Magnloia (1999)

Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. Starring Tom Cruise, Philip Seymour Hoffman, John C. Reilly, Philip Baker Hall, Melora Walters, William H. Macy, Julianne Moore, Jason Robards, Melinda Dillon, Jeremy Blackman, Ricky Jay, Michael Bowen, April Grace, Felicity Huffman, Henry Gibson, Emmanuel Johnson, Luis Guzmán, Cleo King. [R]

Long but deeply engrossing mosaic of melancholy that, in the hands of writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson, becomes an exhilarating high-wire act balancing numerous intersecting storylines of damaged, grief-stricken souls in the San Fernando Valley. The amusing prologue (narrated by Jay) talks about amazing coincidences, but the film that unfolds afterward is anything but coincidental; instead, the myriad relationships and occurrences are defined by interconnectivity, decisions affected by the long accumulation of pain, the impalpable lessons learned through sorrow and regret, and an almost biblical sense of punishment and forgiveness. There are no slackers in this ensemble cast, some of whom get their big, showy moments (Moore’s breakdown at the pharmacy, Cruise’s misogynistic motivational speaker routines that teach sleazy pickup-artist techniques, Macy’s “I have lots of love to give” declaration), and some of whom get to be quietly sublime (nurse Hoffman’s altruism, Blackman telling his father he needs to be nicer to him). Yet despite all the misery on hand, Anderson doesn’t forget to inject a lot of sly humor into the mix to lighten the load (“And, Phil, I will drop-kick the f—ing dogs if they come near me”). The controversial climax won’t be for all tastes (it will have tremendous resonance for some, but be too far “out there” for others), and not all of Anderson’s artistic decisions completely work—the audacious “Wise Up” sing-along is a little too precious—but the film’s ambitions and emotional impact are staggering. Robards’ final film.

89/100