Magnolia

New Line Cinema | Release Date: December 17, 1999

4.5	USER SCORE Mixed or average reviews based on 707 Ratings

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ConsortApr 24, 2021

This movie drags on for over 3 hours. A note for the director, if you're going to make a 3 hour and 8 minute long movie make sure the actors have great chemistry & that the movie has a message. Magnolia has neither of these crucial elements.

2 of 2 users found this helpful20

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88ballSep 28, 2020

Think of the most pretentious "symbolic allegorical" wanna-be movie you can think of. Got it? Now multiply the pretentious factor by 10, and maybe you can come close to imagining the nature of this film. A royal waste of time. If I had paidThink of the most pretentious "symbolic allegorical" wanna-be movie you can think of. Got it? Now multiply the pretentious factor by 10, and maybe you can come close to imagining the nature of this film. A royal waste of time. If I had paid to have watched this movie in the theatres, I would have without a doubt demanded PAYMENT for the THREE HOURS of attention I gave to this movie. I truly did not expect this from the same director which graced us with There Will Be Blood. If you enjoy absurdism, this is the movie for you. This movie tries SO hard to be some kind of metaphorical master piece, but falls flat on its face, and the beauty of it all is that you can essentially see the exact point at which this movie drops to its knees and begs for the title of 'artistic masterpiece'- it's at the point where the members of the cast, all in different locations, have a sing-along. But what really drove home the pointless nature of this movie was a scene near the end when a certain amphibian begins raining from the sky. I wish I could say I was not being literal in my description, but I am. I highly dissuade one from viewing this movie, and to instead waste their time banging rocks together, because at least the latter will not cause a brain hemorrhage.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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KenRJan 27, 2021

Magnolia has some good performances, some good cinematography, was Oscar-nominated, but what about its story...or some worthiness? If you enjoy a lot of actor abuse, verbal abuse (even professional child abuse) you could somehow like thisMagnolia has some good performances, some good cinematography, was Oscar-nominated, but what about its story...or some worthiness? If you enjoy a lot of actor abuse, verbal abuse (even professional child abuse) you could somehow like this movie. If you've ever wondered what a movie might be like that's written and directed by a self-confessed cocaine user, under-aged pornography addict, as well as being, Quote; “my favourite filmmaker copycat” - then this could be getting close to realising your dream (perhaps this might also sadly sum up Hollywood today and some audiences) Have tried to sit this through several times (only because of the cast and the hugely conflicting reviews!) but each time was left wanting to throw something at the screen or run screaming from the room. 'Over-everything' is one description that readily comes to mind but, other unprintable ones are first and foremost. Many others have neatly summed-up this tosh very well but few can ever do it the justice it deserves. Writer/director P.T. Anderson can’t even write a single paragraph that's not filled with vulgar language or unnecessary four-letter words and 90% of his characters are not worth caring for.

Maybe this could be another example of the modern Academies short-sightedness spotlighting one of the reasons why so many patrons stopped going to the movies around this time, also why many movies of this ilk don't deliver the good returns expected. If your life is so uneventful that you can throw away over three (yes 3) laborious hours of visual splendour being wasted on a theme so repugnantly ugly - then you're welcome to this excruciatingly heavy-handed overindulgence. The movie plays out like several movies in one, with none of them much good or making much sense when edited together - mild interest soon gives way to boredom. As for the director’s favourite singer being played endlessly in the background, this just becomes another annoyance. When a moviemaker publicly makes a statement like: "I'll make pretty good movies the rest of my life but I guess Magnolia is, for better or worse, the best movie I'll ever make". Then please let me say: Stay out of our lives P.T. Anderson - way out. But of course, those either on the payroll or who consider themselves as knowing better than most will disagree.… Expand

2 of 3 users found this helpful21

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BKMJul 17, 2012

Magnolia is a beast of a movie, and not just in terms of its 3 hour plus running time. Paul Thomas Anderson's ambitious and challenging film (in some ways it's more daring than Boogie Nights) juggles an enormous cast of characters who areMagnolia is a beast of a movie, and not just in terms of its 3 hour plus running time. Paul Thomas Anderson's ambitious and challenging film (in some ways it's more daring than Boogie Nights) juggles an enormous cast of characters who are all in desperate need of love and redemption, and sometimes both. The film digs deep emotionally into the souls of its characters and suggests that each and every one of them is deserving of these very qualities despite their sins and transgressions. Magnolia is an art film that begs to be attacked for its pretentiousness and for a gonzo finale, but it's all the better for those very things.… Expand

3 of 14 users found this helpful311

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JonW.Jul 7, 2006

I thought "The Village", "Random Hearts" and "Intersection" were the worst movies of all time. Now they're only the 2nd - 4th worst movies of all time thank to this hunk of junk. The most interesting part of the film was the first 1 I thought "The Village", "Random Hearts" and "Intersection" were the worst movies of all time. Now they're only the 2nd - 4th worst movies of all time thank to this hunk of junk. The most interesting part of the film was the first 1 minute when 3 coincidences were summarized - the only coincidence involving the actual characters in the movie were the boredom in which they inflicted, the pointlessness of their stories and the over-the-top acting by all of the cast members. By the end of the movie, I was praying that they all would die together, quickly because I cared nothing for any of them and only wanted to stop my pain. It will be tough to top this one as the worst ever, but I'm sure some Hollywood genius is already hard at work.… Expand

0 of 4 users found this helpful

BJonesFeb 13, 2009

This movie was garbage, and every scene was drawn out long enough for you to be begging for the next scene, and it added up to a 3 hour piece of junk. Really garbage.

0 of 1 users found this helpful

BiffL.Jul 12, 2009

Various blighted, phony, humorless characters strutting and fretting between ridiculous marginally intelligent speechifying, all of them so dishonest, lost and damned that the only salvation (or relief at least) possible would be a plague of Various blighted, phony, humorless characters strutting and fretting between ridiculous marginally intelligent speechifying, all of them so dishonest, lost and damned that the only salvation (or relief at least) possible would be a plague of equally phony frogs dropping from the sky. Reminded me of the Sam Kinison routine about the people starving in the desert. Like, if your life is really anything like that, why the fuck don't you MOVE? It made my 10 worst films of all time list, nearer the top than the bottom.… Expand

0 of 2 users found this helpful