I still
have a short list of missed movies, which increasingly grows unless I
soon finish it. Since I don't have the time to tackle all the
remaining movies at once (there's like ten of them left at this
moment), I might as well attempt to at least post one a day. Kinda
like what I intended to do (in alphabetical order) with all the
movies I have in my collection last year, something that didn't come
to fruition. That idea is still just below the surface though, and I
might pick it up again some day soon. For now, let's try and get rid
of these dang 'missed movies'!
The
Master: ****/*****, or 7/10.
Paul
Thomas Anderson's latest exploration of American life and craziness.
Using Scientology as a template (but careful enough never to make the
link between that cult and the one portrayed in this film too
explicit), PTA tells the story of a messed up WW III veteran named
Freddie Quell (Joaquin Phoenix, with all the mannerisms of a madman) who cannot get a break in life,
continuously getting into trouble (mostly booze related) with the law
and basically everybody else around him. One day, while having
crashed a boat party, he meets an enigmatic man, Lancaster Dodd
(Philip Seymour Hoffman), a writer and philosopher who has started
his own spiritual movement. Though the two men are fascinated by each
other and Quell soon signs up with Dodd's 'Cause', he still has a
hard time fitting in, despite Dodd's attempts to make a true disciple
out of him. The second half of the film can best be described as an
'acting duel' between the two completely compelling and convincing
main actors, both of which got Oscar nominated (but sadly lost) for
their formidable acting extravaganza. Their remarkably strong
performances carry the movie, which is also the problem since there's
not that much else that grips your attention so firmly, the plot
being somewhat jarring and convoluted at times, while the movie tends
to drag on a bit longer than proves desirable. A masterpiece this is
not (PTA already made his and it's called There Will Be Blood
(2007)), despite impeccable cinematography and a fine job by Amy
Adams as Dodd's militant wife (also nominated for an Academy Award,
and again no win). Some people just cannot be saved since they are
too far gone, PTA states: a truth that both goes for the totally
crazed Quell as much as for Dodd's overly ardent, unquestioning
followers that just refuse to see through the charisma and confidence
of their leader who dupes them all with utterly ridiculous
metaphysical theories and creepy mind games. This movie might very
well explain parts of Tom Cruise's confusing behavior.
