Why Magnolia (1999) Is My Favorite Film | A Video Essay
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- Опубліковано 25 лис 2021
- Magnolia was distributed by New Line Cinema in 1999
Warner Bros. Pictures and WarnerMedia own New Line Cinema
Soundtrack by Jon Brion
"One" by Aimme Mann
That Moment: Magnolia Diary (2000) Copyright New Line Home Video
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You know you're an incredible director when your best film is like a 4-way tie
This, twbb, phantom thread, and the master constantly fight for the top spot for me but I gotta say Magnolia as ptas best
There are lines, scenes, moments in this film which stick with you long after viewing. There is something about this film which reaches a level of honesty about the weakness and broken nature of the human condition that I have rarely, if ever, seen anywhere else.
...now ima teach ya but da worm!
Life is loooongg.... and harddddd
I was telling my friend it’s a movie where the majority of the cast had an argument to be nominated for best supporting actor/actress. I haven’t seen this movie in 7 years and just rewatched it today and was blown away once again.
Good point, like 8 performances in it could seriously be nominated
So many stunningly beautiful & powerful performances.
Can you even imagine having julianne moores character in this movie? I think every single scene she is crying or ende up crying hysterically. It must not be much fun and probably takes a toll..
It’s so good. It’s absolutely in my top ten. Beautiful and sad.
And Only Tom was
I saw Magnolia (1999) for the first time last August, and I’ve now watched it 4 times in total. It has easily become one of my favorite movies of all time. A true masterpiece!
💯❤️💯❤️💯
Philip Seymour Hoffman was such an incredible actor. When Bruce Dern calls him over two hours in, Philip sits there and listens with every bit of care of a hospice nurse anyone could ask for. Such an amazing actor in every single roll he played.
He's my favorite. I love him in this. So much.
Bruce Dern?
Jason Robards
@@len8744 lol
1999 was such a great year for film.
So true!! Have Always thought that. it was just something out of the box. There were 4 or 5 films that would’ve won best picture if they were 2 years earlier or later…. Girl interrupted, green mile, the matrix, the insider, American beauty, sixth sense the list goes on and on. Just ridiculous. There will never be another year like that
Great video man you hit all the points as to why it’s so great. Ive been on a film binge this year at 100+ movies watched this year and Magnolia by far was my favorite, the intensity, the story, the acting, the script, it’s all just so perfect. it was the quickest 3 hours of my life. The amount of different themes and ideas the movie presents I catch something new everytime I watch it. The plot feels realistic and it’s beautifully shot. My absolute favorite film of all time it’s a masterpiece
Damn man. That’s awesome!
Those three hours fly by.
Phillip Seymour Hoffman was great . But I have to say the best performance was no doubt Tom Cruise. I can only compare his acting to Liv Ullmann from Autumn Sonata. Good for him for being able to be a great Action star but this proves he can do so much more.
You’re not the only one. I saw it in a DC movie theater in 2000, walked out stunned and suddenly burst into tears in my friend’s car. I was crying so hard I had to get out and be alone. I sat on a bus stop bench in Tenleytown and cried for about an hour. Then I called my therapist’s answering machine from a phone booth and told her something just happened to me that I couldn’t explain or understand. I was overwhelmed. I never cried at a movie before then in my life except probably ‘Bambi’ when I was a little kid. It took me years and 10-20 viewings of ‘Magnolia’ to unpack the many reasons why that night happened. Life only got better for me after that. I was able to overcome a lifetime of depression and repressed anger. My career took off. I met the love of my life. And I now cry at movies all the time. ‘Magnolia’ was the great flood for me. It’s a fucking masterpiece. It reminds us how art is a necessity for us.
That's incredible!
Couldn’t agree more. I remember watching this as a film student in the early 2000’s and just being blown away. I remember walking out of the cinema and sitting outside in silence for a good half an hour by myself trying to unpack the emotions I was feeling about what I just watched…. No film had ever before or since had such an impact on me. I’ve watched probably a dozen times since (if it didn’t take such a toll on me I would’ve watched it 100 times) and it still gets me on a different level. It’s a Complete masterpiece. I wouldn’t change a thing. Wish I could go back and watch it for the first time again
Yeah the poor frogs raining got me too
Man, this is beautiful ❤
sheesh
I did leave the movie feeling it had an impact on me in some ways I couldn't explain. I knew I was missing a lot of points being made in the film so I came here to get some insight. Your video really helped. Thanks!
Dude, I loved your essay!
This is in my top 5 movies. A coupla things I’d add are:
1) when discussing the score and music, on one hand I’m glad you didn’t touch the scene with Aimee Man’s “Wise Up,” because it leaves that as a surprise for people watching essay who haven’t seen the movie but I have to mention the song itself. My first time watching the movie it was late at night and I fell asleep, but in my sleep I heard that song playing. I loved it so much that I woke myself up to hear the rest of it. AMAZING piece of art that song!!
This was back in 2007-8, and the movie was on cable so I was able to watch it the next night all the way thru. And proceeded over the next coupla weeks to watch it as many times as I could!
2) the only thing I’d add about quiz kid Donny, Macy’s character, is that there is sooooo much happening with him that you could do a short video essay on just him! His character is so complex. My favorite line in the movie is his:
“I have love to give. I just don’t know where to put it.”
Donny pulls my heartstrings a little more every time I watch this movie.
I agree, Staci. The music really tied it all together in such an emotional and surprising way, especially when PT Anderson highlighted each of the characters singing the words to the song in their own environments.
I saw Magnolia for the first time in a theater when I was a doctoral student, working toward my PhD in Counseling. I thinkit was in 2000. When the movie was ended, I felt overwhelmed. I told my husband that I felt like someone had opened up the top of my head and stuffed all the information in there, and then, closed it again. I had to go home to process what I had just seen. I started making notes about each of the characters and their relationships to each other and reflecting on the common themes...loss, regret, abuse, angst, rejection, forgiveness, and innocence, and hope.
I've never loved any other movie more than I love Magnolia! The psychological depth portrayed by some of the characters in this movie is simply astonishing!
One of my favorite quotes by Donny is "No, it is not dangerous to confuse children with angels."
It's so wonderful to happen on to this group of Magnolia fans. Thank you, Andrew, for making and posting this wonderful essay about Magnolia! You did a great job!
Incidentally, after watching the film in a theater, I bought my own VHS copy of the film more than 20 years ago. Then, I got a DVD of the film. The tragic loss of the brilliant Philip Seymore Hoffman still just kills me!
@@jacicrimmccrary that quote is amazing, agreed
You are right--you're not alone. Magnolia has ALWAYS been one of my top five movies, from the first day I saw it in the theatre...most people think it's weird, yes, too surreal, etc...it's not. It's life, it's regret, triumph over adversity, shattered innocence. It's art, and not in the way shallow, unfeeling people disparage "ART"...but, you know, art, as in the thing that communicated thoughts and emotions and the human experience to cultures and civilizations for millenia...anyway, thank you for this loving postcard to Magnolia. Your vid was beautifully done and brought me back to this film, which I've seen numerous times but it had been a while. Peace to you ;)
Tom cruise was absolutely incredible in this movie probably my favorite performance by him. “Pill pharma” was also hilarious
neat fact about the scene where frank faces up to earl: tom felt the original dialogue for the scene wasn’t working, so pta told him to capture how he felt watching his own father die. the resulting take ended up surprising pta with how moving it was, and it ended up in the movie
It's the most authentic scene I've ever seen in a movie.
He’s so good in this! People seem to forget what a good actor he is, since he’s also such a big movie star. 🤔😉
Really? I saw an interview with Cruise where he said he didn't draw on his deathbed relationship with his father......
Great video! I saw this 5 times at the theater by myself when it came out. I was 16 at the time and still hits me every time. Thanks for sharing
Damn that must’ve been an AMAZING experience, seeing it at 16 and also at the theatre, and 5 times
Must be quite an experience!
That must have helped you a lot in life I wish I would have seen this as a teenager.
Great breakdown. Been one of my favorite films for years. The Aimee Mann songs are haunting and beautiful as well.
It`s a masterpiece of pure cinema. Definitely my favourite film of all time.
this is also one of, if not my absolute favourite film. i have no words for it. but nothing else made me feel like magnolia
the acting in this movie blew me away
Everyone’s great including Tom Cruise at his absolute best and it’s cool that a lot of the cast he brought back from Boogie Nights!
John C Reilly’s character has a very compelling arc which showcases how as a character actor he’s been in so many great films and not just the comedies most people in my generation know him for. Phillip Seymour Hoffman of course is wonderful as he always was and really complements both Cruise and Julianne Moore who was also fantastic in their performances with their character arcs.
I feel like that is the key point that makes it such a masterpiece. I mean you can make an argument for almost every actor in this movie being maybe their best career performance. Shows how amazing the script and direction is!
@@johnsy1eleven well put!!!!!
@@johnsy1eleven if you had to choose top three performances from this film, who would you choose?
Tom Cruise would obviously be #1 in my list and I think Julianne Moore’s performance was my second-favourite, #3 is probably interchangeable between PSH or John C Reilly, but the problem is it’s so hard to pick three favourite performances since everyone is great in this!
Best work Cruise has ever done. I don't like him. I love him in this movie. Perfection.
Exactly.
He’s absolutely heartbreaking.
Boogie Nights was incredible. One of those films that exploded off the screen in the 90s by a brand new filmmaker. I loved it and still do.
Magnolia was a brave and flawed and beautiful film that still resonates and should be dissected for years. (I compare Magnolia to Six Feet Under for the same reasons.)
You take from it what you bring to it.
True art.
Good connection. Six Feet Under was amazing.
I still think about SFU all the time, especially as I get older. 😥
But it is still oddly reassuring every time I re-watch it.
@@DebNKY
Boogie Nights is probably within my Top Ten films of all time, it was an incredible film for a sophomore feature that heralded the arrival of an amazing writer/director on the Hollywood indie scene.
I watched Magnolia following on next in PTA’s filmography (I believe at this point he referred to himself as P.T Anderson as in “A P.T Anderson Film”) and it’s simultaneously a great film but also a bit of a mess, but has some really profound moments like when Frank Mackey, in what is still Tom Cruise’s best ever performance to date, comes face-to-face with his estranged father in a moment of reconciliation or when Julianne Moore’s Linda Patridge whose increasing dependence on prescription medications and her deep shame and regret at her inauthentic love and relationship with Earl blows up in anger at the snide comments of the pharmacists.
I think Magnolia’s biggest problem is it’s 3 hour and 8 minute length and it’s pacing which even PTA conceded was an issue and some of the storylines aren’t as interesting as the others. I love the raining frogs at the end though, it’s a totally WTF moment but it brings all the narratives and characters together and provides resolve for the tormented characters.
Magnolia is a flawed film but it’s definitely also a great one for the risks that it took and the different stuff it tried, and I believe PTA used it as a template for all his amazing story ideas which he would hone in on his masterpieces such as There Will Be Blood and The Master.
Thank you for being one of the only channels I could find discussing my favorite movie
rewatching this first time in many years was the highlight of my weekend...
Just watched this movie for the second time since like 2015 when I was like 16 or so...I really liked it then but watching it now, it really hit me on another level...definitely PTAs best and most ambitious film in my opinion, I really wish he made more films like this. 10/10 for me ....still have yet to see the master or phantom thread (gonna watch tomorrow). I really liked licorice pizza although I wished they closed the age gap just a bit more...I wanted to root for the relationship but it totally felt weird lol
Lovely video! This film changed my life! PTA is my hero, but I think this is the one closest to my heart, although as time goes by I discover something special in each of his films. Thank you sir! 🙏🏻
This is my favorite film of all time. It emotionally broke me because i identified with soo many of the characters in the film and their combined stories. I saw it 4 times in the theater and cried profusely every damn time.
Same! 🥺
Thank you for making this love letter to one of my favorite films.
Hey Andrew, never seen one of your videos before. Great summary, thanks. You seem like a straight up guy and very entertaining
It's my favorite film. You're not alone.
Well thank you Andrew, very good essay, loved it. It was moving, like the movie, I'll go check your letterboxd now ! 🎉
This has been my favorite movie since it came out.
Me too!… I can’t imagine anything ever measuring up to it. Tried to keep an open mind but no film has come close for mine. You have fantastic taste! 😊
Very emotional film. If you don't get misty, your not human. Aimee Mann "Wise Up" is fantastic
Right on Andrew! Saw this in the theater when it came out. It’s been one of my favorite movies ever since!
Thanks so much for that. I have just finished watching the film again and found this insightful to watch afterwards As well as your insight, your voice and delivery are perfect for this.
There is a lot which is off in this critique. But 2 crucial points are misunderstood in it and can’t go without comment:
(1) the script was not erratic; it concerns a variety of narrative paths, but is drawn together by how the choices of the characters ripple through each others’ worlds. It is more akin to thematic rhyming than simple narrative trails.
(2) frank is not simply a sleaze. He is a tragic figure who has hidden his wounds by inadvertently emulating the disregard for women that his father modeled.
Great video, Magnolia is definitely one of if not my favorite film.
This movie seriously made me cry... that kid talking to his father... nailed me. And the soundtrack is my favorite. Aimee Mann... wow. I've been putting this DVD off for sometime with my girlfriend... but I think it's time now.
i have just watched this for the first time and i have to say, it’s unbelievable. every performance is the actor giving all they have. every scene is so beautiful and tom cruise’s performance feels even more relevant than it ever has. he’s such a crazy and horrifying representation of how men can be poisoned with things like sex and manipulation. but, that through all of their success and bullshit, they still feel pain and grief and they are human. a beautiful movie and one i will go back to soon
I've watched this movie over a dozen times. This is my favorite movie of all time.
I met half the cast and director of Magnolia. They all autographed my dvd cover of the movie. One of my top ten favorite movies.
It’s a great one. I this and born on the Fourth of July are his best work.
This and Eyes Wide Shut I think
One of my favorite Movies. And the Aimee Mann music was perfect. Such a great script.Wonderful Cast.
i Wish PTA kept The Worm storyline in. Apparently The Worm is his pimp dad and it gets dark. I heard PTA cut it cuz it was too much. Supposed to be played by Michael Jace whos doing life for murder for real. (same reason PTA cut the brutal ending to Becky Barnett's character who marries Michael Jace in Boogie Nights. IN a deleted scene hes shown absolutely beating her savagely. He just wanted something to end happily)
Guy. I dont listen or watch a deep dive into cinema. But you killed it. I wish i had a friend like you.
Back in 2001, a year after Magnolia was released on DVD, I watched this movie every day during the summer. Some days I watched the whole thing, other days I watched a few scenes here and there. After I finished, I would start it over again and again. I had so much free time when I was 21 😅
Brilliant video. Thank you.
And I agree, I didn't exactly know what I learned from the film. I knew that it was powerful, I knew that it had changed me, but I couldn't quite put my finger on the details of "how." I suppose that I just let it sink in, and now, years later some of those thing have a bit more clarity. Not everything, but isn't that what great art does? It questions more than it answers.
The past isn't quite done with me yet, but I'm ready and willing to confront it.
Greatest Acting by Cruise !
Easily in my top ten of all time favorites. I can go back to it again and again. Heck, even the hour long documentary that was included with the DVD is fantastic to watch.
Theres a shot....when Stanley and his dad get to the studio drenched from the rain. The camera follows them FOREVER. I still dont know how PTA achieved that one'r. Fake elevators and sliding walls on some Orson Welles stage-ish. Theres a few long takes here that rival Goodfellas' Copa entrance.
That was wonderful! Thank you.
Thank you Andrew, well done.
PTA would have fit in perfectly in 70's filmmaking. Cruise in what I feel is his best along with Born on the 4th of July.
One of the greatest and most powerful films ever. You have a wonderful review. I agree with you 100% 👌🏽
Love it!
Me too. 20 years ago when I saw it for the first time I thought it was the best film I’d ever seen. And I still do. Nothing has measured up to it since.
I originally saw it opening day in theatres alone on that Friday afternoon. And I remember wondering where this story was going and being just awestruck by the performances, the cinematography and even the core of the film, which is the writing. I bought the DVD as soon as it came out too. It truly is a great film and, I believe, marked an end of great original filmmaking.
naah next year had memento, o brother, snatch, unbreakable, etc...plenty of great, original films
Keep doing what you are doing Andrew Sindt.
I watched 3/4ths of this movie when I was a kid, rewatched it today and had no idea about the ending
Basically the raining frogs ending is a reference to Exodus 8:2 in the Book of Moses in the New Testament centered around the release of the Israelites from the Pharoah and how Egypt was plagued with raining frogs as punishment for not releasing them from slavery, “But if you refuse to let them go, behold, I will plague all your country with frogs.”
There are multiple Exodus 8:2 references in the film (including a building height measurement, a woman at the game show with a sign that’s confiscated etc), and what it pertains to is that a lot of the characters are trapped by complex traumas unable to be released into a better life. The divine intervention of the frogs raining down serves as a release for the characters and allows them to wipe the slate clean and move forward with their lives.
thank you for making this. it is beautifully put together and realized. MAGNOLIA and BOOGIE NIGHTS are 2 of my favorite films-ever. I love the size and unwieldy-ness (sorry-is that even a word?) of MAGNOLIA. so many things in it shouldn't work. the moment when they all sing. the frogs. but somehow work it does.
The whole film is thrilling, but several sequences in it have always stuck with me, and are GREAT. like GREAT great film making:
the moment when Bill Macy weeps about loss and love.
Julianne Moore screaming at the pharmacy assistant kid.
The quiz kid boy telling his father that he has to treat him better.
Tom Cruise when he breaks in the interview on the edge of violence. And then also when Cruise breaks down with grief in the scene with Jason Robards.
Melinda Dillon really going at the husband for the abuse-how everything now makes sense about their lives as she's putting it all together emotionally.
all the stuff with Melora Walters and John C.Reilly also kills me. these 2 damaged people. so different from each other. so lost in their own ways. but they have found each other. at least for tonight. it is so moving.
BOOGIE NIGHTS to me is almost perfect. it is almost on the level of NASHVILLE, which I do consider a perfect film. MAGNOLIA isn't perfect or epic in that same way, but it moves more than either NASHVILLE of BOOGIE NIGHTS do. MAGNOLIA is big-time deep. and kind always tears my heart out by the end. the film just feels so personal, and so intimate.
BOOGIE NIGHTS and NASHVILLE are a completely different experiences to me as films. both of those films are making these huge epic statements about American culture and who we are as a people. And both of those films are stunning in all the places they go. Such an incredible way to tell the American story-through the lens of the porn industry-BOOGIE NIGHTS. the world of country music in NASHVILLE. As I said, I feel both of those films are basically perfect. the endings of both of those films-STUN. they both leave me satisfied and thrilled. with everything! the world at large, even. Whereas with MAGNOLIA, the feelings are much darker and deeper. And are more confusing. There is a melancholy in the film. And I don't think I have ever been able to shake the feelings I get from watching MAGNOLIA. Truthfully, I don't think I want to shake those feelings away.
thanks for posting. such a great essay.
love to hear it
Terrific and insightful commentary on a great film!
Well Putt, John
It's been my favorite film since I first saw it in the theater in 1999.
Sometimes I feel like I'm living Magnolia 2 day by day when I play Amy Mann soundtrack in the car to a job can't stand.🐸
This has been my favorite movie of all time since 01. A thinking mans boogie nights. Ohh and Cruises best dramatic role ever......PTA ROCKS!!!!!!!❤
Magnolia is my favourite film EVER!!
Thank you for sharing :3
I only watched this for the first time, but I have already seen There Will Be Blood for times. Very interesting seeing this story unravel after coming to know PTA through drinking milkshakes. It seems that this was his "Im14andthisisdeep" phase - albeit this is by far the best form of that sort of story. The film basically has no teeth. It perfectly represents the injustice, and often enough trauma, that children experience when their story for the world finally comes into contact with the fact that people get thrown into survival situations all the time and come out learning to fear for their survival more than hurt feelings. The movie expertly nails Claudia, Frank and Stanley's character arcs, but to be truly compelling, it needed to give more actual motivation to Earl, Jimmy, Stanley's dad, etc. It's a very good movie still, but it lacks teeth, which makes some of the segments seem ridiculous. It certainly paints anxiety as something unassailable,but in truth it is readily overcome when push comes to shove in a survival scenario. That experience can brutalize a person over time, which is what There Will Be Blood explores exceedingly well. Tarantino refers to its intro scene as the hero's journey entirely, and the rest of the film as him claiming his perceived (to Quentin, justified) rewards.
Very intriguing to see such a fine filmmaker mature, and I will be looking into his other films shortly.
Favorite since 1999!
Magnolia Is a movie I understand but cannot explain.
Some of the best acting I have seen, amazing movie.
It’s brilliant, great performances, amazing sound track by Amie Mann, and such a downer
It’s a masterpiece. I saw it on fx maybe 15 years ago. It was the worm
This has been my favorite film since I saw it in the theatre in 1999.
I always felt the PTA lets you know upfront that he's acting as God in the movie, and that the rapping child was an angel or Jesus-figure, where PTA-God can interact with his characters directly and initiate events directly. So, the PTA-Jesus character takes the cop's gun, so he can be lost in order to find his own strength, and PTA the God gives it back, so the cop grows without the consequences of the gun having been lost. With that newly-acquired strength, after helping out Donny he goes straight to Claudia and shows her who he is, and that she believes she is worthy of love. It reminds me of the story of Job in the bible a bit.
This is fantastic
Thank you🌻
PTA's not messing around here
I guess Paul Thomas Anderson, or just "Anderson", is too hard to say. Anyway, agreed. Magnolia is a masterpiece.
I have the DVD. It's definitely one of my favorites.
Reminds me of Robert Altman's 'Short Cuts'.
Agree. I know that Paul Thomas Anderson is a big fan of Altman.
@@milart12 Masters of subtext.
Been trying to rent or buy Short Cuts for a couple of years. No luck. Saw it ages ago, been a while.
@@bentonscrivenerit’s on criterion
its a masterpiece, without any question whatsoever. Not as good as Boogie Nights or TWBB but still an 11/10
Jason Robards regret monologue 😢
PTA is QT before QT became a thing in my opinion. Broke so many barriers. From Boogie Nights to There Will Be Blood - wow!
This is my #3 Favorite Film.
Perfect performances
i think i saw this for the first time in 2009 on my laptop while on vacation in Arizona... i was so mesmorized and engrossed. i just bought it on itunes yesterday about to watch it now. my fav of PTAs is There WIll Be Blood but Mangolia is second for me
What's the name of music score in scene when tom cruise was interviewed I'm quietly judging you?
The first time I saw it, i loved/hated it. But I've grown to love it.
Back in 1999 I were 24 y.o. when the movie came out. I didn't had much patience at that age, and think I stopped the movie after a short period of time. And most of my life I haven't watch movies that has many life-stories that sometimes get in connection with each other. Often it sees (to me IMHO) those movies are a mess or confusing or both. But here at my 49 years of age, I stumbled into your video here at UA-cam. I really like then movie-fans are able to get in depth details about a movie. Plus with my age, I now have a bit more patience, and knowledge how people interact etc. So I should give it one more go. I stopped btw your video when the spoilers warning came. Thanks man. Regards from Krusty in Denmark. 🙂
I have the Marcie and Officer Jim scene as my ring tone!
lol
It's a perfect film, it's brilliant, it's Tom Cruise's best performance, it's many of the actor's best performances, the soundtrack is perfect. The first time I watched it I felt like I'd been beaten up, all these years later I still wonder what it all really means. Is the meaning of the film that things are just random, that there's no meaning to anything, that bad things happen and they damage you for your whole life but there's nothing you can do. Just amazing.
I love and own this movie as well.
The humanity in this movie is unparalleled. PTA these characters,warts and all. How it didn't get nominated for picture,director,editing, score and cinematography is just beyond me. I think PTA become a bit cold as a director but this one and boogie nights are just such compassionate looks at really damaged people.
I remember thinking, immediately after watching this movie, that it would surely win and Oscar. It didn't. Why do y'all think that is so? No cynicism, please.
I was only 1 years old during that Academy Awards so I can only speculate. American Beauty really swept a lot of art categories and PTA's writing. That year only had 5 Best Picture noms. Michael Caine took Cruises's win, haven't seen Cider House Rules so can't really speak on that. I'd say the score, editing and sound got snubbed from any noms. The Matrix was a frontrunner that year as well. I feel like as the years go on, people forget about all the films that were nominated, I haven't even heard of a few of them, and even some of the winners and really doesn't leave that much of an impact.
A lot of good movies in 1999
It is also MY favorite film.
It’s funny, you don’t find many ppl thatve seen this. Then when you do the majority of them didn’t REALLY enjoy it…nowhere near to the level I did. Lots of complaints about its length and they ask what the heck it was even about? Personally I don’t know many ppl that loved this movie the way I did at all and I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that I judge them for it. I do. And the strangest thing about it is that I can’t even say WHAT it is exactly that’s so amazing about it! They ask “what did it mean?” and I have about 10 different answers for them! I usually just end up bewildered at how they didn’t recognize all the beauty that is in this film. It’s def in my all time top 5 for sure. Such great acting, great emotion, and great production. I could go on and on.
Oh and the soundtrack is perfection. Owned and listened to that CD regularly for years. Became a giant Aimee Mann fan along the way…obviously.
And I also love Jon Brion s score. To me is almost 50% of the film s power.
Pls tell me the film editor didn't put a turbine sound engine to that PBY Catalina shot. Pls pls pls.
You've almost got it!
Got it check it out man.
the frog 🐸 thing was weird Lol...
What about the "Wise Up" montage ?
I also love Magnolia. It's a shame that PTAs early films are often overlooked. PTA is my favorite filmmaker and I like his early films the most. I am always torn between which is better Boogie Nights or Magnolia. I think on a personal level I like Boogie Nights more but I also think Magnolia is the superior film.
Boogie Nights was the first PTA film I watched and loved it from the get-go, must have watched it 100 times haha.
Magnolia I remember the first watch being a bit overwhelmed and somewhat disappointed with the huge scale and narrative balance trying to carry all the different story elements that all meet at the big finale. I also felt at three hours the film was way too long which even PTA acknowledges.
The cast, particularly Tom Cruise at his career best, is a highlight though that I always liked from the film, but as I watched it again I understood more and actually came to appreciate it as a very ambitious project. I think it’s a very important film from PTA’s filmography as he was still developing his voice in cinema and also trying a completely different thing to what Boogie Nights was, which I feel was definitely his most accessible film that without watching I wouldn’t have enjoyed Magnolia as much as I do.
@@andrewburgemeister6684 You bring up some great points. There are some good performances in Boogie Nights but Tom Cruise in Magnolia is just a step above. That's the main reason I think I feel Magnolia is better sometimes. I also love the subplot with John C. Riley and Melora Walters in Magnolia and always felt that they both should have been nominated for oscars. William H. Macy was also given a better and more substantial character in Magnolia, which was great to see and Jason Robards also gave a oscar worthy final performance. Boogie Nights is probably the more well structured and cohesive movie but the great performances in Magnolia kind of make up for its deficiencies.
@@dancortes3062 yes, I loved the John C Reilly and Melora Walters subplot with their characters, it was a really beautiful and heartbreaking one once you figured out the trauma Walters’ character had been suffering which explained why she had buried herself in illicit drugs.
Julianne Moore’s character also had an interesting arc, struggling with guilt and regret over not truly loving her husband and being buried in prescription medication while being hysterical and reactive struggling to cope with his impending death, the pharmacy scene was a great one showing Julianne’s acting abilities and her character’s personality, some people said they felt she overacted but I disagree given I’ve unfortunately seen family members be that way with an over reliance on prescription medications and alcohol which makes her character very realistic.
@@andrewburgemeister6684 I feel that PTA made Magnolia as a kind of therapy after the death of his father. Some major points of the movie is that you should confront people you hate or tell someone your attracted to how you really feel about them because if you don't then you will die with regret in your heart. There are also two characters dying of cancer just like his father did, to make it even more obvious.
@@dancortes3062 oh yeah, absolutely! Particularly with the depiction of the poor father and child relationships such as the game show kid and of course Frank Mackey and his Dad and how they get resolved in an attempt for these characters to come to terms with their regret.
wonderful video. wonderful movie. thank you all