 |
Eddie Adams/Dirk Diggler: Mark Wahlberg Jack Horner: Burt Reynolds Amber Waves: Julianne Moore Reed Rothchild : John C. Reilly Rollergirl: Heather Graham Buck Swope: Don Cheadle Maurice T. Rodriguez: Luis Guzman Little Bill: William H. Macy Written and Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. Running time: 152 minutes. Rated R (for strong sex scenes, explicit dialogue, nudity, drug use, language and violence). |
Boogie Nights, directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, tells the story of a basic "coming-of-age" film that chronicles the events of a 17-year old kid's rise and fall in stardom. We have already seen these kind of movies, where characters want to become athletes, lawyers and every other profession you can think of, but not has anyone ever wanted to become a great porn actor.
This is what Eddie Adams (Mark Wahlberg) fantasizes about and it is what he eventually becomes. Eddie is from the San Fernando Valley, who is a dishwasher in a Hollywood nightclub waiting to be discovered by someone. He is finally discovered by Jack Horner (Burt Reynolds), a porno director, who regularly comes to the club. "I got a feeling," Jack says, "that behind those jeans is something wonderful just waiting to get out." Impressed by his "feature," Jack takes him under his wing and produces a star.
One of the subtle points I perceived in this film is that porno movies shouldn't be looked upon as trash. The people who are associated with these pictures are no less different than any other person. What is the difference between Basic Instinct and Deep Throat? There really is none, as their purpose is the same, to entertain the viewer. They are both movies that tell a story and have the same elements that make a movie i.e. lighting, editing, etc.
They are movies that Jack Horner makes. Jack makes movies where the audience stays until the movie is over, not when they...well you can figure that out. Jack is the father figure, a sage if you will in Boogie Nights. He isn't some sex-alcoholic pervert that you might perceive someone in his position to be. Jack doesn't see this industry as something that should be hidden under a rock, but more like a regular movie industry. His purpose is the same as any film director, to entertain the viewer. Jack is a person who sees his craft as art than a regular job and is proud to show it. He is always calm, cool and most importantly in control. Burt plays his character perfectly with a subtle approach to life. He has to be since the people he hangs out with are prime candidates for the Betty Ford clinic.
Amber Waves (Julianne Moore) is the "mother" of the cast. She is a seasoned veteran of the porno industry, who lives with Jack and is fighting with her ex-husband to see her daughter. She calls late at night pleading with him to let her talk to her daughter. Rollergirl (Heather Graham) is a 17 year-old actress, who is a regular in Jack's movies. She always has her rollerskates on, thus the name, refusing to take them off, even during her love scenes. She is an innocent girl, who is more naive than pretty. She does anything Jack tells her. Then there is Little Bill (William H. Macy), who is an assistant director to Jack. He is basically second in command. We see his marriage is deteriorating, as his wife, who is played by real life porno actress Nina Hartley, not only cheats on him, but sometimes does it right in front of him. I wonder if his wife gave him the nickname, Little Bill? Strangely, these do not sound like the lives or problems of people in the porno industry, but of ordinary people.
They are the key characters, but only a few that live in Boogie Nights. The list of characters goes on and on. The atmosphere feels like a Robert Altman movie where we live in a world, instead of a small and confined place like in most movies. We are not bound by a couple of characters, but instead free to mingle as we please.
Eddie Adams, a young naive teenager, who has an affixation to Bruce Lee, gets his chance at stardom when Jack decides to put him in next movie. Jack's intuition comes true as Eddie, now renamed "Dirk Diggler," becomes a rising star in the industry. His career really kicks in when he wins three awards for "best actor", "best newcomer" and "best d-," well I am sure you can fill in that blank.
Like Jaws, we don't see Dirk's "talent" until the very end of the film. We are told that it is prominent and judging from people's reaction, when they do gaze upon it, we get the point. Also like Jaws, it is not real, but just a prosthetic piece Wahlberg is wearing.
Amber, who stars with Dirk in his first role, becomes more than just a friend to him, but a mother. The two talk to each other, on and off the set. Amber gives Dirk advice and consoles him, every once and awhile, while Dirk listens and shares his feelings with her. The two characters form a parent-son relationship. She needs him to be the son that she lost in the divorce and he needs her to be the mother he lost when his parents kicked him out of the house for pursuing his career.
As Dirk's career goes up, so does his ego. We see the transformation when we tour his house. It is a wonderful scene, which reminded me of Casino. The feel and atmosphere are about the same as we are overwhelmed with all the objects in his home. Each piece of clothing he owns is divided into designer and color. We see how naive he is from all of the stature items he buys. His bedroom is an Asian environment with a "classy" mirror on the ceiling.
It is a good life for our family until the decade is over. The new decade starts with a bang, in more ways than one, as Floyd Gondolli (Philip Baker Hall) breaks the news that videotapes are the way of the future for the porno industry. So as the industry changes, so do their lives.
Dirk who establishes himself as the King with his own series, becomes too big, if you pardon the pun, for his ego. He starts to become unreasonable with Jack and demands that he films his scenes when he wants to. He also becomes heavily involved with drugs. Conflict evolves between the director and star, which ends with Jack firing Dirk. It causes an avalanche of events to happen. The family loses their son and everyone suffers.
Dirk loses touch with reality, day after day, finding out that he has no other talent in life. Jack starts filming on video and loses his touch. He has no interest in filming the movies now. It is just a paycheck now than a piece of art to him. Sometimes Jack isn't even there when they start shooting a scene. He doesn't care. Why should he be, the industry doesn't care about him.
If I seem to give away the whole story, don't worry because I am only scratching the surface. There are too many subplots going on and characters that haven't even been introduced. Remember that Boogie Nights is about a group of people. The film weaves through the characters' stories so smoothly that there isn't a scene out of place or confusing.
The film also has great camera movement. Thomas is in love with the camera as he films every scene with very careful, long, coordinated and detailed shots. The opening scene in the nightclub is the longest "one-take" shot I have seen, better than Goodfellas and Carlito's Way. There are many other scenes that pay homage to Martin Scorsese i.e. Raging Bull where Jake LaMotta is talking to himself in the mirror.
Sooner or later we expect the family to come back and reunite. They all survive the turmoil, maybe a little wiser and more forgiving this time, which is what this film is all about: Persistence and love. Like a phoenix, Dirk starts renewing his life again. We don't know if he is going to be a success again, but it doesn't matter. He has gotten a second chance in life. He is a little wiser this time. He knows what to expect. He is finally an adult. Grade: A-
MAIN MENU
MOVIES A-F
MOVIES G-M
MOVIES N-T
MOVIES U-Z
