Magnolia (1999)

 ●  English ● 3 hrs 8 mins

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24 hours in L.A.; it's raining cats and dogs. Two parallel and intercut stories dramatize men about to die: both are estranged from a grown child, both want to make contact, and neither child wants anything to do with dad. Earl Partridge's son is a charismatic misogynist; Jimmy Gator's daughter is a cokehead and waif. A mild and caring nurse intercedes for Earl, reaching the son; a prayerful and upright beat cop meets the daughter, is attracted to her, and leads her toward a new calm. Meanwhile, guilt consumes Earl's young wife, while two whiz kids, one grown and a loser and the other young and pressured, face their situations. The weather, too, is quirky.
See Storyline (May Contain Spoilers)

Cast: John C Reilly, Julianne Moore, Tom Cruise, William H Macy

Crew: Paul Thomas Anderson (Director), Robert Elswit (Director of Photography), Jon Brion (Music Director)

Rating: M18 (Singapore), MA (Australia)

Genres: Drama

Release Dates: 07 Jan 1999 (India)

Tagline: Things fall down. People look up. And when it rains, it pours.

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Did you know? Paul Thomas Anderson screened the film Network to his production team before filming began. Read More
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as Officer Jim Kurring
as Linda Partridge
as Frank T.J. Mackey
as Donnie Smith
as Solomon Solomon
as Gwenovier
as Craig Hansen
as Marcie
as Dr. Landon
as Mary
as Cynthia
as Thurston Howell
as Earl Partridge
as Stanley Spector
as Forensic Scientist
as Police Captain
as Luis
as Rose Gator
as Claudia Wilson Gator
as Rick Spector
as Alan Kligman Esq.
as Stanley Berry
as Sir Edmund William Godfrey
as Delmer Darion
as Jimmy Gator
as Phil Parma
as Burt Ramsey / Narrator
as Daniel Hill

Direction

First Assistant Director
Second Assistant Director

Production

Co-Producer
Executive Producer
Associate Producer

Writers

Story Writer

Camera and Electrical

Director of Photography

Music

Music Director

Sound

Sound Designer
Foley Artist
Sound Mixer
Sound Re-recording Mixer

Art

Production Designer
Set Decorator

Costume and Wardrobe

Costume Designer

Editorial

Makeup and Hair

Makeup Artist

Stunts

Stunt Coordinator

Visual Effects

Visual Effects Producer
Film Type:
Feature
Language:
English
Spoken Languages:
French, German
Colour Info:
Color
Sound Mix:
Dolby Digital, DTS, Sony Dynamic Digital Sound
Frame Rate:
24 fps
Aspect Ratio:
2.39:1 (Scope)
Stereoscopy:
No
Taglines:
Things fall down. People look up. And when it rains, it pours.
Goofs:
Character Error
Neil Flynn is credited as Stanley Berry, but in the film, Flynn is seen when the narrator says, "Daniel Hill."

Continuity
Two lights on the back of the ambulance are on and off in consecutive shots.

Crew/Equipment Visible
Shadow moving on the wall behind Frank Mackey as he sits down beside Earl's deathbed.
Trivia:
Almost every location contains at least one picture or painting of a magnolia flower.

Paul Thomas Anderson wrote the bulk of the script during two weeks he spent at William H. Macy's Vermont cabin - afraid to go outside because he'd seen a snake.

The telephone number 'TAME-HER' is shown on the "Seduce and Destroy" infomercials within the movie. Dialing this number used to give a recording of Tom Cruise giving the Seduce and Destroy pitch.

Claudia was the first character created, and the other characters were branched off from her.

The story about the man being killed by a gunshot while falling off a building has for years been used as a hypothetical case in criminal law classes to illustrate causation.

Paul Thomas Anderson wanted to cast Burt Reynolds for an unspecified role. But Reynolds became angry with Anderson during the promotional tour for Boogie Nights (1997) and turned the role down.

Musician Fiona Apple is responsible for many of the paintings seen throughout.

Paul Thomas Anderson made a visit to the set of Eyes Wide Shut, where he offered the role of Frank T.J. Mackey to Tom Cruise.

Fiona Apple is also uncredited as the voice of the wrong number that Phil Parma calls in an attempt to find Frank T.J. Mackey.

Paul Thomas Anderson screened the film Network to his production team before filming began.