PTA (The Director, not the meetings)

Paul Thomas Anderson (or PTA for short) is one of the best auteurs working in the film industry today. Although you could make the argument that he doesn't completely hide his influences (Scorsese, Altman, a little Kubrick here and there), what's fascinating is that he still manages to make a distinct vision on all of his films, and one that truly feels his own. This along with making films that manage to broach personal topics in either dramatic ways, entertaining ones, or sometimes (and with great success) a mixture of both.

I'm always eager to see what he does next (a high-school set film in fact), and with that in mind, let's take a look back.

The perfect melding of two different time periods.

8. Hard Eight (4)

A solid warm-up from a filmmaker who you could tell has an eagerness to develop his own voice, even if it is a bit unrefined here. PTA manages to create an intriguing atmosphere with the diner and the gambling world of Las Vegas, where gambling veteran Sydney (the underrated Phillip Baker Hall) takes the young John Finnegan (John C. Reilly) under his wing.

The film also has a good antagonist in Jimmy, played by Samuel L. Jackson (in what is one of his most underrated performances), with also a memorable cameo by Phillip Seymour Hoffman as a young "hotshot" gambler. Although it doesn't quite feel as cohesive as his later films, this is still a strong debut by one of the best filmmakers of his generation.

7. Inherent Vice (4)

Probably a surprise placement, since I've never been one to love films that have complicated plots, and this one does go a bit too far there, though I'll admit that it's due to the source material. However, I still think this is a good film that has a lot of solid-to-great elements. Joaquin Phoenix is quite funny as the always-at-least-high Doc Sportello. I also would like to give PTA credit for making the film easier to watch than it could've been, as he creates a vivid atmosphere and makes it just engaging enough.

Past that, PTA creates a great world out of the 70s Los Angeles underworld of surfers, stoners and cops, which are all capably played by a variety of character actors (Josh Brolin, Benicio del Toro, Eric Roberts), comic actors/actresses (Martin Short, Maya Rudolph, Owen Wilson) and young promising actresses (Jena Malone and Katherine Waterston). All of them manage to create memorable characters that form part of a plot that I've come to appreciate somewhat more on re-watch. I don't love the film, but I do appreciate it quite a bit.


6. The Master (4.5)

A certainly divisive film that I fall more towards the positive, though not quite the "love" camp. On re-watch, I find "The Master" as an intriguing character study about two characters (PSH and a career-best Joaquin Phoenix) that are on different paths after WWII. This with Phoenix as the damaged Freddie Quell and PSH as the charismatic yet questionable Lancaster Dodd. The film excels when it focuses on these two, as we see also see how they both interact with the rest of Dodds' family, with them being fiercely loyal to Dodd, while they also eventually start to become a bit suspicious of Quell.

Besides that, PTA creates a vivid world in post-WWII America, and the rest of the ensemble is quite good as well with Amy Adams as loyal Peggy, Christopher Evan Welch as a dissenter of Dodd in what is my favorite scene in the film, and future star Rami Malek as a young man who gets married. Also, bonus points for casting Jesse Plemons as Hoffmans' son.

5. Punch-Drunk Love (4.5)

Somewhat timely for me to mention this film, since Sandler may also have another great performance in an upcoming 2019 film, but I digress. Anyways, Adam Sandler really proves himself in a within-type performance as the man-child Barry Egan, as PTA deconstructs the types of characters that Sandler usually plays. The film takes a realistic approach in examining what would a typical Sandler character be like in real life, as we see him get berated by his several sisters, try to exploit a loophole from a frozen food company, and just act in an overall angry way.

Emily Watson is also quite good as the female love interest of Barry, so is Luis Guzman as Barry's sidekick, and PSH is also both funny and menacing as one of the most evil mattress salesman ever captured on celluloid. While I do think The Master reaches higher heights, I like Punch-Drunk Love a touch more as a whole, so this one wins out for me.

4. There Will be Blood (5)

Featuring one of Daniel Day-Lewis' best performances, There Will Be Blood is an interesting film about one man's rise to becoming a greedy oil tycoon in early 1900s California.

As to be expected by PTA, the film itself is a technical marvel, with some of the greatest cinematography you'll ever see in a film, although you can find that in a couple of other 2007 films too. Anyways, the production design is also excellent, as all the sets and locations simply look like places you'd see in an old photo from back in that day. The oil derrick, for example, looks grand as it should be, yet also has a slightly-out-of-place look that adds an unique feel to it. Plainviews' mansion also looks exactly as you'd expect an oil tycoon's mansion to look like then, yet its desolate feel to it adds to that character's madness.

Speaking of Plainview, Daniel Day-Lewis is (surprise, surprise) terrific as the oilman Daniel Plainview. His look in the film seems like it came straight out of an old photo, and his voice is quite something as it makes him seem somewhat-proper, yet course and ruthless at the same time. Plus, he has one of the great reaction scenes in film history in "I'VE ABANDONED MY CHILD!" as well as a couple of others that are darkly funny and have of course become iconic: "DRAINAGE/I DRINK YOUR MILKSHAKE!/I'm finished..."

Besides DDL, the rest of the cast is also pretty good, with Paul Dano as the Sunday twins, and Ciaran Hinds, Kevin J. O' Connor, and Dillon Freasier as Plainviews' "son". I could easily bump the film up this list, but it'll stay here for now.

3. Phantom Thread (5)

A stunning film from PTA, and one that truly feels transformative. Phantom Thread follows fashion designer Reynolds Woodcock (DDL) as he falls in love with the young Alma (Vicky Krieps), along with Woodcock running a fashion house with his sister Cyril (Lesley Manville).

Daniel Day-Lewis manages to evoke something within himself to create a portrait of Woodcock; a passionate, intense artist who is incredibly devoted to the art. He is great here as we see his natural intensity come through in moments where he designs dresses to illustrate his deep passion for fashion, while seeing that intensity in a rude way when Alma "interferes" with his work. We also see the more romantic side of DDL as Woodcock, as he find the appropriate chemistry with Krieps as Alma, and makes the relationship between the two quite believable.

Speaking of Krieps, she is a revelation here as Woodcocks' romantic interest, where she becomes his muse and shows why someone like her would fall in love with Woodcock. Those two performances & characters would be enough for a good film, but for good measure, PTA includes the aforementioned Lesley Manville as Cyril. Manville is great here as the incisive, yet devoted Cyril, and like Krieps, manages to show why she continues to work with her brother despite his idiosyncracies, as well as suggesting that she's been doing it for most of her life.

Past that, the film itself is, as I mentioned, very transformative, as the cinematography (a joint collaboration with PTA & others) is splendid in creating a romantic atmosphere in 50s London. This goes hand-in-hand with the production design of the film, as each place in the film has a great life to it. For example, the fashion house where Woodcock conducts business has a proper elegance to it, yet has a slight casual touch that suggests it as just a place of business, if that makes sense. Another example would be where the New Year's Eve party towards the end of the film takes place, as it has a grand feel to it as a place of celebration, yet also has a small sense of loneliness to suggest where Alma is at that point in her relationship with Reynolds.

A great film, and one that I'm sure I'll always remember.

2. Magnolia (5)

PTAs' sprawling epic about...well...life in late 90s Los Angeles is quite something to behold. There are many stories in the film that are equal combinations of funny, devastating, memorable, and haunting. Take the story line with Tom Cruises' character for example (in what is one of his best performances I may add.) Cruise delivers the proper charisma as the "love guru" in the early scenes of the film, and shows why Mackey is "beloved" by many guys in the San Fernando Valley who pursue romance. The film then manages to sweep the rug from under him, as the revelation about who his father is manages to break him down.

Take the story with police officer Jim Kurring (John C. Reilly), as he tries to pursue a romance with junkie Claudia (Walters). The story line actually manages to be rather sweet in the grand context of the film, with additional help from Reilly and Walters themselves. The other story lines are also good-to-great, with PSH, Julianne Moore, Phillip Baker Hall, Luis Guzman, William H. Macy, Jeremy Blackman and especially Jason Robards all making unique characters in PTAs film.

Past that, the opening three coincidences of the film are one of the most memorable montages in the film, as it brilliantly sets up the tone and the overall themes of the film. It is one of PTAs' best directing moments, and it is also aided with great narration. The editing of the film is superb for the most part, and I do want to give it credit for doing a great job of balancing all the story lines, although if I'm being honest, I do feel the films length a little bit. Slight nitpick anyway, and I've even come to appreciate the supernatural element that arrives in the last act, as I did scratch my head when I first saw the film.

PTA truly swings for the fences, and he hits a home run.

1. Boogie Nights (5)

Perhaps a surprise placement, but for me, this is a perfect combination of style and substance, and one that at the very least you can call interesting. Boogie Nights follows the young Eddie Ad...errr...Dirk Diggler (a career-best Mark Wahlberg) as he navigates the porn industry in 70s & 80s Los Angeles. I believe that you can either see Digglers' journey as a coming-of-age odyssey or a more straightforward "rock-and-roll" but either way, Wahlberg creates a fascinating character out of Dirk Diggler. He starts out as the eager young guy who resents his home life and his place in life, until he meets porn producer Jack Horner (Burt Reynolds in a comeback role) at the nightclub where he works. From there, Digglers' journey is quite an entertaining one, as he becomes a star in the porn industry, parties hard, socializes with others in the industry, and has it all crash down once the decade turns from the 70s to the 80s.

Besides Diggler, there are several other characters in the film that are much more than characters, thanks to PTAs script. For starters: Jack Horner can be seen as just some porn director, however, the passion that he brings to trying to make the best pornography films that he can is something to admire, or respect anyways. This can be seen in the second half of the film where he has to face the dilemma of switching to shooting his movies on videotape, where continuing to do so on film will prove costly yet keep the same quality as before. Past that, he's also a great father figure of sorts, as he takes Diggler in under his wing to make him a star, yet there are several moments that suggests that he truly does care about Diggler, such as the ending.

There are many other characters that are very memorable. Another one is Buck Swope (Don Cheadle) as another porn star. Cheadle shines in the second half of the film as Swope, as he tries to get funding for a video store, yet is denied because of his past. He is then involved in a shootout where he accidentally makes off with the money. An early Phillip Seymour Hoffman is also a hoot as Scotty J,  a crew member who eyes something more than a working relationship with Diggler. William H. Macy makes his mark as a different crew member who commits a tragic act after seeing something he wishes he hadn't, and his scene along with PTAs' direction are one of the highlights of the film, as it also segues into the darker second half. Alfred Molina is quite funny in a one-scene wonder as the drug-dealing, crazy Rahad, as well as PTA collaborator Phillip Baker Hall as the antagonistic Floyd, as he duels with Horner in the porn business.

That is not even mentioning Julianne Moore in one of her best performances as the porn starlet "Amber Waves" as she is the female star in Horners' productions, along with showing that she wants to take care of her child, but is unable to do so because of her past, like Swope. The fact that PTA (and his troupe) manages to create appropriate depth to the characters without making the film feel overstuffed is something remarkable.

Once again, the productions side of things with PTA isn't something that shouldn't be handwaved here, as PTA simply knows how to put you in the world that he is depicting, as he has a great handle on the different tones in the film. By that, I mean the darkly funny scenes (the tragic act, the donut shop) and the dramatic scenes (Diggler asking for forgiveness), among many others. I truly felt that I was in the 70s/80s porn industry in Los Angeles & met all the characters, and that's a time & place that wouldn't necessarily have been on my bucket list, if you know what I mean.


What is your favorite PTA film? Your least favorite? Sound off in the comments below.