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Tom Joad and Annette Kellerman look at MAGNOLIA
Hey folks, Harry here. The second film of BUTT-NUMB-A-THON was Paul Thomas Anderson's MAGNOLIA. This is a film that can't really be related to you. It is a film that has so much going on, so many themes and emotions that it requires at least two viewings and a 2500 word review to even begin to touch on what it is. I immensely enjoyed the film. I wasn't a giant fan of BOOGIE NIGHTS... I like it, I just didn't think it was all that... However, I do think this movie is all that and more. Here's Tom and Annette with the word in the meanwhile..
Tom Joad and Annette Kellerman here, to talk about a little best picture
nomination to come: P.T. Anderson’s MAGNOLIA.
Premiering at Harry’s Butt-Numb-A-Thon, as the second feature of the
event, MAGNOLIA couldn’t have been more perfect as one of the kickoff
flicks for the fest.
Clocking in at a little over three hours, this one takes off like a shot
and never stops moving, never stops advancing, never stops probing.
Quick, quick, quick.
We thought P.T.A. had it down with BOOGIE NIGHTS, but here, his
storytelling technique proves him a film genius. Anderson has honed his
skill as he harshly reveals the intense and sometimes dark soul of each
character.
Building on the premise of pure coincidence, the film weaves it’s
various plots together effortlessly. P.T.A. thrusts you into the story
and dares you to identify with the various levels of complexity that
each twist and turn conveys.
Tom Cruise. In a role seemingly written for him, his masculinity leaps
from the screen nearly choking you with his audacious originality and
virile certainty. However, ala a JERRY MAGUIRE breakdown (with tens
times the grit) Cruise guides you through the labyrinth that is his
character’s tortured past. Heads up for a supporting actor nod.
Philip Seymore Hoffman once again awes us in his portrayal of an earnest
and caring everyman. When events in his life pose challenges unlike
he’s encountered before, Hoffman delves deep, exploring emotions in his
character that many an actor would never discover.
Julianne Moore, Philip Baker Hall, John C. Reilly and William H. Macy
give P.T.A. another collection of solid performances that in our
opinion, outshine their previous efforts.
Direction, script, performances, effects - this film has it all. Each
element perfectly compliments the other, culminating in a continual
build of tension, and then release. P.T.A.’s hold on the reigns is much
tighter and more controlled than displayed before.
Lastly, the soundtrack. P.T.A. again amasses an amazing variety of
music to create an extremely meaningful soundtrack while at the same
time confounding us with the ingenious use of original music at the
climax of the film.
We hope you are as blown away by this film as we were.
This one hits theaters December 20th. Don’t walk. Run.
We feel that you can definitely trust us on this one.
Until next time-
Tom and Annette
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Magnolia will be best movie of the year. Even if I have to wait for next year to see it. Dammit, NewLIne, release it NATIONALLY on Christmas. I may have to drive to LA. Yeah, road trip. Oh, yeah, I'm first and Mountain View high school football RULES!
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And it's excellent. I can't wait to see how he works Supertramp into this movie.
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Has anyone ever met this guy? Is he a normal guy in real life who just happens to be able to play perverts well, or is he really a grotesque, disturbing fuck? "Happiness" was a unsettling experience, though he wasn't the only thing gross about it.
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Magnolia made my whole trip to Butt-Numb-Athon worth it. It is audacious, original filmmaking from a uniquely talented individual. I still have several films to see before the year is out, but it is currently my favorite of the year. Previous reviewers are correct, descriptions do the film no justice, it needs to be seen, experienced, and pondered. The writing, acting, editing, direction, even song selection mark PTA as a gifted artist. I hope he has many more great visions to show us in the years to come.
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Some guy who wrote in a while ago for a script report said there was going to be a number in the movie that you could actually call. Instead of having 555- it would connect you to a thing that talked about the movie. Does anyone know what the number is? I figure it'd be a 1-800 one.
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Maybe it's just me, but I thought Magnolia was a bloated and rather pretentious film that was overwhelmed by its flaws. Anderson's a gifted guy, but not nearly as gifted as he thinks he is. Still, I'd much rather see it again than the Green Mile, which really didn't work for me as a film (do you really think prison guards were ever that nice-- especially white prison guards in the south in 1930). Has anyone out there seen Any Given Sunday? It wasn't finished in time to qualify for all those meaningless awards, but I hear it's great, definitely one of the best films of the year. So far, my favorite films of the year have been Boys Don't Cry and American Beauty. End of Days and The Phantom Menace were the worst-- and I'm a huge Star Wars Fan.
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Tomorrow (Wednesday 15th December) at Oakridge Mall. I won a pass at a schmoozy film industry Xmas party last night. These sneak previews are never full, so anyone with a bit of blarney should come down and charm their way in. Personally, I can't wait. I was excited before I saw this review!
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I want to SEE what all the buzz is about. Please say it's coming to a theatre near me sometime in the future.***I wish they had a movie theatre where you could just see all the Oscar nominated movies right before the big night to see if they're worthy of nomination...just a thought.
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This is one that I've been looking forward to for a long time. Matrix aside, the best films this year have been more character-driven (Insider, American Beauty, Green Mile) than ever, and I hope it's inspiring a trend in Hollywood. I'm all for explosions if they're done right, but things have gotten so diluted (as with End Of Days, etc) that it might be time to let things rest for awhile and make some more films with characters that you can actually care about. I'm hoping that Magnolia is more of just that. http://www.almostcool.org
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He played a relatively normal guy in "The Big Lebowski". And his cameo in "Hard Eight" was as a rather obnoxious guy, but he wasn't a pervert.
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Dec 14, 1999 6:38:44 PM CST
Boogie Nights is one of the greatest soundtracks of all time...
by dennis
If Magnolia's is anything like it, WE HAVE A WINNER!!! The film looks very entertaining. I like the trailer style of having each character address the audience, and even for those few moments, the characters all come across as very real people. I can't wait! Man, has this been a year for film or what? I'd like to see Tom Cruise get some of the credit he deserves as an actor as well.
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I know some people have a problem with the way he directs, but I love his style. That pool scene in Boogie Nights just took the cake for me!
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I'm really counting on this film to show everyone what you can really do with a camera, not to mention story structure. Apparently no one's watching Mr. Scorsese anymore (for shame!) so this guy's going to have to pick up the reins. Of course, why would anyone want to see a film with interesting and 3-D characters that makes them think, when they can spend those same three hours taking crying and cheering lessons from Dr. Darabont? I mean, the choice is obvious...it's clear that not only the American public, but a sad portion of people on this website still like to be spoonfed, and are more than willing to act like a crowd at a wrestling match shouting "USA! USA!" with Hacksaw Jim Duggan. And don't give me that archetype/parable shit, it's the same excuse Cameron used for his skunkin' treasure. You know, the bible may spin a few good yarns and inspire billions of the people, but that don't make it good literature. And by the way, I read an article about Phillip Seymour Hoffman, and he semms like a pretty normal guy (much like his doppelganger Andy Richter); was a jock in high school, etc. He's one hell of an actor. He's probably deserving of a nomination for Flawless, Mr. Ripley and Magnolia.
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... and I really dig PTA's directing style, but all the style in the world won't overcome a muddled story. And the ending-- which I won't disclose here because I don't want to ruin the surprise-- seemed to be more of a gimmick (albeit a visually stunning one) than anything that resembled a resolution. Anyway, this is definitely a film that will polarize audiences-- which is a good thing, if you ask me.
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Dirk Diggler's return to the world of porn isn't all that miraculous. Sales of his new movies with reunited director Jack Horner aren't too hot so Dirk does what any self-respecting adult film actor does and gets into gay and animal porn. He makes a bunch of movies where fucks men, cattle, dogs, sheep and transvestites. His gay and bestiality porn flicks are big sellers. By 1993 Dirk is about ready to retire when he finds out he has tested positive, not just for AIDS but also for gonorhea, herpes, the clap, crabs, penile cancer, testicular cancer and some rare STD that simply goes by the name of X. Shocked at the news, Dirk seriously rethinks the way his life has gone. All his friends(rollergirl(suuicide),chesty Rockwell(raped to death in prison))are dead, looks like he's going to join them soon. He becomes a born-again christian. He joins a televangelist and becomes a big-time fundraiser. He raises so much money for Pat Robertson and the 700 club that the make him an honorary saint. Things are going well for Dirk, religion has been pulling in the big bucks and HIV and the cancer are miraculously in remission. However, one day at a fundraising event for Gary Bauer's presidential campaign, Dirk is propositioned by an old man, Bill Clinton. Clinton, of all people, promises to donate all of his riches to Bauer's campaign and endorse him on one condition, he and Dirk do the horizontal hokey-pokey. Dirk has to think about it, if he fucks Falwell then he risks killing him. There are also moral implications-Clinton is a man, and an old, ugly one at that. What kind of role model to young kids does Dirk want to be? Dirk says OK, but only oral sex. It starts out with Dirk giving Clinton head. Clinton busts a nut but still wants to give Dirk head. Before he does it, Clinton gets so anxious with anticipation that he has a heart attack. Dirk gives him a karate chop to the back of his head,instantly killing him. The secret service come in and shoot Dirk. Before Dirk dies he recites an islamic prayer, as it turns out, Dirk was a muslim assassin the entier time who shrewdly manuevered his way to get to the president. THE END
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I saw "Magnolia" a couple of weeks ago and was very disappointed. The film starts out by setting up a theme of amazing coincidences and then proceeds to tell a story that really has nothing to do with coincidences! Yes, Tom Cruise is great, but the effect of the more interesting stories is diffused by the sheer length and number of people P.T. focuses on. Then towards the end of the movie, something so strange happens that I was openmouthed. It just didn't fit! Uggh! My fave of the Oscar bait movies so far: "The Hurricane." All the others like "The Talented Mr. Ripley" and "Any Given Sunday" are just too long! Its like everyone in Hollywood went to Kevin Costner and said, "Please edit my movie!"
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It deserves to be seen by a good many people, and a good many people deserve to see it. However, the only movies I've seen this year that could impress me enough to hand them an androgynous statue are........ Eyes Wide Shut - I dare you to watch it again and think HARD; Being John Malkovich - funniest movie of the year, marvellously conceited and wonderfully humane; American Beauty - right behind BJM for laughs, but of a different flavour, being more concerned with character than with cleverness; and Fight Club - took brains to write and balls to stay behind (if generally confused, please think - there's that word again - about the opening shot). And for those of you who are confused by my use of "conceited", take an English course. -- Radix malorum est cupiditas. --
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American Beauty was a great film, but i dont know what all you folks are spouting about, a great film for me is one that can keep me entertained all teh way through, and American Beauty fell a tad short of that, green mile should have been a bit shorter but none the less a good film, im sure man on the moon is going to kick me on my ass, and Magnolia is the movie i cant wait to see!, and come on The Phantom Menace wasent that bad, you gotta admit the end battle between the jedi and Maul Fucking rocked!!, and oh am i first?
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Does anybody know? I live in London, and I'm dying to see this movie. I'm glad someone else noticed that Philip Seymour Hoffman seems to play perverts all the time. Hell, even that guy he played in The Big Lebowski was probably some kind of poodle-fucker. Oh, and Cold Lazarus said 'the bible may spin a few good yarns and inspire billions of the people, but that don't make it good literature.' What a fucking idiot. I'm no Christian, but I can still see that the Bible is one of the greatest pieces of literature ever written, even in translation. It's epic, it's got a bigger cast than Boogie Nights, and fist-fucking too (in the Song of Solomon, if anyone cares to read it). I thought Jake the Snake's plot for Boogie Nights 2 was great and should be made.
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I know this is late but hey. Shawshank is a top movie, however you may have been watching another film by the sounds of it. The rock hammer was obtained to be used as a peice of equipment to break out, the chess set is a cover. As its such an inoccous looking tool its not confiscated in the cell searches. Just thought i'd point this out as if thats your chief criticism of the film perhaps one needs to re-evaluate your appraisal of the film. Please pay attention next time or you will have to stay behind after class.
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Hey, forget about Cruise's "career" performance and PTA directorally slaying with this flick.
You see, it all doesn't matter unless Phillip "See-more" Hoffman is jerking off to Lara Flynn Boyle or sweatin' out seeing the size of Wahlberg's cock.
You've got no movie without that you freaks!
P.S. I'm not gay.
P.P.S. I'm still not gay.
P.P.S.S. I've never been gay. -
The Pardoner, you are cool. post more often. SSzero, were you even paying attention during SHAWSHANK? I dont jerk off over that film like every other TBer, but i do like it. I have no problem whatsoever with people who dont like it, but the things you said about it were idiotic. He DID collect equipment to bust out, he was NOT just "mum" about getting raped (he learned that resistance only hurt him more), and he did NOT risk getting thrown off a building (he didnt know the guard would react so violently). Pay fucking attention to the fucking details before you make a totally fucking moron out of yourself on the fucking talkbacks.
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Well, I'm sure I could come up with 10 better movies in the 90s, but that doesn't mean this wasn't a great film. Meat Takeshi - the rock hammer wasn't found in any inspections because it was hidden in Andy's bible. That's why when he and the warden are quoting passages it is suspensful, though you don't realize this until Andy leaves his bible in the warden's safe. And as for the film not being believable because he let himself get raped a lot...this thought is lunancy. Have you ever watched Oz? Or any other prison movie for that matter? Anyone going to complain to the guards about something usually winds up with a shiv in their side. Prisoners deal with their problems their own way - which is exactly what happened in Shawshank.
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I've seen some idiotic posts in my time, but that one just about takes the cake.
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Dec 15, 1999 1:49:04 PM CST
Phillip Seymore Hoffman is good, but Phillip Baker Hall is the f
by bababooey
Phillip Baker Hall, in my opinion, is as good as any actor working today. Why he never had the career of De Niro or Pacino is a mystery. Has anyone seen his performance as Richard Nixon in Robert Altman's "Secret Honor"? Fuckin brilliant. And he was just as good in PT Anderson's "Hard Eight". Should have gotten an oscar nomination for that performance. Too bad he will always be known for the role of the library cop on "Seinfeld". BTW, PT Anderson is the most exciting new filmaker today. And unlike a guy named Quentin, PTA gives us a new film every two years.
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I really want to see this movie. It looks like the only thing that is missing from this movie is Nicole Kidman.
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Nice to hear someone else praise Phillip Baker Hall. He is fantastic. I saw Hard Eight the one week it played in the theatre and he blew me away. Then I later noticed him in past films like Midnight Run (Farina: "I'll bury this phone in your head!") and he's been great in everything ever since (not enough of him in the great Insider). Anyway, everyone go see Liberty Heights, my favorite film of the year.
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I cannot wait to see MAGNOLIA. However, I live in New Orleans, the crappy film capital of the world. So I'll have to wait until January 7th. It makes me sick. I hear about all these nominations and cool movies, and I get to see them in, like, February. Then you have to fight to see them. BOYS DON'T CRY played for one week at one theater. How many did DOUBLE JEOPARDY play on? I lost count. Anyway, unlike many, I love making lists. Mine for this year so far would be:
1. AMERICAN BEAUTY
2. FIGHT CLUB
3. DOGMA
4. BEING JOHN MALKOVICH
5. THE MATRIX
6. THREE KINGS
7. EYES WIDE SHUT
8. THE SIXTH SENSE
9. GO
10. THE IRON GIANT
I'm really sick of people griping over the coke scene in BOOGIE NIGHTS too. That sequence a)showed how low Dirk had sunk, b)provided transition from the time he had the fight with Jack to the reconciliation--how believable would it be if he fought and then two days later came back? c)found a way for Todd to die d)gave character development to Mr. Diggler, who realizes that this is not what he wants to make of himself, (Yes, this is during that long beat while "Jessie's Girl" is playing.) e)hands a scene to the uber-cool Alfred Molina and that Chinese kid playing with firecrackers! But other than that, it was unnecessary and should have been edited out.
P.S. Phillip Seymour Hoffman is a great actor. Before long, he will be a superstar. -
I agree with Lester Diamond. The drug deal scene is totally necessary, for all the reasons he said above. Also, it adds incredible SUSPENSE to a movie that already has everything!
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The problem with the drug deal shootout in "Boogie Nights" was not that it didn't belong in the movie; it simply wasn't done appropriately for the film. Something that over the top belongs in a John Woo flick, not in a serious drama. As a result, it sticks out like a sore thumb.
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I'm not suprised you were dissapointed, you saw the film 5 years too late. You read all of the hype over it for years before seeing it. I love Shawshank Redemption, it's worthy of the acolades but with all the hype, you had a different film idea in your head. Perhaps thats why we were dissapointed by blair witch project.(some of us at least)
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I dunno, I think you people who don't dig this scene maybe never participated in any drug deals or watched friends become hopeless coke addicts back in the 1980s. It is one of my favorite parts of the movie, which I watch every other time it's on pay cable...
At what other time in the movie do you see Dirk's once-beautiful car, which has deteriorated into a wreck from his lifestyle? And that rock star pipe-head doing baseball? He typifies the early 1980s as much as the porn stars typified the 1970s. He adds to the complete insanity of the drug world. The only part I had a problem with was that the bogus coke they brought passed the inspection... It was fairly easy to test phony coke back then.
"Boogie Nights" chronicles what happened to a part of the popular culture (and esp. the film world) between the mid-1970s and the mid-1980s. Does anyone else who lived through that time remember reading that "someday an 'adult movie' will be nominated for an Academy Award"??? Does anyone else remember that porn stars were, like Dirk attempts to become, treated to music recording contracts? Even today porn actors are making the switch to mainstream culture. Yet all this happened within a few YEARS of mainstream US culture banning Lenny Bruce for obscenity.
Anderson chronicles that important shift in American culture like no one else would even dare to try. And drugs were an important part of that whole scene, good or bad. And the porn scene was as innocent and naive as he portrays. He does an admirable job of relating the spirit of the times.
And the drug dealing is a typical part of the addiction--many addicts turn to dealing drugs to feed their habit. I saw what happened to Dirk happen to what seemed like half of my acquaintances in the early 1980s. If he had left that scene out of the movie, the movie would have been a lot weaker. If you don't think it seems realistic or whatever, you just don't know. -
Hmm...well, I saw the film tonight, and like American Beauty, it's a very well made, edited, scored, and acted film...that I ultimately found unpleasant. I guess I'm one of those uncreative people that likes to have protagonists in a film that are actualy appealing in some way. It's not the overload of plots andimages: at the films outset I was drawn right in. And Anderson wove the many, many characters together well. Like Green Mile and American Beauty, I just did not fall under its spell--and NOT because of the length.
For the record, the best films I've seen recently are still "All About My Mother" and "Three Kings." They were desly plotted, had some ambiguous moral issues and contained tragedies to balence their triumphs. And unlike AB, Mag and GM, I had FUN when I watched them. -
So, PTA thinks Fight Club 'irresponsible', does he? What an asshole! Very few liberal-minded people have the balls to come out and say 'Certain films should be banned,' so they use the euphemism 'Filmmakers should be more responsible,' but it amounts to the same thing. Wanting to replace censorship with self-censorship is not a viable option. The great thing about Fight Club was its agressive denial of the notion that the filmmaker has ANY responsibility, and may we see a hundred more films like it, rather than cowering, apologetic directors who think every time they make a film that they're inspiring a potential high school massacre. Anyways, PTA can be an asshole on that score and still make great movies. I still think Magnolia will rock.
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I still have several films to see this year - but at this point, Magnolia is the finest picture of the year.
I have the odd feeling that I need to see the film about a dozen times to fully appreciate it. Its character driven - and every character is brilliant.
The best of the bunch is NOT Tom Cruise (though he's incredible). No, the film's best performance comes from John C. Reilly as love-struck police office Jim Kurring. He's both heart-tugging and powerful - he and Cruise both deserve Oscar nomination - though, I think we realize who'll garner the nod. Phillip Baker Hall, Melora Walters, and Phillip Seymour Hoffman (pt anderson staples) are all terrific and Julianne Moore is an absolute revelation as the trophy wife of a dying television producer. Anderson conitnues to prove himself America's finest young filmmaker. Yes, the film contains some events that are incredibly "out-there" - but isn't that the point. Magnolia is breathtaking filmmaking.
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Some of you people just don't read very carefully. Did I say that the coke scene should have been cut out of the movie altogether? No, I said it wasn't done very appropriately, meaning that the tone is all wrong in relation to the rest of the film. Let's see: the bodyguard empties two handguns at Dirk and Reed but misses every single time. Couldn't Reed have just been grazed slightly? Then the junkie fires a shotgun at them but misses every shot even though Dirk's body is blocking most of the first car window that shatters. This kind of silliness belongs in a DIE HARD movie, not in a drama that has been realistic up until the preposterous doughnut shop scene. Oh, yeah, the doughnut shop where not one but two guys manage to fire off fatal shots despite being too wounded to aim. Both of these scenes are obvious contrivances designed to wrap up the story neatly. It just wouldn't have been very exciting for Buck to have finally found a bank that would lend him the money, would it? Or maybe he could have borrowed some from Jack.
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You did not say it did not belong in the film, but "Jimmer Negamanee" suggested it did not belong and should have been cut.
I enjoy movies because they are fun. Sometime I suspend disbelief so I can enjoy them more. Yes, some unbelievable stuff happens in "Boogie Night," but it's not a documentary. I think during the whole movie the acting veers between unbelievably bad and incredibly good, and at times I could not tell if it was intentional or not. But it is all enjoyable anyhow. Especially the drug dealing scene. -
except for a weird sound mix(music obscuring dialogue)in the beginning & end,this @ Fight Club say the most to me about my generation,they are films that make you think!Magnolia has an incredible cast and P.T.A. delivers on all fronts.Incredible
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It's brilliant full of great scenes. It's too long with a few really dull scenes. The screenplay seems like a first time screenplay because there's a lot of sh*t left in that should have gone by now. There's about nine stories going on, and that's enough for any length movie. The three best stories, and they really are top-notch are: 1. The Tom Cruise sex adviser videotapes guy who had blocked his father from his life. 2. Julianne Moore as the current wife of a wealthy game-show producer Earl Partridge who married for money but now wants to renounce because he's dying and she really loves him. 3. The daughter of a popular game-show host is a Cokehead who can't bear him in her house. There are other good stories: the cop wants to date the cokehead; the former game show kid winner is now stupid; the game show whiz must take a wiz or forfeit the game. Those are not in the same league as the top 3 stories and this film should have been cut accordingly. Take the best three stories, and trim the rest and cut in where appropriate. For example the game-show whiz kid never gets interesting until the guy goes 5-4-3 to start the live show. The cop/cokehead story should start with answering the disturbance call. The Donnie Smith story only works in the bar so should start there. That would save a lot of set-up time which ultimately goes nowhere. I absolutely love the frogs incident and the 3 top stories. I'd barely touch them at all. The number of people I talk to who all complain about the length of this movie is big.
Anderson makes a lot of beginner's mistakes here. He has nine stories and he HAS to tell each with a beginning, middle and end. The film should with the game show host putting the gun to his head, and the frogs pulling the trigger. If this film was cut right it could make a $100 million, but the way it's cut now it'll be lucky to make $18 million. They make a big deal about PTAnderson being a great writer, an extravagantly talented writer/director. But a big part of a talented filmmaker must be the simple knowledge of knowing when a movie is one hour too long.
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