Movie: Magnolia (Paul Thomas Anderson, 1999)
Magnolia is a mess, as it should be. If you are gonna build your film around characters exclaiming things like "As the book says, we might be true with the past, but the past ain't through with us", "I have sickness all around me, and you fucking ask me about my life", "I really do have love to give, I just don't know where to put it", "Now that I've met you, would you object to never seeing me again" and "Respect the cock! Tame the cunt", you better make sure that you are on their level. It's a film about desperate, often grieving, people trying to express themselves, to exorcise their demons, to repair long-broken relationship, and to connect and make sense of the world and the people around them, sometimes all at the same time. It wiuld be a failure if it isn't at least a little unhinged.
You could probably argue that there is a more emotionally piercing film hidden here somewhere, one that is happy to mostly focus on the storylines of William H. Macy, John C. Reilly and Melora Walters, and further build up their characters. But that would require a great understanding of who these characters are and their thoughts and feelings. Anderson lacks that, which only works in Magnolia's favor. He is as unsure about how he feels about what's on screen and about what exactly he wants to say as the people he depicts. He and Tarantino like to compare their work and should consider screening Magnolia as a double feature with The Hateful Eight, which has been critcised for its uninformed/unsophisticated view of history. It is indeed evident that its historic and cultural connections, implications and insights stand on shaky ground, but that's the most interesting thing about it. More films should be able to explore subjects they don't quite know how they feel about. It's a shame that when talking about diversity in Hollywood the conversation too often leads to urging directors like Anderson and Tarantino to 'stay in their lane', rather than enabling non-white, non-male artists to move out of their lane. Movies whose reach exceeds their grasp tend to go to a lot of unexpected places, and at their best feel like a joyously playful invite to the audience to discover the world together.
Having said that, it is worth noting that Magnolia is more than just an unsophisticated airing of Paul Thomas Anderson's emotional baggage. He famously wrote the film after his father died, but while it sometimes does feel like an attempt to process every feeling he had in the aftermath of that, it's no coincidence that Anderson broke through with a film about the porn industry. What he is above all interested in exploring is how people use, for lack of a better world, performance, to function in the world, to conceal their true feelings and identities and to manipulate others. It's why the discussion around Licorice Pizza was so dumb. That is indeed about a relationship buillt on exploitation, but it ain't Haim doing the exploitation. It is Gary who is using his acting and storytelling talents to sell waterbeds and pinballs and to manipulate his way into money and girls. It covers much of the same ground as Inherent Vice. That was about how the free love movement self-destructed, because it missed the reactionary forces hiding around in its midst, commodifying sex, durgs and rock and roll. In Licorice Pizza, the 'victim' of that commodification is the (independent) film industry. In Anderson's movies the people who are incapable of seeing through others' performance, or who are only able to be their authentic selves, often get the short end of the stick.
All of this gets extremely to the forefront in Magnolia. Julianne Moore breaks down because she now needs to confront that she really loves her dying husband, instead of merely pretending to so. William H. Macy gets in trouble when he is unable to obtain braces he doesn't need to look more like his crush. His desperation arises out of his inability to function as his adult self, always reverting to being "Quiz Kid" Donnie Smith. Tom Cruise loses it when his true identity is revealed, showing just how much of a pathetic act his mysoginist pick up artist is. He is found out by a black female journalist, played by April Grace, who is likely repulsed by him, but presents herself as simply a kind curious reportrer with genuine interest in his life and work. Philip Seymoru Hoffman gets a breakthrough when he pretends he is acting out in a movie the actual scene he is acting in. John C. Reilly is constantly reminding himself of how much in control he is and puts on the air of a gravely serious cop anytime he is on the beat, concealing how unsuited he is for his profession. Philip Baker Hall is a trusted kids show host, who is secretly a philandering pedophile, and his quiz gets derailed when its latest star's image of being an indefeatable genius can't be reconciled anymore with the reality that he is also a vulnerable kid. Finally, there is Melora Walters, portraying the only character in the film who is at all times herself, wearing her insecurities and pains on her sleeve. It's no coincidence that her finding a sliver of happinness is the final scene of the film. I think that in this context of 'performance' many of the film's famous sequences, such as the frogs falling from the sky, the Wise Up singalong, and the opening narration become more interesting. They add a layer of artificiality to the film, distancing it from reality, as do the many long takes, sweeping camera movements, outsized performances, and the absolutely wonderful self-consciously stylistic dialogue.
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