Magnolia

Pros: Great performances from Cruise, Robards, P. Hoffman, Hall, Dillon, interesting concepts
Cons: Laughable, anger-inducing ending, too many subplots, too much "directing" and editing, too many loose ends, not enough people to care about

I was so looking forward to this movie. Not because of Tom Cruise, although I was anxious to see his performance, which until then I'd only seen clips of - but because of what I had heard, and the entire cast itself, and I like movies that show...

Pros: AMAZING performances, strong direction and script
Cons: Three hours long, emotionally draining

GRADE: B+

The opening to "Magnolia," Paul Thomas Anderson’s follow-up to the porn-terrific "Boogie Nights," showcases several odd, coincidental events that will make your eyes grow wide and your jaw drop in wonderment,...

Pros: Some of the cast, some of the time.
Cons: CONSTANT MELODRAMA

I'll start off by saying that this film is not for everyone; some will love it, others will hate it. I see the arguments of all the positive reviews for this film though.

Contemporary cinema, at least American pictures manufactured sometime...

Pros: This is an interesting film, in concept.
Cons: You may be disapointed at the writers escape.

I am not putting this movie on my “Love it/Hate it” list. I have mixed emotions about it, and do not want to commit to a strong feeling.

This movie gave me the eyeball for over a month in the video store. I had watched everything that...

Pros: Just about everything
Cons: Length will discourage viewers

“And the book says we may be through with the past, but the past ain’t through with us.”

-Magnolia


“Magnolia” takes us on a...

Pros: Incredible Performances / Amazing Script / Unique and Beautiful Stories
Cons: Some speeches drag on a little too long

Paul Thomas Anderson's ("Boogie Nights") latest remarkable creation is entitled, (for a reason unknown to me) "Magnolia." It is a three hour long look into the lives of a large cast of unique characters and ways in which they are...

Pros: Great scenes with Hoffman & Robards; memorable ending moments
Cons: None for me

I just know that there is something about the fact that the day Director Paul Thomas Anderson was born in Studio City, I was a few miles away in the Rose Bowl suffering through the first Wolverine bowl loss ever. There has to be some connection, other...

Pros: The first half.
Cons: The second half.

By Max Scheinin.

I don’t demand—or particularly desire—that great movies be perfect ones. But considering the enormous talent that is PT (formerly Paul Thomas) Anderson, you’d expect something more coherent then Magnolia, which begins an...

Pros: Everything.
Cons: I wanted to see a little more of William H. Macys character.

In the opening moments of Paul Thomas Andersons' ambitious opus about life and love, it is revealed to us why there is nothing better in the film industry than a truly original script. It infumes a sense of 'wanting' to see where a movie goes next,...

Pros: A powerful message that we must atone, accept, forgive, delivered by a fine cast.
Cons: Long takes and Cosmic Jokes some may not find profound.

MAGNOLIA is a serious, powerful film. With its emphasis on close-ups, it will be more so on video. If you can stand the idea that all the money, success and luxury American society offers business or celebrity leaders also buries them in the same...

Pros: Brilliant direction, acting, music, et cetera.
Cons: Some may find it a bit overlong.

Yes, I know it's March already, and this film is already out of theaters and heading for video, but there's so much to love here that I have to do my part to make sure that others find this film on video and DVD.

Magnolia, in my opinion...

Pros: A powerful interwoven piece of work
Cons: Aimee Mann's overpowering music

A powerful film with story-telling at its best by P.T. Anderson. If you can get past the sometimes too-loud music and some of the language, then you are in for a real treat. It's too bad some people left the theatre maybe for that reason. Tom Cruise...

Pros: Great acting, stunning originality, expert direction
Cons: None.

A faceless narrator ruminates on the nature of chance and fate by telling of three different inexplicable occurrences through time. The most interesting anecdote is one where a young man's attempt at a suicidal fall is botched mid-plunge--when he ends...

Pros: Entertaining and mind blowing.
Cons: Disappointing DVD features.

What can I say about this movie other than "OVER THE TOP"! This is a very entertaining movie, one I'd recommend for Saturday night rental, but less recommended for DVD.

The story itself is hard to explain, weaved into a whole from...

Pros: Stellar acting, directing, writing
Cons: Maybe a bit long, but then again, maybe not

Back when he was still Paul Thomas Anderson, the director of MAGNOLIA was just another young writer-director with a new film out. Then, BOOGIE NIGHTS became a huge success, made critics believe that Mark Wahlberg could actually act (and boy, could he!)...