#hardeight

This isn’t going to be my new thing or anything, but I had such a nice, insightful time doing an ordered rundown of my favorite Stanley Kubrik flicks that I figured a follow-up edition was due sooner than later.  Since I started with my favorite director of all time, it was only fair that my follow-up be my favorite modern director, P.T. Anderson.  

P.T. (Paul Thomas) Anderson has written and directed all of his films released via major motion picture distribution, and therefore his entire catalog will be taken into consideration. 

8.   Inherent Vice (2014) The thing that sucks about having to list the films of a director the caliber of P.T. Anderson is that something has to be ranked last by default.  The placement of this film is by no means a reflection on it’s greatness or how I feel about the film, it just simply falls victim to a process of elimination : Anderson got a more captivating performance out of Joaquin Phoenix in a previous film, and the whimsy found throughout does not match the tonal weight of other Anderson fare.  Possibly the roughest last place choice I’ve ever had to make.

7.   Phantom Thread (2017) Another victim of the process of elimination game, this time due to the fact that it is the most recent offering, and therefore has not had the pleasure of allowing time to provide deeper reflection.  I’d argue it’s one of the more beautiful films of his, but The Master and Punch-Drunk Love are equally beautiful, if not more so, by comparison.  It does have one of the most haunting scenes in the Anderson canon during the mother vision within the poisoning sequence, but there are moments in Boogie Nights or Magnolia that are equally as compelling.  And while this performance, as subtle and subdued as it is, was the one that finally helped me understand how immersive Daniel Day Lewis’s process of characterization is, it made me respect his portrayal of Daniel Plainview that much more in retrospect.

6.   Hard Eight (1996) Another gut-wrenching choice on a list full of them.  This film is the epitome of films that I wish I could write and direct... compelling characters, deep connections among characters, stakes the average viewer can relate to, calculated and diverse tonal shifts... the film is technically proficient in ways that many first time films are not, and you can tell this story is one that Anderson lived with before committing to screen.  If you’ve not seen this Anderson debut, make sure to do so as soon as possible.

5.  There Will Be Blood (2007) While many consider this to be his best film, I consider it to be more of a transition piece from deeply personal films to deeply symbolic films.  His choice to move to Jonny Greenwood for scores from this film forward was definitely a stroke of genius, and this may certainly be his most epic film in terms of pure spectacle, but I personally believe that he made films just as grand prior to this one, and ones that cut much deeper emotionally.  Still one hell of a ride when it comes right down to it, however.

4.   Punch-Drunk Love (2002) When asked what my favorite P.T. Anderson film is, this will be the answer the majority of the time.  The sheer dedication to romance, the sweeping Jon Brion score, the rotoscope animations, the brilliant use of color throughout the film, the dolly shots, the casting... everything about Punch-Drunk Love is immaculate in a way that only the work of Jean-Luc Godard can usually be.  Possibly the biggest risk of his career in regards to letting Adam Sandler take the lead, but a stroke of genius in hindsight.  A film that moves me every time I revisit it, though not the only P.T. Anderson movie that continues to be moving upon repeat viewing... more on that later.

3.   Boogie Nights (1997) The breakout film, and only his second film at that.  Few films short of Goodfellas capture a moment in time and an energy many are not privy to so well.  The world is presented in a way we can easily understand and navigate it, even if we do not agree or understand or agree with the choices made by the world’s inhabitants.  The movement of time through multiple decades is handled through intelligent music cues and top-notch set design/costuming.  The familial feel of the ensemble cast, however, is not something that can be faked or manufactured... you have to be lucky enough for your cast to click, aware enough to nurture and encourage it, and adept enough to capture it all.  The first P.T. Anderson film I had the pleasure of seeing, and my first indication that this man was a cut above the rest.

2.   The Master (2012) Truly an achievement in a career full of masterful (no pun intended) work.  It’s hard not to look at the film through the scope of Scientology, and therefore make connections/analysis in that light, but looked at as a standalone idea and work, the film is quite compelling in regards to the examination of self-identity, self-worth and the ways that we seek validation from others and for ourselves.  The element of Joaquin Phoenix (who is brilliant in this film) as a photographer provides an opportunity for some deeply artistic cinematography used to contrast the documentary-like cinematography used during the reoccurring emotional deep dives that take place.  The final collaboration between Anderson and frequent collaborator Philip Seymour Hoffman, and a fitting final collaboration at that based on the reverence his character was given.  Of the second wave P.T. Anderson selections, this is the standout work.  

1.   Magnolia (1999) What do you do when you’re given the chance to produce any project you want without worry of promotional and budgetary restraints?  If you’re P.T. Anderson, you write a three-hour long sprawling epic about Southern California, you cast everyone you’ve ever worked with or wanted to work with, and you put everything but the kitchen sink in it in terms of emotional content, narrative twists, intrigue and character moments.  Magnolia was a celebration of P.T. Anderson as a director, his influences, where he’d come from and where he was headed, and all wrapped up into a riddlebox of a film that looks as majestic as it is hard to decipher.  You may not always get this film on a logical level, but it’s hard to deny it’s emotional impact.