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This is a review for Boogie Nights directed by Martin Scorsese... excuse me, directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. Could've sworn it was Scorsese...
Boogie Nights tells the story of Henry Hill... Dirk Diggler, a former busboy turned pornstar. The film chronicles his rise and fall in the 1970s porn industry. Boogie Nights features an impressive ensemble cast that includes Ray Liotta, Robert DeNiro, Joe Pesci... okay, I gotta stop that. Mark Wahlberg, Bert Reynolds, Julianne Moore and many others. Take Goodfellas, chuck the gangsters, insert pornstars... Voila! Boogie Nights.
Seriously. Is this PTA's love letter to Scorsese? Maybe it's a little unfair to say the plots are basically the same. Boogie Nights shares the classic rise-and-fall storyline as Goodfellas as well as the cocaine, the decadence and a handful of similar plot points. Oh yeah. There's also lots of cocaine. So it's not the story, right? Well, one might not even draw similarities from the plot of Boogie Nights were it not for the whole directing style, practically stolen from Goodfellas. I'm not saying PTA did indeed rip off Scorsese or that it would even be a bad thing if he did. But sooo many elements of the visual style were practically carbon copies of Goodfellas. The color schemes, the long shots, the editing... The whole time everyone was going on a crazy cocaine binge, the zooms, pans and cuts were so similar to Goodfellas to the point that I actually forgot I was watching a PTA film. The soundtrack was about one decade later than Goodfellas and I don't think Scorsese's a disco fan but I feel like if Scorsese directed Boogie Nights, he probably would've used the same score.
Once again, ripping off Scorsese (and doing it well for that matter) isn't necessary a bad thing. Goodfellas is one of my favorite films of all time. But there were very few moments where I thought Anderson's personality actually showed through. That's not to say there weren't any. I think the montages, the shots inside the porn set's camera and the more static long takes were definitely him. I was just disappointed that it wasn't more original visual-wise.
So was Boogie Nights actually good? Yes, it was actually. I think it's safe to say it's great, even. Definitely some standout performances, especially from Wahlberg and Reynolds. I never expect much of anything from either actors, especially Wahlberg. He's never been a bad actor but I've always felt he picks almost exclusively mediocre films to star in so I don't think he's ever been able to stand out. Same with Reynolds. Phillip Seymore Hoffman, John C. Reilly and Don Cheadle were also excellent. None of them had particularly big parts but they weren't throwaway by any means and I think they really took them further than most actors could. There's also a delightfully over-the-top, rambling, meth-fueled bit with Alfred Molina that's great. Julianne Moore seemed to have a pretty juicy role for a change. Even Heather Graham was good. No weak links in this one. Not very common for an ensemble piece.
The writing is also solid. Wahlberg's character was constantly teetering on the brink of stereotype but never got there. He actually felt like a real person and it was just his surroundings that were outrageous which is exactly how it should've been, I think. Same goes for Reynold's character. There was a very careful balance between drama and comedy that was very effective. You even get a little history of the porn industry and it's actually pretty interesting how different it seemed back then. It was actually a borderline legitimate film movement. Of course it never got there but it tried. So it would seem from the film and judging from his interviews, Anderson seems to know a lot about porn, haha.
So I've seen 4 out of 5 PTA films and I have to say, at this point, he is one of the best and most talented directors in the business. Even Magnolia had some worthwhile moments and I never cared for that one. Maybe I didn't "get" it but I thought it was boring just the same. The guy's got a really solid track record for sure. If you can successfully emulate Scorsese and not just pay homage, you gotta be doing something right.
I say this. You make an interesting and well, unusual, comparison between two styles and two excellent movies. I feel you are a little hard on PTA. No pun really intended. Speaking of hard, watch Hard Eight. That's what's it called down dis necka de woods. I can smell burnt engine oil down here. Two mountains close by. Knowaaraaamean like? Angelou, stop playing that bass, ya fecking genius bollocks ya. And take Tim Booth wita ya.
I think JMC has a point here. And a possible career. With some taming, or unleashing. Dependent upon his prospective employer. Good work fellar.
James, I also love both Good Fellas and Boogie Nights, but I've never seen any comparison at all between the 2.
The more I think about both films, I'd have to say that I think Boogie Nights is actually the better movie, because IMO, it's much more unique. Although GF sits at or near the throne of gangsta flicks, there are just so many, and more than a few that are really good. But, there are few if any films, that I'm familiar with, that walk common ground with BN, and stand shoulder to shoulder.
What the 2 flicks definitely both share is powerful, memorable scenes. It's a true barometer of a movie's success, when you can think back about it many years later and visually see numerous scenes playing out in your head.
It is an interesting argument. The comparisons in terms of theme and plot lines could be made for any number of films. I would have to watch again to see the similarities with shots and lighting. That said, they evoke two entirely different moods, so while they may come from a similar place - if the argument is to be believed - for the directors, the end results do turn up two different films.
As all have said, both are excellent films. PTA created two of my favourite movies in 'Magnolia' and 'There Will Be Blood' and he himself said at one point he wasn't sure he could beat the former.
I should've clarified more about the plot. In terms of the plot, the similarities are much broader. Indeed, you could make the same comparisons to any number of films. In terms of direction, there's exact shots and pans taken from Scorsese's film. Goodfellas is one of those films I've seen literally hundreds of times; I know them when I see them. You would indeed have to watch the two films again.
I just started the commentary and right off the bat, Anderson owns up to "ripping off" other directors, using the exact words "ripped off." Scorsese and Altman weren't the only ones either. Jonathan Demme's in there too. I was actually surprised that this was true and that he had so much humility about it which I both appreciate and expect. Again, I wouldn't have cared if Anderson had ripped off Scorsese even more. Goodfellas and Casino (basically the sequel) are brilliant films and if anyone can successfully copy off them, I can't imagine I'd care all that much unless the story sucked. Those films are just way too much fun to watch.
I agree the story is much more unique than Goodfellas. Thousands of gangster films out there. Very few about the porn industry. I think Boogie Nights might be the only one that looked at the industry without condemning it. Everyone in the film seemed like real people. I thought it was a great film. I just feel like the Scorsese influence can't be ignored and is nevertheless an interesting topic of conversation.
As of now, my favorite Anderson films are 1) Punch Drunk Love and 2) There Will Be Blood. Magnolia was the only one I didn't like. I didn't hate it though. Might give it another try one of these days.
Of all the clips that Snipe could've shown from Boogie Nights, he picked this....
The drug deal's not available on YouTube, sadly. It was up but went down sometime recently. Maybe it'll be back up soon because the only one there, now, has no audio and the audio is very important. =)
Both my favorite scenes are on Youtube. Those would be the long take of Little Bill at New Years and the Beach Boys montage. I won't be posting them for spoiler reasons but they're there for sure. The drug deal would be with Alfred Molina would be my third favorite.
The Touch was hilarious. At first, it seemed way out of place and farfetched for what's essentially a drama film. But I bought it given that Diggler was enough of a dork to think that was cool and had a big enough head to think other people would too. I might've cut the bit about the bass in the mix if I were Anderson. That was teetering on the edge of too much.
Both my favorite scenes are on Youtube. Those would be the long take of Little Bill at New Years and the Beach Boys montage. I won't be posting them for spoiler reasons but they're there for sure. The drug deal would be with Alfred Molina would be my third favorite.
They cut the audio on Little Bill's scene, too, though.
But, what about the donut shop scene? In fact, the whole 17-minute sequence from when Burt Reynolds hosts the show in the car through the end of the deal (which encompasses Dirk being his old self). That whole set of scenes are amazing together.
But, what about the donut shop scene? In fact, the whole 17-minute sequence from when Burt Reynolds hosts the show in the car through the end of the deal (which encompasses Dirk being his old self). That whole set of scenes are amazing together.
Those were also great scenes although I'll say the donut shop was a little too predictable. The payoff wasn't but everything leading up to it was. Still great. Didn't ruin the film for me in the slightest.
By watching Buck in the bank earlier and not being able to get the loan, you knew when the scene was over that he was going to take the money. The whole point of it was that you know why he's doing it but you still almost hope he won't. Well, not really that you hope he won't, but it's a morality tale.
And, that's good. I'm glad someone put up a new Little Bill scene. Was pissing me off not having one with audio on it.
EDIT: Oh, they put the audio back in the old one? Cool. Not expecting that one.
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