“I wasn’t sure what to expect from this. I mean, it’s PT Anderson, the guy who made Magnolia, one of the greatest (and among my favoritest) movies of all time. Not to mention There Will Be Blood and Boogie Nights. But then I didn’t care too much for his last offering, The Master, and I couldn’t really get a good handle on what Inherent Vice was (not to mention the fact that I don’t typically care much for Joaquin Phoenix). I just knew I was skeptical of the 2.5 hour run time.
I was hooked in the first five minutes. Turns out, it was a smoky film noir set in the hazy lesser known neighborhoods of 1970 LA. I loved it. Anderson was back at top form. The story was baiting me, unfolding slowly as I salivated over it. More favorite faces kept on popping up.
And then…it kept going. The plot went from twisty to convoluted as the pace dropped. Phoenix started to annoy me, partly due to his character being a little too drug happy. I grasped on to a few plot points that came in early on, but couldn’t maintain interest in the others being introduced. Oh and then I got really distracted by one scene that kinda stuck with me, but it sent my brain to all sorts of places that weren’t the movie, and it never came back.
I wouldn’t consider this a second strike for Anderson. I think there was some good stuff here, I just need to give it a second watch. I didn’t get all of Magnolia the first time around either (although I at least felt that one intensely).
Inherent Vice – \m/ \m/ \m/”