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Actors: John C. Reilly, Tom Cruise, Melora Walters, Julianne Moore, Philip Baker Hall, Jason Robards, William H. Macy, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Jeremy Blackman
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| Review Summary and Plot Commentary about Magnolia |
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This 1999 film, skillfully written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, studies nine very different lives across one day in the San Fernando Valley. Earl Partridge (Robards) is dying of brain and lung cancer, and male nurse Phil Parma (Hoffman) is looking after him. Earl produced a TV game show in the late 1960s called "What Do Kids Know?", in which three smart children compete against three adults.
Earl asks Phil to contact his estranged son, Frank T.J. Mackey (Cruise), an arrogant salesman who leads seminars for single men called "Seduce and Destroy," in which he teaches how to seduce and leave women. Linda (Moore), Earl's trophy wife, is nevertheless starting to feel tender emotions toward him. Stanley Specter (Blackman) is currently a contestant on WDKK and trying to beat the record for most money won, set in 1968 by Donnie Smith (Macy), now a pathetic loser. The host of WDKK is Jimmy Gator (Hall), who is also estranged from his child: Claudia Wilson Gator (Walters), who sniffs crack cocaine all day and accuses her Dad of molesting her. Police officer Jim Kurring (Reilly) investigates a disturbance at Claudia's apartment and falls in love with her. All these lives intertwine around the game show in this amazing and allusive movie.
--David Loftus, Resident Scholar
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There are numerous interwoven plots including the following: Tom Cruise is a popular speaker and proponent of men and their masculinity. Julianne Moore, Tom's brother, babysits their ill and old father. Tom doesn't speak to him any longer. William H. Macy is a former contestant on a game show for smart kids, but he can't get over that, so he is mentally weak and eccentric. John C. Reilly is a simplistic, but good-hearted police officer who falls for a crack addict.
--Taylor K, Resident Scholar
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| Analysis of Magnolia |
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Time/era of movie:
- 1980's-1999
Romance/Love/Hugging
Yes
Kind of romance:
- romance (general)
Family, caring for sick?
Yes
Who is sick?
- Father
because he/she is
- physically ill
Lover is...
- totally uninterested
- criminal/bad doer
Main Character
Identity:
- Male
Profession/status:
- salesman
Age:
- 20's-30's
Eccentric:
Yes
- eccentric
- obsessed
- emotionally unstable
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events?
Yes
Hair color?
- brunette (Black)
Hair type
- (man) short/standard straight
Body type
- (man) average
- (man) muscular
Events of movie makes character more...
- aggressive
- irritated
Ethnicity/Nationality
- White (American)
How sensitive is this character?
- hard edged
- mean, arrogant
Sense of humor?
- Cynical sense of humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- very athletic
Secondary Main Character
Identity:
- Female
Hair color
- brunette (Brown)
Hair style
- (woman) medium/shoulderlgn straight
How much in movie?
- 40%
Ethnicity/Nationality
- White (American)
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
Age:
- 40's-50's
Profession/status:
- unemployed
Eccentric:
Yes
- emotionally unstable
- deluded
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- 40%
Hair color
- brunette (Brown)
Hair type
- (man) short/standard straight
Body type
- (man) average
Ethnicity/Nationality
- White (American)
How sensitive is this character?
- soggy whimpering jelly muffin
- sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- healthy but a geeky weakling
Setting
United States
Yes
The US:
- California
City?
Yes
City:
- Los Angeles
- wealthy
Misc setting
- theater
- bar
Style
Accounts of torture and death?
- moderately detailed references to deaths
Movie makes you feel...
- challenged
- all mixed up
Sex/nudity in movie?
Yes
What kind of sex:
- actual description of sex
- seeing breasts
Any profanity?
- A lot of foul language
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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
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