Magnolia

“The book says, ‘we may be through with the past, but the past ain't through with us.’” When the great tapestry of life unfurls, who were you? A film that walks the line of “insisting upon itself” so dangerously close it might as well be tightrope walking the Grand Canyon. Thankfully, there is a tangible center to this film. It could be described as a simple story told in a convoluted manner, yet it is extraordinarily rich in detail. Many actors in this film had to hit their marks for this film to work, and Paul Thomas Anderson assembled an ensemble cast to do the lifting along with some great child actors. Magnolia is a sprawling mosaic of characters, exploring regret/guilt as the main theme, along with forgiveness and acceptance. It skillfully uses parallelism to weave this complex web of characters. Naturally, the cinematography was also exceptional and was used effectively to convey mood. This was complemented by some quite zany tracking shots. Undoubtedly, this is a film I will think about for a long time. incredible style. **(5/5) **