Magnolia - the film

interesting you found it bleak...like karmakramer I found it uplifting, probably because of how unapologetic it is. You have an extraordinarily ambitious guy who will stop at nothing to get what he wants...and he gets exactly that by the end of the film. There's no last minute change of heart, no spiritual crisis. It seems like Anderson outgrew the moralizing of Magnolia, which is what makes TWBB a much fresher feeling film.

Daniel Plainview is basically a more evil Larry David or something. He's just awesome.

While it's not my favourite of his films, seeing the ending of There Will Be Blood in theatres provided me with one of the best laughs I've ever had. Totally eschewed all my expectations. What a fucking punchline.

Loved Magnolia, a really great movie and despite the length the time just flies by for me. As others stated, my favorite plot is also the John C. Reilly one, the scene where he loses his gun and admits it on the date is really incredible.

The Julianne Moore breakdown is pretty gut-wrenching. And the line: "I've got so much love to give, I just don't know where to put it!" is

Tom Cruise's shaking drama face is one of the things that makes America great, lol.

yeah, Cruise is such a trip. It's like he really views acting as an athletic event, he gets so worked up. I find all of his macho informercial "praise the cock, tame the cunt" bits to be completely unconvincing, but his reaction when the interviewer asks him about his past is well done, and the death scene with his dad is sort of half-good-half-over-the-top-emoting. Can't make up my mind about him...

I remember I loved this when I first saw it, though I was younger and perhaps swept up in the epic scope of it all. I still can't decide if I feel the movie is pretentious or actually profound - I'm thinking it's probably a mix, with some moments of really great acting, writing, and directing but that it might be a director/writer somewhat overextending himself.

Cruise is fucking great, which pains me to say, but it's only because he's playing what seems to be a hyper-version of himself. All the actors, in fact, are pretty damn great and there are some great lines which I still lol at.

"I don't even KNOW no loud crash!!!"

Then again, I feel like most of his movies require you to be in the right place/mood to watch. P.T. Anderson definitely knows how to create atmosphere, and if you're not in the right mood for it, then I could see how it could be offputting. All of his movies seem to take place a sort of side reality - almost everything is the same, but there are enough small differences to make your skin crawl just a bit. I guess that's a testament to his craft, 'cause not everyone can do that so effectively.

On the "There Will Be Blood" tip- the GF and I were talking about this, and finding out that it is based on an Upton Sinclair novel somewhat changed my view of the movie. I haven't read it, but knowing his style and his thinly veiled social commentary make me feel like TWBB likely followed the novel very closely. Just something to keep in mind, as it's not a P.T. Anderson original joint.

i saw this once, years ago, and didn't really like it. i like john c reilly in it, but otherwise it just seems like an exercise in emotional manipulation.

there will be blood is extremely bleak. i'm not sure how you can take it as uplifting. it's such a male dominated film, and that's its main weakness. watching a second time though, i found myself really admiring the quality of the filmmaking. ultimately, that's a sad film for me.

Adam Sandler has kind of ruined comedy.

I, of course, the man who loves everything, thinks this film is amazing...

Jason Robards' monologue about regret is one of the best monologues in the history of acting

William H Macy

John C Reilly

Cocaine Girl

everyone in this film makes me love 'film' more than I already do....

The frogs are the first thing Anderson thought when he wanted to make this, had no idea how it would fit or what the story would be and most of the film is improv...

one of my favourite films ever....

  On 11/10/2009 at 5:26 PM, Atop said:

Cocaine Girl

That's Melora Walters and I don't know why she isn't in more films. She's a great actress.

I haven't seen 'Magnolia' in years but I remember enjoying it overall. It was a little bloated but there were too many good scenes for me not to recommend it.

Anyone who's main gripe with Anderson is his editing should see 'Punch-Drunk Love'. I remember reading that after all the criticism about the length of 'Magnolia', he wanted to prove to himself and his studio that he could make a film that was less than three hours long.

  On 11/10/2009 at 5:12 PM, marf said:

Adam Sandler has kind of ruined comedy.

he's not as bad as that one who was a policeman who developed animal powers

  On 11/10/2009 at 5:07 PM, zaphod said:

i saw this once, years ago, and didn't really like it. i like john c reilly in it, but otherwise it just seems like an exercise in emotional manipulation.

there will be blood is extremely bleak. i'm not sure how you can take it as uplifting. it's such a male dominated film, and that's its main weakness. watching a second time though, i found myself really admiring the quality of the filmmaking. ultimately, that's a sad film for me.

Out of curiosity, what are some movies that you do really like? Sometimes I agree with you, sometimes I disagree with you, but it's rare that I see you actually admit enjoying a film.

sigh, this again.

i've posted so many times in the recent movie thread about movies i enjoyed. read through it if you're actually interested. a lot of the movies i've reviewed in there i've given at least a 7 out of 10, which means i enjoyed them. it's possible to like something and find flaws in it. i gave there will be blood a good review, i enjoyed it, it's just a sad movie.

maybe i should just post my favorite movies ever or something?

  On 11/10/2009 at 6:31 PM, zaphod said:

sigh, this again.

i've posted so many times in the recent movie thread about movies i enjoyed. read through it if you're actually interested. a lot of the movies i've reviewed in there i've given at least a 7 out of 10, which means i enjoyed them. it's possible to like something and find flaws in it. i gave there will be blood a good review, i enjoyed it, it's just a sad movie.

maybe i should just post my favorite movies ever or something?

My bad, I wasn't trying to be a dick, I was genuinely interested. I'll check out the thread. And yeah I'd be interested to see your fav movies ever sometime.

  On 11/10/2009 at 7:49 AM, lumpenprol said:

The film opposes capitalism and evangelical religion in a fairly black and white (but certainly entertaining) way.

not to derail the thread too much but i'm not sure i agree with this statement. in fact, i'm inclined to think that rather the opposite was the case in twbb: the characters of eli and plainview are conflated throughout the film, especially with respect to their greed and the inhumanity of their selfish convictions. think especially of scenes like the one in which plainview throws eli into the mud; in the very next scene (if memory serves me right here) eli, still covered in mud, throws his father on the floor with threatening words that are a kind of parody of the previous scene. i think one of the most important themes of the film was to show the intersection of capitalism and eli's brand of materialistic christianity. in many respects eli is the pathetic, hypocritical "foil" to plainview, that plainview hates him not b/c he's "opposed" to him but precisely b/c he is just like him, only too weak (an "afterbirth") to truly be himself, which is why eli is so desperate in the end. eli hides his greed and selfishness behind hypocritical dogma, plainview is unabashedly and explicitly himself (for better or worse) -- i suppose in this way the two forces are opposed but it seems to me that the similarities are just as relevant. i think the film offers a rewarding exploration into the dynamics between these two major currents of the american psyche.

jus sayin

  On 11/10/2009 at 6:37 PM, six said:

  On 11/10/2009 at 6:31 PM, zaphod said:

sigh, this again.

i've posted so many times in the recent movie thread about movies i enjoyed. read through it if you're actually interested. a lot of the movies i've reviewed in there i've given at least a 7 out of 10, which means i enjoyed them. it's possible to like something and find flaws in it. i gave there will be blood a good review, i enjoyed it, it's just a sad movie.

maybe i should just post my favorite movies ever or something?

 

My bad, I wasn't trying to be a dick, I was genuinely interested. I'll check out the thread. And yeah I'd be interested to see your fav movies ever sometime.

i'm probably being a little defensive. it's frustrating because i genuinely love movies, but i guess i do tend to shit all over things that i don't like, and there's a ton of films that i don't like.

I'm a fan of Magnolia. It'd put up a fight to be included in my Top 10.

The slow-mo raining frog silhouettes is nice.

Magnolia looks nice, but I didn't feel emotionally attached to the characters. I don't know, I saw it when I was like 17, so I really don't remember much of it except for Tom Cruise's "Praise the cock" scene and the frogs. I just got really bored when I watched it.

i don't even remember what happens in the movie. I just remember a certain "feeling" i get from it. Some kind of raw wonder, or emotion, or atmosphere that drives the whole thing. Pretty much occupies the same space of love for movies that molholland drive does. I LOVE the atmosphere of molholland drive. Just so consuming and beautiful.

I get the impression that everybody in this thread who is slagging off magnolia is too young to have experienced life and the emotional turmoil that it brings and has therefore not developed any sense of empathy or any form of emotional maturity, other than being a whiney teenage pussy faggot.

  On 11/12/2009 at 2:05 AM, LUDD said:

I get the impression that everybody in this thread who is slagging off magnolia is too young to have experienced life and the emotional turmoil that it brings and has therefore not developed any sense of empathy or any form of emotional maturity, other than being a whiney teenage pussy faggot.

here here

  On 11/12/2009 at 2:05 AM, LUDD said:

I get the impression that everybody in this thread who is slagging off magnolia is too young to have experienced life and the emotional turmoil that it brings and has therefore not developed any sense of empathy or any form of emotional maturity, other than being a whiney teenage pussy faggot.

I think it's quite the opposite - a lot of Magnolia strikes me as the sort of half-baked "insight" someone in their teens/early twenties would have about relationships and adults. "All adults are basically children with layers of delusion and pain caked on top, all it takes is extreme emotional duress to let their childlike goodness shine forth again." The whole film is pitched in too melodramatic a key for my liking. Do we really need 1 hour to teach us that parents that push their children too hard should give them more space to "just be kids"?

  On 11/10/2009 at 6:41 PM, Alcofribas said:

  On 11/10/2009 at 7:49 AM, lumpenprol said:

The film opposes capitalism and evangelical religion in a fairly black and white (but certainly entertaining) way.

 

not to derail the thread too much but i'm not sure i agree with this statement. in fact, i'm inclined to think that rather the opposite was the case in twbb: the characters of eli and plainview are conflated throughout the film, especially with respect to their greed and the inhumanity of their selfish convictions. think especially of scenes like the one in which plainview throws eli into the mud; in the very next scene (if memory serves me right here) eli, still covered in mud, throws his father on the floor with threatening words that are a kind of parody of the previous scene. i think one of the most important themes of the film was to show the intersection of capitalism and eli's brand of materialistic christianity. in many respects eli is the pathetic, hypocritical "foil" to plainview, that plainview hates him not b/c he's "opposed" to him but precisely b/c he is just like him, only too weak (an "afterbirth") to truly be himself, which is why eli is so desperate in the end. eli hides his greed and selfishness behind hypocritical dogma, plainview is unabashedly and explicitly himself (for better or worse) -- i suppose in this way the two forces are opposed but it seems to me that the similarities are just as relevant. i think the film offers a rewarding exploration into the dynamics between these two major currents of the american psyche.

 

jus sayin

yeah, this is actually what I intended to say, but couldn't think of a better word than opposes, which does make it sound like I'm saying they are shown as opposites. I completely agree they are being shown as two sides of the same coin, but he certainly does it in a heavyhanded fashion. At no point in the film are you ever in any doubt that Eli is motivated by power lust masquerading as faith.