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Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind quote11/15/2022 In Hard Eight, brilliant actors like Hall and Jackson can’t make a phrase like “big balls bet” work, let alone questions like, “You know the first thing they should’ve taught you at hooker school?” Anderson’s dialogue has always been best when it feels semi-improvised, as it does in some of Boogie Nights and Punch-Drunk Love’s best scenes. His later films, too, I suppose Hoffman’s cry of “pig fuck!” in The Master felt supremely out of place in an otherwise elegant script. Gotta Start Somewhere: The dialogue in Anderson’s early scripts is sometimes the only indicator that the man behind these brilliant films is still a child himself. The opposite of glamorous (and a far cry from the dizzying glitz of Boogie Nights’ opening), Sydney’s sad trek takes him past rundown denizens in flannel and baseball caps, sickly neon, and sleepy games of blackjack, craps, and poker. Though there are a few expertly choreographed pans at various points in the movie, the shot that best foreshadows Anderson’s talents comes as Sydney navigates a seedy Reno casino. Long Shot: This being the young director’s first feature, Anderson doesn’t overdo it when it comes to his notoriously difficult long shots. Sadly, his cries of “I fucking love her!” ring hollow, as if he’s trying to not just convince himself that his violent actions were justified, but also that his feelings for Clementine are genuine. After taking a bullish john hostage, John attempts to justify his actions to Sydney, anchoring his explanation on the love he feels for Clementine. Though we see Sydney and Paltrow’s Clementine in various states of distress, Reilly takes the cake with a breakdown fueled by equal parts passion and desperation. Unlike those that followed, there’s no “Jessie’s Girl,” no “Save Me,” no “He Needs Me” in other words, there’s no moment of musical catharsis.īest Breakdown: It’s not a PTA joint if someone’s not yanking themselves from the hinges of their own sanity, and Hard Eight’s no exception. It’s tonally consistent, if somewhat of a non-entity. Composers Jon Brion and Michael Penn - both of whom would have a hand in Boogie Nights, Magnolia, and Punch-Drunk Love - eschew recognizable pop (likely due to budget constraints) for boozy lounge music of the Angelo Badalamenti variety. Soundtrack: Chiming bells - the kind that underscore Boogie Nights’ most dire moments - ring beneath the opening credits, the first of several signs that Hard Eight is a funereal affair. Just as everything seems to jell, however, a slimy opportunist with knowledge of Sydney’s past misdeeds comes calling.Ĭast: Philip Baker Hall, John C. Press Release: Sydney, an aging gambler, takes fuck-up John under his wing, showing the boy how to hustle in the casinos of Reno, Nevada. Hard eight poster Every Paul Thomas Anderson Movie, Ranked from Worst to Best With Phantom Thread around the corner, what better time than now to discuss the career of a modern icon? From the portrait of a man sitting down in an empty warehouse to a long shot following our lead through a porn party, the attention to detail is so great all we can do is just sit back and admire the man’s vision.įor that reason alone, it wasn’t easy ranking Anderson’s filmography, and once we started to dissect each film, we agreed that, while some movies may fare better than others, he hasn’t had a misstep yet. You always get the sense that every single shot in his films have been carefully constructed. In many ways, Paul Thomas Anderson is our 21st century Stanley Kubrick. This time, we sort through the best and worst of the man who gave us a sobbing Philip Seymour Hoffman. It’s exact science by way of a few beers. Welcome to Dissected, where we disassemble a band’s catalog, a director’s filmography, or some other critical pop-culture collection in the abstract. This article originally ran in 2014 and has been updated. The post Every Paul Thomas Anderson Movie, Ranked from Worst to Best appeared first on Consequence.
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