Boogie Nights

“What can you expect when you're on top? You know? It's like Napoleon. When he was the king, you know, people were just constantly trying to conquer him, you know, in the Roman Empire. So, it's history repeating itself all over again.”Every time I review a Paul Thomas Anderson film, I feel the need to reiterate the fact that this guy is the greatest director of his generation. I’m not going to pretend that it’s some kind of unique opinion, but it definitely is an opinion that I feel should be taken far more seriously. It isn’t Nolan, it’s not Villeneuve, it’s not Tarantino, not Fincher. Yet somehow these names are the ones I hear more frequently, and to me that’s equivalent to saying Kevin De Bruyne is better than Lionel Messi. Truly an absolute masterpiece. A stylish rise-and-fall story which discusses the complications of reinvention and self-worth, and the shift in the wants and needs of the filmmaking industry. It stylistically pays homage to the works of Martin Scorsese, but has that PTA flair we would then go on to see again and again. The guy made this at 26, by the way, the true definition of a wunderkind. The acting performances are fucking incredible, by the way. How Mark Wahlberg went from something as tremendous as this to whatever shite he’s doing now is beyond me, one of the best performances of the 90s. Philip Seymour Hoffman absolutely stole every scene he appeared in, so amazing to see him. The rest of the cast are incredible; I could sit here and list off multiple names, but I would rather suggest that you just WATCH THIS. An absolutely tremendous film which I imagine will be endlessly rewatchable.