Magnolia
1999 Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson
Synopsis
Things fall down. People look up. And when it rains, it pours.
An epic mosaic of many interrelated characters in search of happiness, forgiveness, and meaning in the San Fernando Valley.
Cast
Popular reviews
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"Sounds sad as a weeping willow." - Thurston Howell
You know that beautiful, wonderous feeling when a film comes along and absolutely knocks you for six? When a film comes along and puts you through the emotional wringer? When a film leaves you drained, yet strangely invigorated? Yeah, this is what Magnolia has done to me.
There is no plausible way to express how much emotion and atmosphere this film gives off. From the unorthodox beginning to the uplifting end, this is a masterpiece of the most visceral proportions. There were moments in this that hit so close to home it was scary. All of the illness themes were an absolute sucker-punch for me, and they'll no doubt stay with…
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This review reportedly contains spoilers. I can handle the truth.
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I have it under good authority that the only emotion worth feeling is bloodshed. However, MAGNOLIA made me feel feelings that I didn't even know existed. Strange, otherworldly feelings, akin to being poked in the anus by an extraterrestrial priest.
I have watched this film three times this year already and it gets better with every viewing. Every time the credits roll and I sit there with tears in my eyes, basking in the glory of Aimee Mann's rad tunes, I feel like a new person. Fuck the whole getting wet thing, MAGNOLIA is my baptism. I watch it and I am reborn. So come, brothers and sisters, come into the light of your god Paul Thomas Anderson. He is a kind and loving god, a god of mercy and wisdom and terrific frame composition. Come and stroke his bestubbled face. Tis a glorious face.
And MAGNOLIA is a glorious movie.
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It's a serious toss-up between this and "The Straight Story" for my favorite movie of all time. Both are extremely well-made emotional journeys with great acting, but they both traverse different emotional territory. And after watching "Magnolia" again, I might be inclined to say that it is currently my favorite movie. Sorry, David Lynch.
The reason why "Magnolia" works is because Paul Thomas Anderson doesn't judge his characters or his audience. He never insults anyone's intelligence or choice of lifestyle. This allows for the viewer to connect with every single character in the vast ensemble cast, even if the character is a misogynistic womanizer with a terrible haircut.
One of the things I noticed on this viewing was the camerawork…
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Recommended to me on my Lend Me Your Heart list
A sensory bombardment and an emotional tsunami, that is what this film is to me.
Anderson is s gifted director who is meticulous in how he presents his stories and that is what always instills his film with impressive craftsmanship. From the moment this film starts, it asks a lot of you. The amalgamation of score, visual panache and cutting between perspectives means your senses are stimulated to such a degree, that it can be exhausting. But it is a fulfilling exhaustion.
This film is of course about the stories, linked with the overlaying theme of relationships and commitment. Specifically the fear of both. All stories deal with the trepidation…
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This review reportedly contains spoilers. I can handle the truth.
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Would have liked it more if it wasn't so overhyped. Still good. 3 and a half hour long montage. Someone cried or screamed in every scene which got annoying. Made much better if you're a fan of the actors themselves.
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Beautifully crafted, flawed characters, with enough quirkiness to offset the joyless feel of some of the arcs, this is imperfect for sure but somehow one of my favourite films.
It owes a lot to Robert Altman in it's form and themes, which is no bad thing but what Anderson does is take his characters and put them into a more intimate environment. They are vulnerable to the point of break-down, and we the audience have a much clearer view of this compared to Altman's very detached approach. It works for Magnolia in a way it wouldn't for Short Cuts.
At times it feels incomplete, with a few strands that really don't seem to add up but for me that frees the film rather than limiting it, meaning my second watch felt as rewarding as the first.
Good one Paul m8
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not bad
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Magnolia is a very good film by director Paul Thomas Anderson. However I don’t believe it is his best like so many critics have pointed out. Anderson would hone his craft in his future work, but with Magnolia we get to see a director creating something unique. Anderson has always been one of the finer directors who are able to craft quality films with great casts of talented actors. Magnolia is a sweeping movie that intertwines the lives of different people into a powerful story. I really loved the film, but I just don’t feel that it is Thomas Anderson’s best. He would later make the far superior Boogie Nights and There Will Be Blood. But Magnolia is a fine…
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Magnolia is a film that I have a lot of trouble reviewing. Not because I am conflicted regarding my personal feelings on the film, I pretty much fucking hate it. I have a hard time rewarding a proper score to the film because I can acknowledge it is incredibly well made. The direction and writing of Paul Thomas Anderson is remarkable, which is not breaking news to anyone reading this. He is one of the strongest artists of film making alive today. Frankly, however, I can't stand Magnolia. The content of this film leaves me feeling so bored and cold I start to get twitchy and weird about 2 hours in and I have to convince myself to suck it…
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Wow. I haven't seen a movie this good, this beautiful, with a cast this great, in a long time. PT Anderson has a really talent for big ensemble movies, and balancing the plots of a lot of different and equally interesting characters. Magnolia is almost the ultimate example of that, as a large and fascinating group of mostly unrelated characters move in and out of each other's lives in incredible and unexpected ways. The cast is incredible, with Philip Seymour Hoffman, John C. Reilly, and Julianne Moore being stand outs. Tom Cruise also deserves particular mention for delivering easily the finest performance of his career. You know a movie's good when you don't want it to end, and this is one of the first films in a long while I has that feeling about. An absolute masterpiece.
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I think I would have liked this film more if it wasn't for Tom Cruise. I genuinely think he spoils films for me like Di Caprio. I can't for the life of me believe they are a character. They jut out of the screen in an awkward manner to me.
When Jeremy Blackman, Melora Waters or Philip Seymour Hoffman are on screen I'm convinced not only by their performance but by their characters.
Tom Cruise is a bad blemish on this great film.
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seduce and destroy
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"What can we forgive?"
This is only the second time I've watched Magnolia, P.T. Anderson's mosaic opus about guilt and regret, parents and the effects they have on their children, love and loss and life in general, and despite not loving it unconditionally like so many do, I have this ridiculous urge to watch it again right now and absorb everything one more time. The sights and sounds are pervading my thoughts, outweighing the fact that the film is too long, certain stories and characters are clearly more interesting than others, and there's a general sense of the sum being greater than any of its individual parts. The ensemble is fantastic with Tom Cruise obviously leading the way, he received…