I saw this movie a long time ago. I've made a lot of judgments about it and commented on it ad hoc for some time. The other day I put it on and really tried to figure it out.
Most movie reviews that I have read try to give a summary of the plot and characters. In the case of Magnolia I do not think that this is appropriate. This is a very different movie. Really, it is quite smart in some ways. The elaborate interconnections set out in the preface tell us that there is an elaborate force that brings people together. The plot and characters in the movie are not immune from the cosmic interconnection. Any real elaboration of the plot would ruin the fun of trying to figure out just what the heck is going on.
Really, Magnolia is all about trying to figure out what the hell is going on, it is what makes it a fun movie. It also makes writing a review quite difficult. There is so many complicated things going on, and it tries to appear as a deep film that anyone commenting on the movie does not want to appear to be an idiot. Everyone says, "I loved it, what a great film" but my hunch is those people do not want to look foolish.
There are some really cool things that really got me going. For instance, there is a scene reminiscent of the end of 2001: A Space Odyssey where Earl Partridge (the dying old man) is lying in bed, then the theme from 2001 starts up (Thus Spake Zarathrustra) and the scene changes to Frank T.J. Mackie (Tom Cruise the sex therapist) and one of his speeches about inner strength and dominating what is around you, linking the 2001 theme to the meaning of the original song as an interpretation of Nietzche's poem about the 'superman'. I thought that was cool. Things of this nature help to get us to believe that this is a deep and meaningful film.
The characters are all in some sort of crisis. The narrator tells us "things don't just happen" and "this is not just a coincidence." Some of the characters speak in verse. There is a young kid who says that he will tell us what it all means. He tells us in rap. The old quiz kid (Donnie) tells us that "it is ok to confuse children with angels." Of course the children in the film end up appearing to be more wise than all of the adults. Of course, since everything is connected, the speeches of the children are of cosmic significance. The children probably are angels.
OK, the whole thing is terribly confusing. There are a few things that one ought to know and will help to make sense of the movie.
- The music is very important
- The children ARE smarter than the adults and are keys to unlocking the plot - they are angels
- The weather forecasts are messages from God
- The cocaine addict is the main character.
>> SPOILER WARNING
So Chris, what does it all mean? Maybe I'm too stupid to understand the whole thing, but there is no deep meaning in the traditional sense. The movie does not ask any questions like other movies (see my review of The Virgin Suicides). It does not explain some fact of life. Instead, the movie is insulting. Magnolia is a polemic. It tells us what to do. "But if you refuse to let them go. Behold, I will smite all your territory with frogs." (Exodus 8:2) The movie is about the past and its hold on our consciousness. Just about every character in the film says "we may be through with the past, but the past aint through with us."
The movie isn't reflecting about forgiveness as the cop would have us believe. He says "sometimes people need to be forgiven, sometimes people need to go to jail." The movie says: you must forgive lest you be plagued by bad things! My objection is that a movie should reflect and ask questions. They ought to be reflective. Although it was fun to try and sort out everything that goes on, to figure out the the intersections and complications the movie is unsatisfactory. There is a deep paternalism, a warning about forgiveness from someone who is supposed to know more than us. The movie makes you dig and forces you to sift through a lot unnecessary complications. It tricks you into thinking you are smart and that the movie is deep. It is not deep. It is simple pedantic moralizing with flashy marketing. This is not new. This is not innovation. It is insulting. I don't go to the movies for a lecture. I can think on my own thank you very much.
<< END SPOILER
This movie gets two stars on the official Chris' Choice rating scale.
**
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