One Day, Several Lives,
One Unforgettable Movie

Someone once asked me how people should be defined, if not by labels such as "tall, short, fat, skinny, young or old." My answer was that a person is defined by how his or her life affects others. I believe that everyone we meet, talk to, and interact with are somehow changed. So it is in Magnolia, where everyone is destined to affect each other as their lives intersect on one strange day.

Written, directed and produced by Paul Thomas Anderson, Magnolia is several stories all interconnected by various ties, some familial, some not. If any one character could be called the center of the film, it would have to be Earl Partridge (Jason Robards), a former television producer who is dying of cancer.

While Earl is dying, he confesses to his caretaker Phil (Philip Seymour Hoffman) that he has a son whom he hasn't seen in ten years. To Phil's surprise, Earl's estranged son is the sleazy Frank T.J. Mackey (Tom Cruise), a motivational speaker who teaches men how to "seduce and destroy" women.

But Magnolia isn't just a story about a dying man and his estranged son. It's about a boy genius who is close to setting a record on a quiz show. It's about the quiz show host, who -- despite his appearance as a wholesome family man -- is anything but. It's about a former quiz kid who can't hold down a steady job. It's about a cop who is searching for love. It's about a woman who is searching for the truth. Through it all, though, there is a sense of the strange, combined with an underlying understanding that everything is somehow connected.

The film is definitely not mainstream. Even though a number of the actors appearing are well known, from superstar Cruise to character actor William H. Macy, the story is more than a little surreal. The opening not only introduces all the characters, but does so against a hauntingly repetitive rendition of "One," performed by Aimee Mann. The refrain, "One is the loneliest number" helps set the tone for the film, although it gets a bit annoying after several minutes.

Magnolia's strength is in its excellent casting and powerful performances by the entire cast. Cruise, especially, is disgustingly delightful as Mackey. His portrayal makes audiences hate him from the first moment, and while we never completely sympathize with him, we come to understand him. Also, John C. Reilly is excellent as a goofy but well-meaning cop who wants to find someone with whom he can share his life. As he rides alone in his patrol car, he gives an endless banter as if he's being interviewed, talking about his job, his life, and why he does what he does.

Everyone in the movie is -- to varying degrees -- real. Although some characters are really out there, it doesn't take much imagination to believe that somewhere there is someone exactly like them. And that's Magnolia's charm. Even though it's a fictional story, you can believe that it does happen, or could happen, exactly this way.

I found myself put off by the constant foul language used by almost all the characters. In addition to the language, the storylines often deal with mature subject matter, including drug use and sex. Certainly, Magnolia may not appeal to more conservative audiences. Yet, despite its length (at just a hair shy of three hours), Magnolia is one of the most engaging movies I've seen in the past year. If it had been released here sooner, I would have included it on my list of best films of 1999.

MY RATING: 9 out of 10.

RATED: R
RUN TIME: 179 min.