Magnolia (1999)

An epic mosaic of interrelated characters in search of love, forgiveness, and meaning in the San Fernando Valley.

Director:

Paul Thomas Anderson

Writer:

Paul Thomas Anderson

Stars:

Tom Cruise, Jason Robards, Julianne Moore

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 28 wins & 56 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Pat Healy	...	Sir Edmund William Godfrey / Young Pharmacy Kid
Genevieve Zweig	...	Mrs. Godfrey
Mark Flanagan	...	Joseph Green (as Mark Flannagan)
Neil Flynn	...	Stanley Berry
Rod McLachlan	...	Daniel Hill
Allan Graf	...	Firefighter
Patton Oswalt	...	Delmer Darion
Raymond 'Big Guy' Gonzales	...	Reno Security Guard
Brad Hunt	...	Craig Hansen
Jim Meskimen	...	Forensic Scientist
Chris O'Hara	...	Sydney Barringer
Clement Blake	...	Arthur Barringer
Frank Elmore	...	1958 Detective
John Kraft Seitz	...	1958 Policeman
Cory Buck	...	Young Boy

Storyline

24 hours in L.A.; it's raining cats and dogs. Two parallel and intercut stories dramatize men about to die: both are estranged from a grown child, both want to make contact, and neither child wants anything to do with dad. Earl Partridge's son is a charismatic misogynist; Jimmy Gator's daughter is a cokehead and waif. A mild and caring nurse intercedes for Earl, reaching the son; a prayerful and upright beat cop meets the daughter, is attracted to her, and leads her toward a new calm. Meanwhile, guilt consumes Earl's young wife, while two whiz kids, one grown and a loser and the other young and pressured, face their situations. The weather, too, is quirky.

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Plot Keywords:

coincidence | multiple storyline | surprise ending | frog rain | cancer | 

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Taglines:

Things fall down. People look up. And when it rains, it pours.

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Genres:

Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong language, drug use, sexuality and some violence

Did You Know?

Trivia

The WDKK show director's assistant is played by William Mapother, who is Tom Cruise's cousin in real life.

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Goofs

Jim Kurring apparently patrols solo, without a partner. This is a significantly dangerous breach of protocol in almost every modern U.S. police jurisdiction, including Los Angeles.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Narrator: In the New York Herald, November 26, year 1911, there is an account of the hanging of three men. They died for the murder of Sir Edmund William Godfrey; Husband, Father, Pharmacist and all around gentle-man resident of: Greenberry Hill, London. He was murdered by three vagrants whose motive was simple robbery. They were identified as: Joseph Green, Stanley Berry, and Daniel Hill. Green, Berry, Hill. And I Would Like To Think This was Only A Matter Of Chance. As reported in the Reno...

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Crazy Credits

As the credit for Robert Downey Sr. scrolls up the screen, the words "(a prince)" appear next to his name.

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Alternate Versions

The supplemental material disc of the R1 special edition DVD of Magnolia has about 8 minutes of hidden outtake footage. To access it, you need to select the 'Color Bars' option and wait about twenty seconds.

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Connections

Featured in That Moment: Magnolia Diary (2000)

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Soundtracks

Waiting
(uncredited)
Written by Colin Devlin
Performed by The Devlins
Courtesy of Radioactive/MCA Records

User Reviews

Where were the Oscars?

I sat through Magnolia on Saturday on BBC2. I saw the movie a few times when it came out but I hadn't seen it for a while and like a fine wine it has most definitely matured with age. I suppose that has something to do with the dearth of 'great' movies around today - Chicago anyone? Beautiful Mind? Do me a favour.

I'm a big Altman fan. I love Short Cuts, The Player, Nashville, A Wedding;these multi stranded movies with ensemble casts, i eat em up. But what Magnolia has in spades that Altman doesn't have is heart. Magnolia's Collective heart is bursting to get out it's rib-cage.

And yes, the actors do get the chance to flex their muscles. H Macy, Seymour Hoffman, Baker Hall, C Reilly, Moore, Cruise and oh yea, don't forget the legend that is Robards giving a masterclass, like it was nothing to him. I sat watching and listening to his monologues, looking at his hand reaching in vein for the pen, his eyes searching inside for the words and I'm thinking, no one could script this. The way he delivers his lines, stuttering, slurring, forgetting, yet he never once drops a word, you catch every single word. Awesome.

Ensemble acting like that you never see...never...it's the best collection of performances in a single movie I have ever seen bar none.

Every performance is laden with heart and soul and humanity. They are all on the money, pitched to perfection, subtle and nuanced - even Julianne Moore's wild, melodramatic turn has many levels and layers to it.

Anyway...by the time the frame freezes on that beautiful final smile, and i am exhausted, spent, in need of something, a drink a cigarette I dunno...one question...where the hell were the Oscars?

11/10

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English German French

Release Date:

7 January 2000 (USA)

Also Known As:

Mag·no'li·a

Filming Locations:

California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$37,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$193,604, 19 December 1999

Gross USA:

$22,455,976

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$48,451,803

Company Credits

Production Co:

Ghoulardi Film Company, New Line Cinema, The Magnolia Project

Technical Specs

Runtime:

188 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital SDDS DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1