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

Paul Thomas Anderson is the son of former ABC-TV announcer Ernie Anderson, who started his career as a Cleveland late-night monster-movie host named "Ghoulardi". Paul Thomas Anderson's production company is called Ghoulardi Pictures. One running Ghoulardi gag was to make fun of Parma, Ohio, a Cleveland suburb known for its Polish population. Philip Seymour Hoffman's character is named Phil Parma. One of Ghoulardi's catch phrases was "Stay sick!" When Donnie Smith (William H. Macy) remarks to Thurston Howell (Henry Gibson) that he is sick, Thurston replies, "Stay that way."

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Goofs

WDKK is not a (geographically misplaced) TV station, but the abbreviation of the program, "What Do Kids Know?"

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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

Underneath the title at the end a line reads "for fa and ea". fa is Fiona Apple (Paul Thomas Anderson's girlfriend) ea is Ernie Anderson (Paul Thomas Anderson's father)

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Alternate Versions

After watching the documentary "That Moment" on the supplementary DVD, you can see a deleted scene. The scene involves Orlando Jones' character 'The Worm,' his son (who appears in Officer Jim and Linda's scenes), and an unidentified boy. In it, the young rapping boy, Dixon, rushes into a restaurant where his father is staying, and eventually pulls a gun on him. The gun appears to be Jim's lost gun. Perhaps the scene would have further explained how it was so mysteriously returned to Jim in the end of the film. In the documentary, the director seems to be having a tough time with the scene, perhaps explaining why it was cut.

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Connections

Spoofed in The Edwin J. Hill Social Club: Versa Vice (2006)

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Soundtracks

WDKK Theme Song
Written by Jon Brion

User Reviews

The best film I've seen this year!!!

The first encounter that I ever had with Paul Thomas Anderson was through "Boogie Nights." I admit, I first saw it because of I heard that it was about the porn industry. However, I was surprised to discover an intimate look into the damaged lives of several very interesting, well-developed characters. I also was delighted to have found a new and exciting director whose career and films I will be sure to follow. Anderson's cinematic flamboyance, technical bravura, and inspired storytelling ability make him a talent who is emblematic of the resurrgence in creative and dynamic filmmaking that has occured in this past year. Like Fincher(Fight Club), Mendes(American Beauty), Jonze(Being John Malkovich), and the Wachowski Brothers(The Matrix), Anderson has created a truly unique film that stretches the boundaries of cinema.

Many who I saw the movie with grumbled repeatedly about it's length. Clocking in at about three hours and ten minutes, "Magnolia" is long. Even if you are as strong an advocate of the film as I am, you will think that it is long. I really had to go to the bathroom the whole time. But I did not want to miss a single second of Mr. Anderson's fascinating opus. The prologue is very well done, doing a good job of drawing in the viewer. It makes an interesting commentary on coincidence, wjich segues nicely into the rest of the film. The first half hour of the film is the most wonderfully done I have ever seen. Just as Anderson does in "Boogie Nights," the prodigy weaves a fast-paced web of intrigue, flashing tidbits of the many characters' lives that leave the viewer thirsty for more. The rhythm of the film slows down for the bulk of it, as we learn more and more and become more intimately involved in the lives of the wonderfully flawed characters. The film seems to build and build into something bigger than itself. In a way, that is the main flaw of it, but also the beauty of it. Anderson's ambitiousness is huge, but I wouldn't call him an overreacher.

This film is so full of great performances. It is probably the best ensemble piece that I have witnessed. There has been much Oscar buzz on Tom Cruise's behalf, but I honestly believe that there are so many Oscar worthy performances in this film that it is a futile effort to mention them all.

Particularly strong in the movie is the editing, which allows for the interconnected stories of the various characters to be placed parallel to each other very smoothly. The cinematography is wonderful, obviously influenced by Scorcese. I really don't believe that this film could have been as good as it was if it were any shorter. Seeing it is truly an experience. I was almost sad to see it end.

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