Magnolia immediately splices away from several time-honoured filmmaking foundations and fearlessly dives into cutting-edge terrain while starting with old black and white 16-millimetre film footage. In that respect, the film is a genuine effort. The ultimate result is only semi-interesting but immensely significant because of the limits it breaches, as is the case with many freshman efforts.
P. T. Anderson earlier rose to prominence thanks to the highly praised yet Academy Award-nominated film Boogie Nights. Many of the cast and crew members from that 1997 film have returned to work with him here. Magnolia reintroduces a similar filming technique, but those who thought Boogie Nights was the most new-age they could stomach would undoubtedly struggle with this production.
A dying father, a girlfriend by his side, a nurse attending to him, a quiz show host, a good-hearted cop, a coke-sniffing daughter, a previous quiz show champion, a current quiz show champion, and a sex-craving instructor of "Seduce and Destroy" courses. All the parts come together like a very delicate jigsaw puzzle when you add some guys on the gallows, Hustler magazine, and a mind-boggling biblical connection. Don't blink, though, since the one significant linking component is brief, quiet, and deceptive. The plot of the film is about attempting to put those pieces together.
Not only does the picture deviate from the norm with the previous unorthodox story, but P. T. Anderson's actual filmmaking method may give inevitable teachers nightmares. Similarly, never purposefully chop someone's head off in the frame while they are talking. However, the most alarming transgression occurs when Anderson deploys shaky handheld film, a technique that is generally reserved for the direst of circumstances.
Jason Robards, Philip Baker Hall, Philip Seymour Hoffman, William H. Macy, Julianne Moore, and John C. Reilly are among the cast members in front of the camera. But it's Tom Cruise who steals the show. He's a sex preacher from California, and his in-your-face school includes courses like "How to be pleasant and kind."
The film will lose most viewers' interest after around two hours, which is the main issue with the movie. Its length, however, if you a cinephile, it's a must-watch.