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Amazon.co.uk Review
A handful of people in California's San Fernando Valley are having one hell of a day. TV mogul Earl Partridge (Jason Robards) is on his deathbed and his trophy wife (Julianne Moore) is stockpiling tranquilliser prescriptions all over town with alarming determination. Earl's nurse (Philip Seymour Hoffman) is trying desperately to get in touch with Earl's only son, sex-guru Frank TJ Mackey (Tom Cruise), who's about to have his carefully constructed past blown by a TV reporter (April Grace). Whiz kid Stanley (Jeremy Blackman) is being goaded by his selfish dad into breaking the record for the game show What Do Kids Know? Meanwhile, Stanley's predecessor, the grown-up quiz kid Donnie Smith (William H. Macy) has lost his job and is nursing a severe case of unrequited love. And the host of What Do Kids Know?, the affable Jimmy Gator (Philip Baker Hall), like Earl, is dying of cancer, and his attempt to reconcile with his cokehead daughter (Melora Walters) fails miserably. She, meanwhile, is running hot and cold with a cop (John C. Reilly) who would love to date her, if she can sit still for long enough. And over it all, a foreboding sky threatens to pour something more than just rain.
This third feature from Paul Thomas Anderson (Boogie Nights) is a maddening, magnificent piece of film-making, and an ensemble film to rank with the best of Robert Altman (Short Cuts, Nashville)--every little piece of the film means something, solidly placed for a reason. Deftly juggling a breathtaking ensemble of actors, Anderson crafts a tale of neglectful parents, resentful children, and love-starved souls that's amazing in scope, both thematically and emotionally. Part of the charge of Magnolia is seeing exactly how many characters Anderson can juggle, and can he keep all those balls in the air (indeed he can, even if it means throwing frogs into the mix). And it's been far too long since we've seen a film-maker whose love of making movies is so purely joyful. This electric energy is reflected in the actors, from Cruise's revelatory performance to Reilly's quietly powerful turn as the moral centre of the story. While at three hours it's definitely not suited to everyone's taste, Magnolia is a compelling, heartbreaking, ultimately hopeful meditation on the accidents of chance that make up our lives. The soundtrack features eight wonderful songs by Aimee Mann, including "Save Me", around which Anderson built the script. --Mark Englehart
Independent On Sunday
Brilliant...superb...a great film.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
22 of 25 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
I read a lot - at least by most people's standards. And I watch quite a few films. And the vast majority of what I read/watch leaves me feeling just so-so. Take it or leave it. Though now and then I'll think something is good. Maybe very good. Five-stars-out-of-five good.
And then - very, very occasionally - you come across something which is another-order-of-magnitude good. Something which just takes your breath away and doesn't give it back until you turn the last page or watch the closing credits roll up in front of you. And you realise that what it's all been for. That's why you've ploughed through all those novels or sat through all those movies. To get to here.
Last year I got there with Victor Pelevin's The Clay Machine Gun. Last night I found myself there again when I watched a film I knew nothing about but had popped on my Lovefilm list after seeing an interesting review. Magnolia. Where was I in 1999 when this was released? What was I doing? How could it possibly have come to a point where, nine years later, I'd never even heard of this film?
I won't even try to describe it to you - beyond saying that it follows the interlocking lives of a series of characters in Los Angeles - but it was absolutely captivating. Several minutes into the opening montage I had that feeling of absolute 'rightness'. That sense that there was absolutely nothing in the world I'd rather be doing at this moment than sitting here, laptop propped up on my knees, watching what was unfolding in front of me. And three hours later (yes, it's long, but then, hell, so is War and Peace) I was still captivated. And open-mouthed. Literally. Towards the end my jaw actually dropped, I was so astounded and moved and transfixed by what was happening on the screen.
This is a work of consummate genius, at once puzzling and heart-rending and wise and funny and tragic and uplifting. The acting is astonishing. I've never been a particular fan of Tom Cruise but in Magnolia he proves he's more than than just a pretty face with one of the most powerful performances I have ever seen. The musical score is hypnotic, and the frog scene is probably the most dramatic use of special effects in cinema history.
If only everything in life were this good.
And then - very, very occasionally - you come across something which is another-order-of-magnitude good. Something which just takes your breath away and doesn't give it back until you turn the last page or watch the closing credits roll up in front of you. And you realise that what it's all been for. That's why you've ploughed through all those novels or sat through all those movies. To get to here.
Last year I got there with Victor Pelevin's The Clay Machine Gun. Last night I found myself there again when I watched a film I knew nothing about but had popped on my Lovefilm list after seeing an interesting review. Magnolia. Where was I in 1999 when this was released? What was I doing? How could it possibly have come to a point where, nine years later, I'd never even heard of this film?
I won't even try to describe it to you - beyond saying that it follows the interlocking lives of a series of characters in Los Angeles - but it was absolutely captivating. Several minutes into the opening montage I had that feeling of absolute 'rightness'. That sense that there was absolutely nothing in the world I'd rather be doing at this moment than sitting here, laptop propped up on my knees, watching what was unfolding in front of me. And three hours later (yes, it's long, but then, hell, so is War and Peace) I was still captivated. And open-mouthed. Literally. Towards the end my jaw actually dropped, I was so astounded and moved and transfixed by what was happening on the screen.
This is a work of consummate genius, at once puzzling and heart-rending and wise and funny and tragic and uplifting. The acting is astonishing. I've never been a particular fan of Tom Cruise but in Magnolia he proves he's more than than just a pretty face with one of the most powerful performances I have ever seen. The musical score is hypnotic, and the frog scene is probably the most dramatic use of special effects in cinema history.
If only everything in life were this good.
21 of 25 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
It saddens me, and at the same time makes me chuckle slightly, reading the reviews of those that deem this film 'too long', 'boring' and so on. It's not confusing when you realise that the film is about different aspects of life, and the wonderfully uncategorisable people that reside in it.
It's a long movie, but its epic scale demand this length. 'The Characters aren't interesting' said one review...well let me say this: if you need a character to be simple, unsophisticated, happy-go-lucky and straight out of the Hollywood back-catalogue, then this might be the case; For those of us that love really intelligent and engaging films, Magnolia hits all the right notes.
The singing scene will split audiences down the middle, but it certainly stays in your memory long after the final credits. Infact, the whole film, from each wonderfully rendered character study to the brilliant details such as the biblical allusions of the plague of frogs, is mesmerising.
If the film starts rather confusingly, it's purely because the it does SO much in 3 hours. It's not slow moving in terms of emotional intensity or the sheer realism of the astonshing events that make up the lives of those we watch. And the result? - A film that, like American Beauty -far more cinema-friendly for many, I'm sure, (but possibly the inferior movie) explores the amazing details of life, love and death that pervade everyone's existence.
I loved it. And if you've got this far in the review, you will too. Buy it.
Regards,
Peter Wilson (London)Email your views to me!
11 of 13 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Iv read every review for Magnolia on here folks, and every one of them seem to miss the point(including the 5 star reviews).
I would like to point you all in the right direction....
The number 82 is everwhere in this film....the 3 prologues for example(some 82s are more obvious than others). Hell, theres even a member of the What Do Kids Know? audience with Exodus 8:2 writen on a placard. Which brings me to the reference itself... Exodus 8:2 - "But if you refuse to let them go, behold, I will smite your whole territory with frogs." :o)
Given that the movie revolves around a game show that abuses children, and that most of the people involved with that game show abuse children(in many different ways)...a plague of frogs as punishment from "God" is quite fitting. I should add though(being an athiest) that P.T.Anderson does seem to lean toward the natural and scientific explanation for this event.. "A scientific explanation for the phenomenon has been developed that involves waterspouts. In effect, waterspouts are capable of capturing objects and animals and lifting them into the air. Under this theory, waterspouts or tornados, transport animals to relatively high altitudes, carrying them over large distances. The winds are capable of carrying the animals over a relatively wide area and allow them to fall in a concentrated fashion in a localized area."...and this is reflected in his various weather updates during the movie. Dont they say that its the timing of such an event and not the event itself that makes a miracle!
I hope this helps...and perhaps gives fans of the movie the chance to watch it again with a fresh perspective.
I would like to point you all in the right direction....
The number 82 is everwhere in this film....the 3 prologues for example(some 82s are more obvious than others). Hell, theres even a member of the What Do Kids Know? audience with Exodus 8:2 writen on a placard. Which brings me to the reference itself... Exodus 8:2 - "But if you refuse to let them go, behold, I will smite your whole territory with frogs." :o)
Given that the movie revolves around a game show that abuses children, and that most of the people involved with that game show abuse children(in many different ways)...a plague of frogs as punishment from "God" is quite fitting. I should add though(being an athiest) that P.T.Anderson does seem to lean toward the natural and scientific explanation for this event.. "A scientific explanation for the phenomenon has been developed that involves waterspouts. In effect, waterspouts are capable of capturing objects and animals and lifting them into the air. Under this theory, waterspouts or tornados, transport animals to relatively high altitudes, carrying them over large distances. The winds are capable of carrying the animals over a relatively wide area and allow them to fall in a concentrated fashion in a localized area."...and this is reflected in his various weather updates during the movie. Dont they say that its the timing of such an event and not the event itself that makes a miracle!
I hope this helps...and perhaps gives fans of the movie the chance to watch it again with a fresh perspective.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
For people with a serious interest in film, Magnolia ought to be seen....
It's a marvellous and most ambitious idea for a film, and then an even more ambitious endeavour altogether to go ahead and make the film at very nearly 3 hours long. My word. Read more
Published 2 months ago by G. Connolly
A cinematic symphony
Given what we know about Tom Cruise - his recent tom(cruise)foolery in interviews and his rejection of psychotherapy - to see him perform this agonising slow-motion emasculation,... Read more
Published 4 months ago by R. J. Harvey
The Emperors new clothes on DVD???
If you value your time don't bother with this film. The plot was forgotten somewhere along the line leading to over 3 Hours of disjointed twaddle. Read more
Published 7 months ago by homertom
Rare 'Hollywood' Masterpiece
I sometimes really struggle with other people's reviews, and this film is no exception. I am however pleased to see that most of the other reviews recognise Magnolia for what it... Read more
Published 8 months ago by Keith M
You wait two and a half hours and then it rains frogs
Magnolia is a mosaic-film about several people with interwoven fates. A dying game show producer (Jason Robards) reaches out to his self-obsessed self-help guru son (Tom Cruise)... Read more
Published 10 months ago by J. Morris
One hell of a film
Best. Film. Ever. Just one of the best films out there. It's long but bloody good. you'll want to watch it again and again. Read more
Published 12 months ago by adventerer
NOT EASY VIEWING BUT SOME TERRIFIC PERFORMANCES
Magnolia is one of those films that demands your time and concentration, it is not easy viewing. The characters are all damaged by neglect, disappointment or abuse. Read more
Published 13 months ago by Camilla Macaulay
Dare I use the word masterpiece?
A brilliant, long but entertaining from start to finish, movie journey. The cast is excellent, the intermingling stories compelling and it is character rich throughout. Read more
Published 15 months ago by T. BROOKES
Ambitious intrigue
I'd only ever caught half an hour here and there of this when it's been on TV so I thought I'd give it a go. Read more
Published 16 months ago by CrazyJools
Another special film from Paul Thomas Anderson
Even braver and deeper emotionally than Paul Thomas Anderson's
wonderful 'Boogie Nights', and in some ways a more mature, if less
blazingly dynamic work. Read more
wonderful 'Boogie Nights', and in some ways a more mature, if less
blazingly dynamic work. Read more
Published 18 months ago by K. Gordon
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