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Movies / On DVD / Magnolia
Magnolia

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Magnolia (1999)

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Reviews Counted:136

Fresh:113

Rotten:23

Average Rating:7.5/10

Consensus: Critics say Magnolia is an ambitious, lengthy work that ultimately succeeds due to the interesting stories and excellent ensemble performances.

Runtime: 3 hrs 8 mins

Genre: Dramas

Synopsis: In a single day in Los Angeles, a number of interconnected lives are changed forever. A lonely police officer (John C. Reilly) falls in love with a disturbed cocaine addict (Melora Walters). Her... In a single day in Los Angeles, a number of interconnected lives are changed forever. A lonely police officer (John C. Reilly) falls in love with a disturbed cocaine addict (Melora Walters). Her father (Philip Baker Hall), the host of the game show "What Do Kids Know?" has terminal cancer and tries to make amends for his past mistakes. A former champion of the show (William H. Macy) struggles to find love while the current champion (Jeremy Blackman) suffocates under the pressures of being a boy genius. An elderly man (Jason Robards) lies on his deathbed, tended by nurse Phil Parma (Philip Seymour Hoffman), while his trophy wife (Julianne Moore) wrestles with grief and guilt, and his estranged son (Tom Cruise), an infomercial host, teaches workshops on how to trick women into having sex. Throughout all of this, past deeds are lamented and strange forces loom in the air. Director Paul Thomas Anderson's follow-up to BOOGIE NIGHTS is an extravagant, emotional epic inspired by such films as Robert Altman's NASHVILLE and SHORT CUTS, with a sprawling cast of characters searching for love and meaning in a chaotic world. The cast delivers uniformly excellent performances, most notably Tom Cruise's Oscar-nominated role as the sleazy Frank T.J. Mackey. [More]

Starring: John C. Reilly, Julianne Moore, Philip Baker Hall, Philip Seymour Hoffman

Starring: John C. Reilly, Julianne Moore, Philip Baker Hall, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Tom Cruise, Jason Robards, Melora Walters, William H. Macy, Jeremy Blackman, Michael Bowen, Melinda Dillon, April Grace, Luis Guzmán, Alfred Molina, Michael Murphy, Felicity Huffman, Henry Gibson

Director: Paul Thomas Anderson

Director: Paul Thomas Anderson
Screenwriter: Paul Thomas Anderson
Producer: Joanne Sellar, Paul Thomas Anderson
Composer: Jon Brion

[See More Credits]

Reviews for Magnolia

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121 - 137 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

An epic of human proportions.

Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | comment Comment
01/01/00
Scott Weinberg
Scott Weinberg
eFilmCritic.com

Both frustrating and enthralling at the same time.

Full Review Source: rec.arts.movies.reviews | comment Comment
01/01/00
Shay Casey
Shay Casey
rec.arts.movies.reviews

Unlike the flashy but hollow Boogie Nights or the studied tough-guy attitude of Hard Eight, Magnolia grounds its stylistic pyrotechnics with genuine emotion.

Full Review Source: Atlanta Journal-Constitution | comment Comment
01/01/00
Steve Murray
Steve Murray
Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The best of the segments are absolutely mesmerizing.

Full Review Source: Internet Reviews | comment Comment
01/01/00
Steve Rhodes
Steve Rhodes
Internet Reviews

Magnolia knows that life's randomness can also produce hope, humor and love. And it shows that in ways that more calculated feelgood movies can't fathom.

Full Review Source: Denver Post | comment Comment
01/01/00
Steven Rosen
Steven Rosen
Denver Post

Three hours, ten minutes is a long time to keep an audience involved in 10 characters...

Full Review Source: rec.arts.movies.reviews | comment Comment
01/01/00
Susan Granger
Susan Granger
rec.arts.movies.reviews

Those willing to wait will find ample reward here. Those who want and expect prompt gratification will find an invitation to walk out at some point during the first 90 minutes of the picture.

Full Review Source: Detroit News | comment Comment
01/01/00
Susan Stark
Susan Stark
Detroit News

Indeed, the biggest problem is not that no one story is completely brilliant.

Full Review Source: Deconstructing Edward | comment Comment
01/01/00
Ted Prigge
Ted Prigge
Deconstructing Edward

Anderson's three-hour film will try the patience of anyone dead-set on a single unifying story, but fans of ambitious cinema that fudges with narrative traditions are in for a treat.

comment Comment
01/01/00
Todd Anthony
Todd Anthony
South Florida Sun-Sentinel

I hope that Paul Thomas Anderson's absolutely brilliant Magnolia receives the accolades that it so richly deserves.

Full Review Source: PopMatters | comment Comment
01/01/00
Todd R. Ramlow
Todd R. Ramlow
PopMatters

The biggest disappointment of the year.

Full Review Source: culturevulture.net | comment Comment
01/01/00
Tom Block
Tom Block
culturevulture.net

As it stands, Magnolia is a collection of melodramatic diamonds lost in the rough of a director's self-indulgence.

Full Review Source: Reel.com | comment Comment
01/01/00
Tor Thorsen
Tor Thorsen
Reel.com

A powerful drama of intertwined stories that contemplates the co-existence of the past with our present and future.

Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile | comment Comment
01/01/00
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile

Anderson has efficiently sabotaged and humiliated himself.

Full Review Source: FilmsInReview.com | comment 2 Comments
01/01/00
Victoria Alexander
Victoria Alexander
FilmsInReview.com

In addition to being uniformly excellent, the performances have moments for the highlight reel.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Examiner | comment Comment
01/01/00
Wesley Morris
Wesley Morris
San Francisco Examiner

An incredibly pretentious film in search of a point.

Full Review Source: Needcoffee.com | comment 2 Comments
01/01/00
Widgett Walls
Widgett Walls
Needcoffee.com

The film's strength lies in the economy of its narration: each of its scenes pulls the viewer directly into the heart of all conflict, a choice which tries to compensate for the overwhelming diversity of all its stories.

Full Review Source: Cinephiles | comment Comment
01/01/00
Yazmin Ghonaim
Yazmin Ghonaim
Cinephiles
 
 
121 - 137 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
all

Latest News for Magnolia

February 07, 2007: Ben Stiller & Tom Cruise: The New Hardy Boys?
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