Magnolia (1999) Movie Review and Film Summary

Magnolia Stars Tom Cruise, Julianne Moore, and Philip Baker Hall and is Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson

Review: Magnolia might feel a bit like the film that got away from Paul Thomas Anderson (because it kinda is), but it’s the sort of big-budget passion project that up-and-coming filmmakers rarely get to make nowadays. The ensemble cast of Magnolia is littered with A-listers and common Paul Thomas Anderson players, from Julianne Moore and Philip Seymour Hoffman to Tom Cruise and John C. Reilly, each actor adds their own weight to this shotgun blast of characters.

magnolia 1999 movie — Tom Cruise as Frank Mackey in Magnolia (1999)

Magnolia Review

Magnolia is excessive and abundant on all fronts – both good and bad. Paul Thomas Anderson’s third movie is the holy grail of blank checks and personal endeavors, with the legendary writer/director taking on a 3+ hour epic that’s emotionally charged and violently chaotic, circling a handful of characters all dealing with guilt and regret in their own ways. It may feel like a slog in the moment upon first viewing, but once the aggressive, overwhelming climax of the film hits, it offers as much food-for-thought as anything released during its calendar year (1999).

The ensemble cast of Magnolia is littered with A-listers and common Paul Thomas Anderson players. From Julianne Moore and Philip Seymour Hoffman to Tom Cruise and John C. Reilly, each actor adds their own weight to this shotgun blast of characters, who weave in and out of each other’s lives and act as catalyst of immense internal reflection and change. PTA pens a film that’s both deeply thoughtful and rich, as well as overly wrought and indulgent.

A litmus test for a viewer may be which character or storyline in Magnolia they’d recommend cutting because it’s hard to argue this film isn’t too long. A worthwhile test for one’s own attention span and focus, the movie hammers away time and time again just the agony the main characters are feeling, this longing to reverse course from previous choices in their lives that have caused them their constant unhappiness.

Admittedly, I’d probably choose Julianne Moore as Linda Partridge as the weakest link. While her character is necessary in some regards, her performance is pitched way too high and borders on comedy more so than melodrama. She’s lamenting the choice to marry her dying husband Earl (played by Jason Robards) for his money and insisting on changing his will so she doesn’t receive her share of the fortune.

But her story, along with the many others (including, but not limited to, Officer Jim Kurring, played by John C. Reilly, hopelessly wishing to find his soulmate in a truly bafoonish character; Quiz Kid Donnie, played by William H. Macy, attempting to impress a local bartender by robbing a local business and using the money to get braces put on; and Frank Mackey, played by Tom Cruise, reconciling with his father’s final moments and a life lived with anger and hostility) culminates in this larger-than-life, absurd natural occurrence that offers new hope for each character involved.

I’ve honestly never seen an ending quite like this one – and one that comes out of absolutely nowhere – that feels like such a gutsy, personal decision that absolutely pays off. Despite the runtime, Magnolia is worth the viewing for the final 30 minutes, which I refuse to spoil in this review because I’d hate to be the one to deprive a viewer of the initial shock factor.

Magnolia might feel a bit like the film that got away from Paul Thomas Anderson (because it kinda is), but it’s the sort of big-budget passion project that up-and-coming filmmakers rarely get to make nowadays. Rarely does a bonafide auteur get to make a movie as overly indulgent as this (Beau is Afraid and Mulholland Drive feel like two similarly positioned films in their respective filmmaker’s canons) and it’s hard to imagine the direction Paul Thomas Anderson would’ve gone instead had this not been his chance to go all in.