. But just how much of the film deals with these naturally crafted cosmos and the universe? Apparently quite a bit, as Trumbull recently spoke to The Australian:

Though it is ostensibly a coming-of-age fantasy, Trumbull describes this film as “more of a ‘man’s place in the universe’ concept, because it’s really talking about the entire universe and where we fit into it. It’s a very, very cosmic and very spiritual movie,” promises Trumbull. “A movie that, in style and content, is quite different from anything you’re seeing.”

Starring Brad Pitt and Sean Penn, the story seems to drift through childhood and adulthood, as well as reflect on the bigger picture in the universe. Judging from the trailer, it is difficult to pinpoint just how much the universe plays a part, but Trumbull’s comments seems to hint at it’s integral part of the story. While he didn’t delve into more details, a small update on The Tree of Life is always worth a look. Check out the trailer below if you haven’t yet.

The Tree of Life hits theaters May 27th, 2011.

Are you excited to see the return of Trumbull?