Paul Thomas Anderson was the first filmmaker that felt like he was MY filmmaker. I discovered PT Anderson in real time at the beginning of his career, as opposed to him being from another era or generation like other filmmakers I obsessed over in my late teens and early 20s; guys like Martin Scorsese, Hal Ashby, Robert Altman, Jonathan Demme, and Francis Ford Coppola.
Anderson was from my generation. Hell, the guy is only three years older than me. Seeing Boogie Nights in a Fort Wayne movie theater in the fall of 1997 was like finding “my guy”. PT Anderson was going to be my generation’s Scorsese, Altman, and Demme. That movie blew me away, and I ended up buying two or three versions of it on DVD. The writing, acting, cinematography, and the overall scope made this California-bred movie-obsessive seem like an auteur right out of the gate.
After the success of Boogie Nights, his first film Hard Eight(originally titled Sydney) was released on DVD which I of course bought and loved. What’s not to love with Philip Baker Hall, John C. Reilly, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Samuel L Jackson. And a memorable cameo by Philip Seymour Hoffman. Great gambling/crime movie with a mentor/mentee relationship between Hall and Reilly. I even got to watch the original short Anderson shot for the Sundance Workshop on the Sundance Channel.
Anderson came through on the promise made by Boogie Nights and became one of my generation’s best filmmakers. Magnolia, Punchdrunk Love, There Will Be Blood, The Master, Inherent Vice, Phantom Thread, and Licorice Pizza is pretty much a bulletproof list of cinematic accomplishments. Below I’ll rank them all in order of my love for them. In my opinion they’re pretty much all A+ movies, so even last place is a masterpiece in my opinion.
What are your favorite Paul Thomas Anderson films? Let me know in the comments.
9. Hard Eight
8. Inherent Vice
7. Punch-Drunk Love
6. Licorice Pizza
5. Phantom Thread
4. Magnolia
3. Boogie Nights
2. The Master
1. There Will Be Blood
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I think Anderson’s movies are really interesting and memorable, while many other movies seem to mesh together in a “follow a pattern that audiences will like” way. “Boogie Nights” was a wild ride. “There Will Be Blood” and “Magnolia” were amazing and difficult watches. “Inherent Vice” is probably my favorite of this list, and probably due to it being from a Thomas Pynchon novel (I’m a big fan of his). I read speculation that Anderson *may* be working on “Vineland,” another Pynchon novel. If that’s true, it would be fantastic news. That’s the first Pynchon novel I read, so I’ve got good memories around it.
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I’ve watched Boogie Nights several times since it came out in ’97, but There Will Be Blood is the one that I’ve revisited the most. My son got in PT Anderson a couple years ago so we started going through all his movies. There Will Be Blood hits different with me than it did when I first saw it. It’s pure cinema to me. The Master is a close second. Loved Inherent Vice, too. It’s his druggy Philip Marlowe film. Pynchon is a hard voice to adapt, so what PT Anderson did with that book was pretty amazing.
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Nice. Another Pynchon fan!
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I think the only one here I haven’t seen is Phantom Thread. One to look for. I love PT’s stuff.
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Phantom Thread is definitely worth a watch. A different pace, more low key, but there’s a sinister sort of quality there. Really great movie with some fantastic performances.
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Most of his films leave me with mix emotions. Licorice Pizza, love the look, the fell, the sounds. But the story… oof, I was bored, lol Punch Drunk Love and There Will Be Blood are my two favourites.
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Licorice Pizza felt a bit aloof, but the performances saved it for me. The story just meandered.
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PTA, my lord and savior. I’d go …
1. The Master – A+
2. Boogie Nights – A+
3. There Will Be Blood – A+
4. Magnolia – A+
5. Punch-Drunk Love – A+
6. Inherent Vice – A
7. Licorice Pizza – A-
8. Hard Eight – B+
9. Phantom Thread – B+
10. Junun – B
The Master is in my all-time Top 10 and boogie, blood and magnolia are all major personal faves, too. Can’t wait for his next one.
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I still need to see Junun.
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