View source for Magnolia (film)

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{{Short description|1999 film by Paul Thomas Anderson}}
{{Distinguish|Magnolia Pictures}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2019}}
{{Infobox film
| name           = Magnolia
| image          = Magnolia poster.png
| alt            =
| caption        = Theatrical release poster
| director       = [[Paul Thomas Anderson]]
| producer       = {{Plainlist|
* [[JoAnne Sellar]]
* Paul Thomas Anderson
}}
| writer         = Paul Thomas Anderson
| starring       = {{Plainlist|
* [[Jeremy Blackman]]
* [[Tom Cruise]]
* [[Melinda Dillon]]
* [[Philip Baker Hall]]
* [[Philip Seymour Hoffman]]
* [[Ricky Jay]]
* [[William H. Macy]]
* [[Alfred Molina]]
* [[Julianne Moore]]
* [[John C. Reilly]]
* [[Jason Robards]]
* [[Melora Walters]]
}}
| music          = [[Jon Brion]]
| cinematography = [[Robert Elswit]]
| editing        = [[Dylan Tichenor]]
| studio         = Ghoulardi Film Company<br>JoAnne Sellar Productions
| distributor    = [[New Line Cinema]]
| released       = {{Film date|1999|12|17|United States}}
| runtime        = 188 minutes<!--Theatrical runtime: 188:25--><ref>{{cite web|title=''MAGNOLIA'' (18)|url=http://www.bbfc.co.uk/releases/magnolia-2000-4|work=[[British Board of Film Classification]]|date=January 11, 2000|access-date=July 5, 2013|archive-date=October 17, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151017123745/http://www.bbfc.co.uk/releases/magnolia-2000-4|url-status=dead}}</ref>
| country        = United States
| language       = English
| budget         = $37 million
| gross          = $48.5 million
}}

'''''Magnolia''''' is a 1999 American <!-- do not add "epic" without providing a supporting source -->[[drama film]] written, directed and co-produced by [[Paul Thomas Anderson]]. It stars an [[ensemble cast]], including [[Jeremy Blackman]], [[Tom Cruise]], [[Melinda Dillon]], [[Philip Baker Hall]], [[Philip Seymour Hoffman]], [[Ricky Jay]], [[William H. Macy]], [[Alfred Molina]], [[Julianne Moore]], [[John C. Reilly]], [[Jason Robards]] (in his final film role), and [[Melora Walters]]. The film is an epic mosaic of interrelated characters in search of happiness, forgiveness, and meaning in the [[San Fernando Valley]]. The script was inspired by the music of [[Aimee Mann]], who contributed several songs to [[Magnolia (soundtrack)|its soundtrack]].

The film had a limited theatrical release on December 17, 1999, before expanding wide on January 7, 2000. ''Magnolia'' received acclaim from critics. It grossed $48.5 million against a $37 million budget. Of the ensemble cast, Cruise was nominated for [[Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor|Best Supporting Actor]] at the [[72nd Academy Awards]] and won the award in that category at the [[Golden Globes]].

==Plot==
[[File:Magnolia Character Relationships.svg|right|thumb|upright|Outline of the various characters in Magnolia and their relationships]]

[[Los Angeles]] police officer Jim Kurring investigates a disturbance at a woman's apartment, finding a body in a closet. Dixon, a neighborhood boy, unsuccessfully tries to tell him who committed the murder. Jim goes to the apartment of Claudia Wilson, whose neighbors called the police after she argued with her [[family estrangement|estranged]] father, Jimmy Gator, and blasted music while snorting [[cocaine]]. Seemingly oblivious, Jim asks her on a date.

Jimmy hosts a [[quiz show]] called ''What Do Kids Know?'' and is dying of [[cancer]]. The newest [[child prodigy]] on the show, Stanley Spector, is hounded by his father Rick for the prize money and demeaned by the adults, who prevent him from using the bathroom during a commercial break. When the show resumes, Stanley wets himself. As the show continues, a drunken Jimmy sickens, ordering the show to go on after he collapses. After Rick berates him, Stanley runs away.

Former ''What Do Kids Know?'' champion Donnie Smith, whose parents took all his prize money, has been fired from his job and is in love with a male bartender with [[Dental braces|braces]]. Donnie wants to get braces himself, thinking the bartender will love him back. He hatches a plan to steal the money from his former boss for the surgery.

The show's former producer, Earl Partridge, is also dying of cancer. Earl's [[trophy wife]], Linda, collects his prescriptions while he is cared for by a nurse, Phil Parma. Earl asks Phil to find his estranged son, Frank Mackey, a [[motivational speaker]] and [[pickup artist]]. Frank is interviewed by a journalist who knows Frank took care of his dying mother after Earl left. Frank storms out of the interview, after which Phil tries to contact him.

Linda goes to see Earl's lawyer, hoping to change his [[Last will|will]]. She married Earl for his money, but now loves him and does not want it. The lawyer suggests she renounce the will and decline the money, which would go to Frank. Linda rejects his advice and berates Phil for seeking out Frank, but later apologizes. She drives to a vacant parking lot and attempts suicide by [[drug overdose]]. Dixon finds Linda near death in the car, takes the money from her purse, and calls an ambulance.

Jim loses his gun while trying to catch a suspect. When he meets Claudia, they promise to be honest with each other, so he confesses his ineptitude as a cop and admits he has not been on a date since he divorced three years earlier. Claudia says he will hate her because of her problems, but Jim assures her that her past does not matter. They kiss, but she leaves him.

Jimmy goes home to his wife, Rose, and confesses that he cheated on her. She asks why Claudia does not talk to him, and Jimmy admits that Claudia believes he [[child molestation|molested]] her. Rose demands to know if it is true, but Jimmy says he cannot remember. Disgusted, Rose leaves him. Elsewhere, Donnie steals the money, but when he decides to return it, he cannot get back inside the office. While Donnie climbs a utility pole to the roof to try to return the money, Jim sees him and feels compelled to investigate.

Suddenly, [[Rain of animals|frogs begin falling from the sky]]. One of them hits Donnie, and he falls from the pole and smashes his teeth. As Jimmy is about to kill himself, frogs fall through his skylight, causing him to shoot the television and cause a house fire. Rose crashes her car near Claudia's apartment but makes it inside and reconciles with her daughter. Earl is awakened and sees Frank beside him before dying. Linda's ambulance crashes near the hospital. Donnie is rescued by Jim, and Jim's lost gun falls from the sky.

Jim helps Donnie return the money. Frank goes to the hospital to be with Linda, who will recover. Stanley tells Rick that he needs to be nicer to him, but Rick tells him to go to bed. Jim goes to see Claudia, telling her he wants to make things work between them. As Jim is explaining this, Claudia glances into the camera and smiles.

==Cast==
<!--- [[WP:NOTDATABASE]] - cast and order per Main Cast closing tombstone stand-alone credits, roles per closing credits scroll --->
{{Cast listing|
* [[Tom Cruise]] as Frank T.J. Mackey
* [[Jason Robards]] as Earl Partridge
* [[Julianne Moore]] as Linda Partridge
* [[Philip Seymour Hoffman]] as Phil Parma
* Emmanuel Johnson as Dixon
* [[Melora Walters]] as Claudia Wilson Gator
* [[Philip Baker Hall]] as Jimmy Gator
* [[Melinda Dillon]] as Rose Gator
* [[John C. Reilly]] as Jim Kurring
* [[William H. Macy]] as Donnie Smith
* [[Jeremy Blackman]] as Stanley Spector
* [[Michael Bowen (actor)|Michael Bowen]] as Rick Spector
* April Grace as Gwenovier
* [[Luis Guzmán]] as Luis 
* [[Ricky Jay]] as Burt Ramsey (also provided narration)
* [[Alfred Molina]] as Solomon Solomon
* [[Michael Murphy (actor)|Michael Murphy]] as Alan Kligman, Esq.
* [[Henry Gibson]] as Thurston Howell
* [[Felicity Huffman]] as Cynthia
* [[Don McManus]] as Dr. Landon
* [[Eileen Ryan]] as Mary
* [[Danny Wells]] as Dick Jennings
}}

Also starring are [[Thomas Jane]] as the young Jimmy Gator; [[Cleo King]] as Marcie; [[Orlando Jones]] as Worm; [[Clark Gregg]] and [[Robert Downey Sr.]] as employees of WDKK; [[Patton Oswalt]] as Delmer Darion; and [[Pat Healy (actor)|Pat Healy]] as both Sir Edmund William Godfrey and the young pharmacist. [[Paul F. Tompkins]] and [[Mary Lynn Rajskub]] provide voice cameos as Chad and Janet, respectively.

==Production==
===Development===
[[Paul Thomas Anderson]] started to get ideas for ''Magnolia'' during the long editing period of ''[[Boogie Nights]]'' (1997).<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-12-16 |title='Magnolia': Paul Thomas Anderson's Absorbing Mosaic of Compassion, Humanity and the Importance of Forgiveness • Cinephilia & Beyond |url=https://cinephiliabeyond.org/magnolia-paul-thomas-andersons-absorbing-mosaic-compassion-humanity-importance-forgiveness/ |access-date=2023-03-15 |language=en-US |archive-date=March 15, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230315165502/https://cinephiliabeyond.org/magnolia-paul-thomas-andersons-absorbing-mosaic-compassion-humanity-importance-forgiveness/ |url-status=live }}</ref> As he got closer to finishing the film, he started writing down material for his new project.<ref name="konow">{{cite news | last = Konow | first = David | title = PTA Meeting: An Interview with Paul Thomas Anderson | publisher = Creative Screenwriting | date = January–February 2000 }}</ref> After the critical and financial success of ''Boogie Nights'', [[New Line Cinema]], who backed that film, told Anderson that he could do whatever he wanted and Anderson realized that, "I was in a position I will never ever be in again."<ref name="hirschberg">{{cite news | last = Hirschberg | first = Lynn | title = His Way | newspaper = [[The New York Times]] | date = December 19, 1999 | url = https://www.nytimes.com/1999/12/19/magazine/his-way.html | access-date = April 25, 2023 | archive-date = June 2, 2013 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130602232739/http://www.nytimes.com/1999/12/19/magazine/his-way.html | url-status = live }}</ref> [[Michael De Luca]], then head of production at New Line Cinema, made the deal for ''Magnolia'', granting Anderson final cut without hearing an idea for the film.<ref name="hirschberg"/><ref name="goldstein">{{cite news | last = Goldstein | first = Patrick | title = Heading in a New Direction | newspaper = [[Toronto Star]] | date = December 24, 1999 }}</ref> Originally, Anderson had wanted to make a film that was "intimate and small-scale,"<ref name="patterson">{{cite news | last = Patterson | first = John | title = ''Magnolia'' Maniac | newspaper = [[The Guardian]] | date = March 10, 2000 | url = https://www.theguardian.com/film/2000/mar/10/culture.features | access-date = April 12, 2010 | location = London | archive-date = August 27, 2012 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120827044550/http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2000/mar/10/culture.features | url-status = live }}</ref> something that he could shoot in 30 days.<ref name="prodnotes">{{cite news | title = ''Magnolia'' Production Notes | publisher = [[New Line Cinema]] | year = 1999 | url = http://www.cigarettesandredvines.com/film.php?id=MMB | access-date = February 4, 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20061030010535/http://www.cigarettesandredvines.com/film.php?id=MMB | archive-date = October 30, 2006 | url-status = dead | df = mdy-all }}</ref> He had the title of "Magnolia" in his head before he wrote the script.<ref name="strauss2">{{cite news | last = Strauss | first = Bob | title = ''Magnolia'' Springs from Valley Roots | newspaper = [[The Montreal Gazette]] | date = December 19, 1999 }}</ref>

As he started writing, the script "kept blossoming" and he realized that there were many actors he wanted to write for and then decided to put "an epic spin on topics that don't necessarily get the epic treatment".<ref name="patterson"/> He wanted to "make the epic, the all-time great San Fernando Valley movie".<ref name="strauss2"/> Anderson started with lists of images, words and ideas that "start resolving themselves into sequences and shots and dialogue,"<ref name="patterson"/> actors, and music. The first image he had for the film was the smiling face of actress [[Melora Walters]].<ref name="patterson"/> The next image that came to him was of [[Philip Baker Hall]] as her father. Anderson imagined Hall walking up the steps of Walters' apartment and having an intense confrontation with her.<ref name="portman">{{cite news | last = Portman | first = Jamie | title = How ''Magnolia'' Grew and Grew | newspaper = [[Ottawa Citizen]] | date = December 30, 1999 }}</ref> Anderson also did research on the [[magnolia tree ]] and discovered a concept that eating the tree's bark helped cure cancer.<ref name="strauss2"/>

Before Anderson became a filmmaker, one of the jobs he had was as an assistant for a television game show, ''Quiz Kid Challenge'', an experience he incorporated into the script for ''Magnolia''.<ref name="goldstein"/> He also claimed in interviews that the film is structured somewhat like "[[A Day in the Life]]" by [[The Beatles]], and "it kind of builds up, note by note, then drops or recedes, then builds again".<ref name="strauss2"/>

===Screenplay===
By the time he started writing the script, Anderson was listening to the music of his friend [[Aimee Mann]].<ref name="patterson"/> He used her first two solo albums and demo tracks for her upcoming third album, ''[[Bachelor No. 2 or, the Last Remains of the Dodo]]'', as a basis and inspiration;<ref name="bessman">{{cite news | last = Bessman | first = Jim | title = Music Blossomed into Film | newspaper = [[Toronto Star]] | date = December 16, 1999 }}</ref> he said he "sat down to write an adaptation of Aimee Mann songs".<ref name=":32">{{Cite web |last=McLevy |first=Alex |title=Aimee Mann got cinematic with the gorgeous Magnolia soundtrack |url=https://www.avclub.com/the-magnolia-soundtrack-made-sweet-music-from-a-cinemat-1844139288 |access-date=2021-11-07 |website=The A.V. Club |date=June 25, 2020 |language=en-us |archive-date=June 27, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220627050718/https://www.avclub.com/the-magnolia-soundtrack-made-sweet-music-from-a-cinemat-1844139288 |url-status=live }}</ref> In particular, Mann's song "Deathly" inspired the character of Claudia.<ref name="bessman" /> Claudia uses part of the lyric as dialogue in the film ("Now that I've met you / Would you object to / Never seeing each other again").<ref name="patterson" /> The film also features a sequence in which the characters sing along to Mann's song "Wise Up".<ref name="patterson" />

The character of Jim Kurring originated in 1998, when [[John C. Reilly]] grew a moustache out of interest and started putting together an unintelligent cop character. He and Anderson did a few parodies of [[Cops (TV series)|''COPS'']] with Anderson chasing Reilly around the streets with a video camera. [[Jennifer Jason Leigh]] made an appearance in one of these videos. Some of Kurring's dialogue came from these sessions.<ref name="patterson" /> This time around, Reilly wanted to do something different and told Anderson that he was "always cast as these heavies or these semi-retarded child men. Can't you give me something I can relate to, like falling in love with a girl?"<ref name="braun">{{cite news | last = Braun | first = Liz | title = He Finally Gets the Girl| newspaper = [[Toronto Sun]] | date = January 11, 2000 }}</ref> Anderson also wanted to make Reilly a romantic lead because it was something different that the actor had not done before.<ref name="patterson" />

For [[Philip Seymour Hoffman]], Anderson wanted him to play a "really simple, uncomplicated, caring character".<ref name="patterson" /> Hoffman described his character as someone who "really takes pride in the fact that every day he's dealing with life and death circumstances".<ref name="prodnotes" /> With [[Julianne Moore]] in mind, Anderson wrote a role for her to play a crazed character using many pharmaceuticals. According to Moore, "Linda doesn't know who she is or what she's feeling and can only try to explain it in the most vulgar terms possible".<ref name="strauss">{{cite news | last = Strauss | first = Bob | title = Everything's Coming Up ''Magnolia''s for Actress | newspaper = [[The Globe and Mail]] | date = December 23, 1999 |ref=CITEREFStrauss19991223}}</ref> Anderson said that Linda's story was inspired by [[Ernie Anderson|his own father's]] wife.<ref name="ew">{{cite magazine |last1=Ansen |first1=David |title=Paul Thomas Anderson's film tour of L.A. |url=https://ew.com/article/2014/12/18/paul-thomas-andersons-film-tour-la/ |magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]] |access-date=29 March 2022 |archive-date=March 29, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220329184229/https://ew.com/article/2014/12/18/paul-thomas-andersons-film-tour-la/ |url-status=live }}</ref> For [[William H. Macy]], Anderson felt that Macy was scared of big, emotional parts and wrote "a big tearful, emotional part" for him.<ref name="patterson" />

While convincing [[Philip Baker Hall]] to do the film by explaining the significance of the rain of frogs, Hall told him a story about when he was in the mountains of [[Italy]] and got caught in bad weather—a mix of rain, snow and tiny frogs. Hall had to pull off the road until the storm passed.<ref name="pevere">{{cite news | last = Pevere | first = Geoff | title = Director Can Do Both Riveting and Ribbiting | newspaper = [[Toronto Star]] | date = January 23, 2000 }}</ref> According to an interview, Hall said that he based the character of Jimmy Gator on real-life TV personalities such as [[Bob Barker]] and [[Arthur Godfrey]].<ref name="dawson">{{cite news | last = Dawson | first = Tom | title = I Went from Being Anonymous to: 'Who Is This Guy We've Got To Have Him' | newspaper = [[Scotland on Sunday]] | date = March 5, 2000 }}</ref> The rain of frogs was inspired by the works of [[Charles Fort]], and Anderson claims that he was unaware that it was also a reference in [[The Bible]] when he first wrote the sequence.<ref>Adele Reinhartz, [https://books.google.com/books?id=lu-hXPqGJsMC&dq=paul+thomas+anderson+unaware+of+bible+reference+magnolia&pg=PA25 ''Scripture on the Silver Screen''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211104214300/https://books.google.com/books?id=lu-hXPqGJsMC&pg=PA25&dq=paul+thomas+anderson+unaware+of+bible+reference+magnolia#v=onepage&q=paul%20thomas%20anderson%20unaware%20of%20bible%20reference%20magnolia |date=November 4, 2021 }}, Westminster John Knox Press, 2003 p25-26</ref> At the time Anderson came across the notion of a rain of frogs, he was "going through a weird, personal time", and he started to understand "why people turn to religion in times of trouble, and maybe my form of finding religion was reading about rains of frogs and realizing that makes sense to me somehow".<ref name="konow"/>

===Casting===
[[Tom Cruise]] was a fan of Anderson's previous film, ''[[Boogie Nights]]'', and contacted Anderson while he was working on [[Stanley Kubrick]]'s ''[[Eyes Wide Shut]]'' (1999).<ref name="weinraub">{{cite news |last=Weinraub |first=Bernard |date=October 8, 1999 |title=''Boogie'' writer back in the Valley |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1999/10/08/movies/at-the-movies-boogie-writer-back-in-valley.html |url-access=subscription |access-date=July 11, 2022 |archive-date=July 11, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220711120423/https://www.nytimes.com/1999/10/08/movies/at-the-movies-boogie-writer-back-in-valley.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Anderson met with Cruise on the set of Kubrick's film and Cruise told him to keep him in mind for his next film. After Anderson finished the script, he sent Cruise a copy and the next day, Cruise called him. Cruise was interested but nervous about the role. Anderson met with Cruise along with De Luca who helped convince Cruise to do the film.<ref name="hirschberg"/> Frank T.J. Mackey, the character that Cruise would play in the film, was based in part on an audio-recording done in an engineering class taught by a friend that was given to Anderson.<ref name="konow"/> It consisted of two men, "talking all this trash" about women and quoting a man named [[Ross Jeffries]], who was teaching a new version of the [[Eric Weber (director)|Eric Weber]] course, "How to Pick Up Women," but utilizing [[hypnotism]] and [[subliminal message|subliminal]] language techniques.<ref name="konow"/> Anderson transcribed the tape and did a reading with Reilly and [[Chris Penn]].<ref name="hirschberg"/> Anderson then incorporated this dialogue and his research on Jeffries and other self-help gurus into Mackey and his sex seminar.<ref name="konow"/> Anderson felt that Cruise was drawn to the role because he had just finished making ''Eyes Wide Shut'', playing a repressed character, and was able to then play a character that was "outlandish and bigger-than-life".<ref name="strauss2"/> Anderson filmed a full-length [[infomercial]] with Cruise and even bought time on late night television to play it on.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nD45HaQCnz0 |title=Paul Thomas Anderson Made a Fake Infomercial with Tom Cruise &#124; Late Night with Conan O'Brien - YouTube |website=[[YouTube]] |date=September 28, 2021 |access-date=September 29, 2021 |archive-date=September 29, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210929232708/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nD45HaQCnz0 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Anderson wrote the role of Earl Partridge for [[Jason Robards]], but Robards could not do it due to a [[staph infection]]. After [[George C. Scott]] declined the role,<ref>{{cite news|last=Puig|first=Claudia|title=Interview: USA Today|date=January 7, 2000b|newspaper=[[USA Today]]|url=http://cigsandredvines.blogspot.com/2000/01/interview-usa-today.html|access-date=September 7, 2015|archive-date=September 27, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150927074939/http://cigsandredvines.blogspot.com/2000/01/interview-usa-today.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Robards managed to take it.<ref name="puig">{{cite news | last = Puig | first = Claudia | title = Dangerous Ground Is Paul Thomas Anderson's Turf | newspaper = [[USA Today]] | date = January 7, 2000 }}</ref> He said of his character, "It was sort of prophetic that I be asked to play a guy going out in life. It was just so right for me to do this and bring what I know to it".<ref name="prodnotes"/> According to Hall, much of the material with Partridge was based on Anderson watching his father die of cancer.<ref name="dawson"/> Anderson wanted [[Burt Reynolds]] to star in the film after working on ''Boogie Nights'', but Reynolds declined it.<ref>{{cite news|last=Ellis-Petersen|first=Hannah|title=Burt Reynolds: 'I regret turning down Greta Garbo'|date=December 3, 2015|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/dec/03/burt-reynolds-guardian-live-interview-hate-paul-thomas-anderson|access-date=March 19, 2017|archive-date=March 10, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170310104448/https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/dec/03/burt-reynolds-guardian-live-interview-hate-paul-thomas-anderson|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Filming===
Filming began on January 12, 1999, and was initially scheduled to be 79 days, but ending up lasting until June 24, 1999, making a total of 90 filming days plus 10 days of [[second unit]] filming.<ref>{{cite AV media |people=Mark Rance |date=2000 |title=Magnolia |chapter=That Moment |medium=DVD |time=55:42 |publisher=New Line Home Video, Inc. |isbn=9780780657601 |oclc=124070537}}</ref>

Anderson is known for the use of [[long take]]s in his films that move along considerable distances with complex camera movements and transitions with actors and the sets.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www2.bfi.org.uk/news-opinion/sight-sound-magazine/features/video-steadicam-progress-career-paul-thomas-anderson-five |title=Video: Steadicam progress – the career of Paul Thomas Anderson in five shots |author=Kevin B. Lee |publisher=[[British Film Institute]] |date=March 23, 2015 |access-date=April 15, 2016 |archive-date=April 16, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160416093418/http://www.bfi.org.uk/news-opinion/sight-sound-magazine/features/video-steadicam-progress-career-paul-thomas-anderson-five |url-status=live }}</ref>  Of the long takes in ''Magnolia'', the most notable may be the 2 minutes 15 seconds where character Stanley Spector arrives at the studio for a taping of ''What Do Kids Know?'', the camera seamlessly moving through multiple rooms and hallways and transitioning to follow different characters throughout the single take.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.pastemagazine.com/blogs/lists/2013/05/25-the-place-beyond-the.html |title=25 Great Extended Shots in Film History |author=Mark Rozeman |magazine=[[Paste (magazine)|Paste]] |date=May 1, 2013 |access-date=April 15, 2016 |archive-date=April 24, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160424154017/http://www.pastemagazine.com/blogs/lists/2013/05/25-the-place-beyond-the.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

For the look of the film, the production designers analyzed films with close, tight and warm color palettes and applied it to ''Magnolia''.<ref name="prodnotes"/> They also wanted to evoke the colors of the magnolia flower: greens, browns and off-whites. For the section of the prologue that is set in 1911, Anderson used a hand-cranked [[Pathé]] camera that would have been used at the time.<ref name="prodnotes"/> Some of the actors were nervous about their scene singing the lyrics to Mann's "Wise Up", so Anderson asked Moore to go first to help set the pace which everyone else followed.<ref name="patterson"/>

Anderson and New Line Cinema reportedly had intense arguments about how to market ''Magnolia''.<ref name="hirschberg"/> He felt that the studio did not do a decent enough job on ''Boogie Nights'' and did not like the studio's poster or trailer for ''Magnolia''. Anderson ended up designing his own poster, cut together a trailer himself,<ref name="hirschberg"/> wrote the liner notes for the soundtrack album, and pushed to avoid hyping Cruise's presence in the film in favor of the ensemble cast.<ref name="puig"/> Even though Anderson ultimately got his way, he realized that he had to "learn to fight without being a jerk. I was a bit of a baby. At the first moment of conflict, I behaved in a slightly adolescent knee-jerk way. I just screamed."<ref name="hirschberg"/>

==Music and soundtracks==
{{Main|Magnolia (soundtrack)|Magnolia (score)}}
Anderson met [[Aimee Mann]] in 1996 when he asked her husband, [[Michael Penn]], to write the score and songs for his film, ''[[Hard Eight (film)|Hard Eight]]''. Mann had songs on soundtracks before but never "in such an integral way", she said in an interview.<ref name="weinraub"/>{{Failed verification|date=July 2022}} She gave Anderson rough mixes of songs and found that they both wrote about the same kinds of characters.<ref name="weinraub"/>{{Failed verification|date=July 2022}} He encouraged her to write songs for the film by sending her a copy of the script.<ref name="prodnotes"/> Anderson said that "[[Simon and Garfunkel]] is to ''[[The Graduate]]'' as Aimee Mann is to ''Magnolia''".<ref name=":4">{{Cite news |last=Meter |first=Jonathan Van |date=1999-07-11 |title=What's a record exec to do with Aimee Mann? |language=en-US |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1999/07/11/magazine/what-s-a-record-exec-to-do-with-aimee-mann.html |url-access=subscription |access-date=2021-11-07 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

Two songs were written expressly for the film: "You Do", which was based on a character later cut from the film, and "Save Me", which closes the film;<ref name="bessman"/> the latter was nominated in the 2000 [[Academy Award]]s and [[Golden Globes]] and in the 2001 [[Grammys]]. Most of the remaining seven Mann songs were demos and works in progress; "Wise Up", which is at the center of a sequence in which all of the characters sing the song,<ref name="patterson"/> was originally written for the 1996 film ''[[Jerry Maguire]]''. At the time, Mann's record label had refused to release her songs on an album.<ref name="bessman"/> The song that plays at the opening of the film is Mann's cover of [[One (Harry Nilsson song)|"One"]] by [[Harry Nilsson]]. Mann's track "Momentum" is used as the loud playing music in Claudia's apartment scene when Officer Jim arrives and was also featured in the trailer for the film.

The [[Magnolia (soundtrack)|soundtrack album]], released in December 1999 on [[Reprise Records]], features the Mann songs, as well as a section of [[Jon Brion]]'s score and tracks by [[Supertramp]] and [[Gabrielle (singer)|Gabrielle]] that were used in the film. Reprise released a [[Magnolia (score)|full score album]] in March 2000.

==Reception==
===Box office===
''Magnolia'' initially opened in a [[limited release]] on December 17, 1999, in seven theaters grossing $193,604. The film was given a [[wide release]] on January 7, 2000, in 1,034 theaters grossing $5.7 million on its opening weekend. It has grossed $22.5{{nbsp}}million in the United States and Canada, and $26.0{{nbsp}}million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $48.5{{nbsp}}million, against a budget of $37{{nbsp}}million.<ref name=BOM>{{Cite Box Office Mojo |access-date=2023-07-10}}</ref>

=== Critical response ===

On the [[review aggregator]] website [[Rotten Tomatoes]], 82% of 219 critics' reviews are positive. The website's consensus reads: “An eruption of feeling that's as overwhelming as it is overwrought, Paul Thomas Anderson's ''Magnolia'' reaches a fevered crescendo and sustains it thanks to its fearlessly committed ensemble.”<ref>{{Rotten Tomatoes|title=Magnolia}}</ref> {{MC film|78|34|ref=yes|access-date=2023-07-10}} Audiences polled by [[CinemaScore]] gave the film an average grade of "C-" on an A+ to F scale.<ref name="CinemaScore">{{cite web |url= https://www.cinemascore.com/publicsearch/index/title/ |title= CinemaScore |work= cinemascore.com |access-date= |archive-date=December 20, 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20181220122629/https://www.cinemascore.com/publicsearch/index/title/ |url-status= live }}</ref>

''[[USA Today]]'' gave the film three and a half stars out of four and called it "the most imperfect of the year's best movies".<ref name="clark2">{{cite news | last = Clark | first = Mike | title = ''Magnolia'' Unfolds with Epic Boldness | work = [[USA Today]] | date = December 17, 1999 }}</ref> [[Roger Ebert]] from the ''[[Chicago Sun-Times]]'' awarded the film four stars out of four, praising it in both of his reviews from 2000 and 2008, and as his second favorite film of 1999, behind ''[[Being John Malkovich]]''. He said in the first review, "''Magnolia'' is the kind of film I instinctively respond to. Leave logic at the door. Do not expect subdued taste and restraint, but instead a kind of [[opera]]tic ecstasy".<ref name="ebert">{{cite web|last=Ebert|first=Roger|date=January 7, 2000|title=''Magnolia''|url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/magnolia-2000|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130821044853/http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/magnolia-2000|archive-date=21 August 2013|access-date=25 December 2020|work=[[RogerEbert.com]]|via=[[Chicago Sun-Times]]}}</ref> After rewatching it in 2008, he added the film to his '[[Great Movies]]' list.<ref name="ebertgm" /> ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]'' gave the film a "B+" rating, praising Cruise's performance: "It's with Cruise as Frank T.J. Mackey, a slick [[televangelist]] of [[Sexual objectification|penis power]], that the filmmaker scores his biggest success, as the actor exorcises the uptight fastidiousness of ''[[Eyes Wide Shut]]'' ... Like [[John Travolta]] in ''[[Pulp Fiction]]'', this cautiously packaged movie star is liberated by risky business".<ref name="schwarzbaum">{{cite magazine | last = Schwarzbaum | first = Lisa | title = ''Magnolia'' | magazine = [[Entertainment Weekly]] | date = December 29, 1999 | url = http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,64445,00.html | access-date = January 24, 2008 | archive-date = August 30, 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080830101001/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,64445,00.html | url-status = dead }}</ref> ''[[The Independent]]'' said that the film was "limitless. And yet some things do feel incomplete, brushed-upon, tangential. ''Magnolia'' does not have the last word on anything. But is superb".<ref name="quirke">{{cite news | last = Quirke | first = Antonia | title = I Left with that Strange Feeling You Get When You've Witnessed a Genuine Act of Courage | work = [[The Independent]] | date = March 19, 2000 }}</ref> [[Kenneth Turan]], in his review for the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'', praised Tom Cruise's performance: "Mackey gives Cruise the chance to cut loose by doing amusing riffs on his charismatic superstar image. It's great fun, expertly written and performed, and all the more enjoyable because the self-parody element is unexpected".<ref name="turan">{{cite news|last=Turan |first=Kenneth |title=''Magnolia'' |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=April 6, 2000 |url=http://www.calendarlive.com/movies/reviews/cl-movie000406-90,0,1163360.story |access-date=August 31, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090928065941/http://www.calendarlive.com/movies/reviews/cl-movie000406-90%2C0%2C1163360.story |archive-date=September 28, 2009 }}</ref> In his review for ''[[The New York Observer]]'', [[Andrew Sarris]] wrote, "In the case of ''Magnolia'', I think Mr. Anderson has taken us to the water's edge without plunging in. I admire his ambition and his very eloquent camera movements, but if I may garble something Lenin once said one last time, 'You can't make an omelet without breaking some eggs'."<ref name="sarris">{{cite news | last = Sarris | first = Andrew | title = A Day in the Life of L.A.: Where's the Rough Stuff? | work = [[The New York Observer]] | date = January 23, 2000 | url = http://www.observer.com/node/42470 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080808182131/http://www.observer.com/node/42470 | url-status = dead | archive-date = August 8, 2008 | access-date = August 31, 2010 }}</ref>

In her review for ''[[The New York Times]]'', [[Janet Maslin]] wrote, "But when that group sing-along arrives, ''Magnolia'' begins to self-destruct spectacularly. It's astonishing to see a film begin this brilliantly only to torpedo itself in its final hour," but went on to say that the film "was saved from its worst, most reductive ideas by the intimacy of the performances and the deeply felt distress signals given off by the cast".<ref name="maslin">{{cite news | last = Maslin, Janet | author-link = Janet Maslin | title = Entangled Lives on the Cusp of the Millennium | work = [[The New York Times]] | date = December 17, 1999 | url = https://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=940CE3DD1430F934A25751C1A96F958260 | access-date = January 24, 2008 | archive-date = November 4, 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20211104214301/https://www.nytimes.com/1999/12/17/movies/film-review-entangled-lives-on-the-cusp-of-the-millennium.html | url-status = live }}</ref> Philip French, in his review for ''[[The Observer]]'', wrote, "But is the joyless universe he (Anderson) presents any more convincing than the Pollyanna optimism of traditional [[sitcom]]s? These lives are somehow too stunted and pathetic to achieve the level of [[tragedy]]".<ref name="french">{{cite news | last = French | first = Philip | title = Magnolia | work = [[The Observer]] | date = March 19, 2000 | url = https://www.theguardian.com/film/News_Story/Critic_Review/Observer_review/0,,148600,00.html | access-date = February 26, 2011 | location = London | archive-date = March 6, 2011 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110306171732/http://film.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/Critic_Review/Observer_review/0,,148600,00.html | url-status = live }}</ref> The ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' critic [[Richard Schickel]] wrote: "The result is a hard-striving, convoluted movie, which never quite becomes the smoothly reciprocating engine Anderson (who did ''Boogie Nights'') would like it to be."<ref name="schickel">{{cite magazine | last = Schickel | first = Richard | title = ''Magnolia'' | magazine = [[Time (magazine)|Time]] | date = December 27, 1999 | url = http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,992979,00.html | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080307073054/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,992979,00.html | url-status = dead | archive-date = March 7, 2008 | access-date = August 31, 2010 }}</ref>

In an interview, [[Ingmar Bergman]] mentioned ''Magnolia'' as an example of the "strength of American cinema".<ref>{{cite news|title=EuroScreenwriters – Interviews with European Film Directors – Ingmar Bergman|url=http://zakka.dk/euroscreenwriters/interviews/ingmar_bergman_03.htm|work=Sydsvenskan|access-date=March 5, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160826082557/http://zakka.dk/euroscreenwriters/interviews/ingmar_bergman_03.htm|archive-date=August 26, 2016|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref> [[Roger Ebert]] included the work in his "Great Movies" list in November 2008, saying, "As an act of filmmaking, it draws us in and doesn't let go."<ref name="ebertgm">{{cite news |last=Ebert |first=Roger |date=November 27, 2008 |title=''Magnolia'' |url=http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081127/REVIEWS08/811279997 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081202103316/http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F20081127%2FREVIEWS08%2F811279997 |archive-date=December 2, 2008 |access-date=November 28, 2008 |work=[[Chicago Sun-Times]] |via=[[RogerEbert.com]] |authorlink=Roger Ebert}}</ref> ''[[Total Film]]'' magazine placed it at number 4 in their list of 50 Best Movies in Total Film's lifetime.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=John |first=Anthony |url=http://www.totalfilm.com/features/50-best-movies-of-total-film-magazine-s-lifetime/magnolia-1999 |title=GamesRadar |magazine=Total Film |date=September 11, 2014 |access-date=October 20, 2016 |archive-date=October 7, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141007191409/http://www.totalfilm.com/features/50-best-movies-of-total-film-magazine-s-lifetime/magnolia-1999 |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2008, it was named the 89th greatest movie of all time by ''[[Empire (magazine)|Empire]]'' magazine in its issue of ''The 500 Greatest Movies of All Time''.<ref>{{cite news |publisher=Empire Magazine |title=Empire's 500 Greatest Movies of All Time |date=January 5, 2014 |url=http://www.empireonline.com/500/35.asp |access-date=January 5, 2014 |archive-date=October 19, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121019215354/http://www.empireonline.com/500/35.asp |url-status=live }}</ref> It received eight votes – five from critics and three from directors – in the [[British Film Institute]]'s 2012 ''[[Sight & Sound]]'' polls.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b81fe24cb/sightandsoundpoll2012 |title=Votes for Magnolia (1999) |publisher=British Film Institute |access-date=December 16, 2016 |archive-date=December 21, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161221003741/http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b81fe24cb/sightandsoundpoll2012 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Following the film's release, Anderson said: "I really feel ... That ''Magnolia'' is, for better or worse, the best movie I'll ever make."<ref>P. T. Anderson, quoted at [http://www.theyshootpictures.com/andersonpaulthomas.htm They Shoot Pictures, Don't They?] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927184357/http://www.theyshootpictures.com/andersonpaulthomas.htm |date=September 27, 2011 }}</ref> Later he came to consider it overlong;<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2015/01/06/when-david-foster-wallace-taught-paul-thomas-anderson/|title=When David Foster Wallace Taught Paul Thomas Anderson|last=Piepenbring|first=Dan|magazine=The Paris Review|date=January 6, 2015|access-date=August 11, 2017|archive-date=July 5, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170705122913/https://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2015/01/06/when-david-foster-wallace-taught-paul-thomas-anderson/|url-status=live}}</ref> when asked in an interview what he would tell himself to do if he could go back to when he shot the film, his response was "Chill The Fuck Out and Cut Twenty Minutes."<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/7quthe/im_paul_thomas_anderson_writer_and_director_of/dss3g5x/|title= I'm Paul Thomas Anderson, Writer and Director of PHANTOM THREAD, AMA!|author= <!--Not stated-->|website= Reddit|date= January 16, 2018|access-date= July 13, 2018|archive-date= July 1, 2020|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200701120426/https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/7quthe/im_paul_thomas_anderson_writer_and_director_of/dss3g5x|url-status= live}}</ref>

===Accolades===
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders"
|-
! Award
! Category
! Nominee(s)
! Result
! {{Ref heading}}
|-
| rowspan="3"| [[72nd Academy Awards|Academy Awards]]
| [[Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor|Best Supporting Actor]]
| [[Tom Cruise]]
| {{nom}}
| align="center" rowspan="3"| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/2000 |title=Nominees & Winners for the 72nd Academy Awards |publisher=[[Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences]] |access-date=January 3, 2014 |archive-date=April 2, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402003006/http://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/2000 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| [[Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay|Best Screenplay – Written Directly for the Screen]]
| [[Paul Thomas Anderson]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Academy Award for Best Original Song|Best Original Song]]
| "[[Save Me (Aimee Mann song)|Save Me]]" <br> Music and Lyrics by [[Aimee Mann]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| rowspan="2"| [[50th Berlin International Film Festival|Berlin International Film Festival]]
| [[Golden Bear]]
| rowspan="2"| Paul Thomas Anderson
| {{won}}
| align="center" rowspan="2"| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.berlinale.de/en/archive/jahresarchive/2000/03_preistraeger_2000/03_preistraeger_2000.html |title=Berlinale: 2000 Prize Winners |access-date=January 8, 2012 |publisher=[[Berlin International Film Festival]] |archive-date=December 23, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191223140649/https://www.berlinale.de/en/archive/jahresarchive/2000/03_preistraeger_2000/03_preistraeger_2000.html |url-status=live }}</ref> <br> <ref>{{cite news |last=Malcolm |first=Derek |title=''Magnolia'' Blossoms |work=[[The Guardian]] |date=February 21, 2000}}</ref>
|-
| Reader Jury of the "Berliner Morgenpost"
| {{won}}
|-
| rowspan="2"| [[6th Blockbuster Entertainment Awards|Blockbuster Entertainment Awards]]
| Favorite Supporting Actor – Drama
| Tom Cruise
| {{won}}
| align="center" rowspan="2"| 
|-
| Favorite Supporting Actress – Drama
| [[Julianne Moore]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[54th Bodil Awards|Bodil Awards]]
| colspan="2"| [[Bodil Award for Best American Film|Best American Film]]
| {{nom}}
| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bodilprisen.dk/aar-for-aar/2001-2/ |title=Bodil Prize 2001 |publisher=[[Bodil Awards]] |access-date=October 4, 2023 |archive-date=September 23, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230923205823/https://www.bodilprisen.dk/aar-for-aar/2001-2/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| rowspan="4"| [[Chicago Film Critics Association Awards 1999|Chicago Film Critics Association Awards]]
| colspan="2"| [[Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Film|Best Film]]
| {{nom}}
| align="center" rowspan="4"| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://chicagofilmcritics.org/awards-blog/archives |title=1988-2013 Award Winner Archives |publisher=[[Chicago Film Critics Association]] |date=January 2013 |access-date=August 24, 2021 |archive-date=April 10, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210410183233/https://chicagofilmcritics.org/awards-blog/archives |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| [[Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Director|Best Director]]
| rowspan="2"| Paul Thomas Anderson
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Screenplay|Best Screenplay]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor|Best Supporting Actor]]
| Tom Cruise
| {{won}}
|-
| rowspan="4"| [[Chlotrudis Awards]]
| colspan="2"| Best Movie
| {{nom}}
| align="center" rowspan="4"| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://chlotrudis.org/awards/past-awards/2000-6th-annual-awards/ |title=6th Annual Chlotrudis Awards |publisher=[[Chlotrudis Society for Independent Films]] |access-date=April 23, 2022 |archive-date=November 9, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191109044256/https://chlotrudis.org/awards/past-awards/2000-6th-annual-awards/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| Best Director
| Paul Thomas Anderson
| {{nom}}
|-
| Best Supporting Actor
| [[Philip Seymour Hoffman]] {{small|(also for ''[[The Talented Mr. Ripley (film)|The Talented Mr. Ripley]]'')}}
| {{won}}
|-
| Best Cinematography
| [[Robert Elswit]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[5th Critics' Choice Awards|Critics' Choice Awards]]
| colspan="2"| [[Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Picture|Best Picture]]
| {{nom}}
| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bfca.org/ccawards/1999.php |title=The BFCA Critics' Choice Awards :: 1999 |publisher=[[Broadcast Film Critics Association]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081212034358/http://www.bfca.org/ccawards/1999.php |url-status=dead |archive-date=December 12, 2008}}</ref>
|-
| [[Dallas–Fort Worth Film Critics Association Awards 1999|Dallas–Fort Worth Film Critics Association Awards]]
| colspan="2"| [[Dallas–Fort Worth Film Critics Association Award for Best Film|Best Picture]]
| {{nom}}
| align="center"| 
|-
| rowspan="2"| [[6th Empire Awards|Empire Awards]]
| colspan="2"| [[Empire Award for Best Film|Best Film]]
| {{nom}}
| align="center" rowspan="2"| 
|-
| [[Empire Award for Best Director|Best Director]]
| Paul Thomas Anderson
| {{nom}}
|-
| rowspan="2"| [[Florida Film Critics Circle Awards 1999|Florida Film Critics Circle Awards]]
| colspan="2"| [[Florida Film Critics Circle Award for Best Film|Best Film]]
| {{won}}
| align="center" rowspan="2"| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.floridafilmcritics.com/2013/11/16/1999-ffcc-winners/ |title=1999 FFCC AWARD WINNERS |publisher=[[Florida Film Critics Circle]] |access-date=August 24, 2021 |archive-date=August 24, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210824080736/http://www.floridafilmcritics.com/2013/11/16/1999-ffcc-winners/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| colspan="2"| [[Florida Film Critics Circle Award for Best Cast|Best Ensemble]]
| {{won}}
|-
| rowspan="2"| [[57th Golden Globe Awards|Golden Globe Awards]]
| [[Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture]]
| Tom Cruise
| {{won}}
| align="center" rowspan="2"| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.goldenglobes.com/film/magnolia |title=Magnolia |publisher=[[Golden Globe Awards]] |access-date=July 5, 2021 |archive-date=June 18, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210618234453/https://www.goldenglobes.com/film/magnolia |url-status=live }}</ref> <br> <ref>{{cite news |last=Lyman |first=Rick |title= ''American Beauty'' Wins 3 Golden Globe Awards |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=January 24, 2000}}</ref>
|-
| [[Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song|Best Original Song – Motion Picture]]
| "Save Me" <br> Music and Lyrics by Aimee Mann
| {{nom}}
|-
| rowspan="3"| [[43rd Annual Grammy Awards|Grammy Awards]]
| [[Grammy Award for Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media|Best Compilation Soundtrack Album for a Motion Picture, Television or <br> Other Visual Media]]
| ''[[Magnolia (soundtrack)|Magnolia: Music from the Motion Picture]]'' – Aimee Mann
| {{nom}}
| align="center" rowspan="3"| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.grammy.com/awards/43rd-annual-grammy-awards |title=43rd Annual GRAMMY Awards |publisher=[[Grammy Awards]] |access-date=May 1, 2011 |archive-date=July 14, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220714000403/https://www.grammy.com/awards/43rd-annual-grammy-awards |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| [[Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media|Best Score Soundtrack Album for a Motion Picture, Television or <br> Other Visual Media]]
| ''[[Magnolia (score)|Magnolia]]'' – [[Jon Brion]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media]]
| "Save Me" – Aimee Mann
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[2nd Grande Prêmio Cinema Brasil|Grand Prix Cinema Brazil]]
| Best Foreign Language Film
| rowspan="2"| Paul Thomas Anderson
| {{nom}}
| align="center"| 
|-
| [[Guldbagge Awards]]
| [[Guldbagge Award for Best Foreign Film|Best Foreign Film]]
| {{won}}
| align="center"| 
|-
| rowspan="3"| Las Vegas Film Critics Society Awards
| colspan="2"| Best Picture
| {{nom}}
| align="center" rowspan="3"| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lvfcs.org/sierra-award-winners.html |title=Previous Sierra Award Winners |publisher=Las Vegas Film Critics Society |access-date=May 15, 2021 |archive-date=December 30, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211230182349/http://www.lvfcs.org/awards.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| Best Original Song
| "Save Me" <br> Music and Lyrics by Aimee Mann
| {{nom}}
|-
| colspan="2"| Best DVD
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[London Film Critics Circle Awards 2000|London Film Critics Circle Awards]]
| [[London Film Critics' Circle Award for Screenwriter of the Year|Screenwriter of the Year]]
| Paul Thomas Anderson
| {{nom}}
| align="center"| 
|-
| [[2000 MTV Video Music Awards|MTV Video Music Awards]]
| [[Best Video from a Film]]
| Aimee Mann – "Save Me"
| {{nom}}
| align="center"| 
|-
| rowspan="2"| [[Nastro d'Argento]]
| Best Foreign Director
| Paul Thomas Anderson
| {{won}}
| align="center" rowspan="2"| 
|-
| Best Male Dubbing
| [[Roberto Chevalier]] {{small|(for dubbing Tom Cruise)}}
| {{nom}}
|-
| rowspan="4"| [[National Board of Review Awards 1999|National Board of Review Awards]]
| colspan="2"| [[National Board of Review: Top Ten Films|Top Ten Films]]
| {{draw|3rd Place}}
| align="center" rowspan="4"| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://nationalboardofreview.org/award-years/1999/ |title=1999 Award Winners |publisher=[[National Board of Review]] |access-date=July 5, 2021 |archive-date=June 30, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630134921/https://nationalboardofreview.org/award-years/1999/ |url-status=live }}</ref> <br> <ref name="strauss2"/>
|-
| [[National Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actor|Best Supporting Actor]]
| Philip Seymour Hoffman {{small|(also for ''[[The Talented Mr. Ripley (film)|The Talented Mr. Ripley]]'')}}
| {{won}}
|-
| [[National Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actress|Best Supporting Actress]]
| Julianne Moore {{small|(also for ''[[A Map of the World]]'', ''[[Cookie's Fortune]]'', <br> and ''[[An Ideal Husband (1999 film)|An Ideal Husband]]'')}}
| {{won}}
|-
| colspan="2"| [[National Board of Review Award for Best Cast|Best Acting by an Ensemble]]
| {{won}}
|-
| rowspan="2"| [[1999 National Society of Film Critics Awards|National Society of Film Critics Awards]]
| [[National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor|Best Supporting Actor]]
| Philip Seymour Hoffman {{small|(also for ''[[The Talented Mr. Ripley (film)|The Talented Mr. Ripley]]'')}}
| {{draw|2nd Place}}
| align="center" rowspan="2"| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://nationalsocietyoffilmcritics.com/about-2/ |title=Past Awards |publisher=[[National Society of Film Critics]] |date=December 19, 2009 |access-date=July 5, 2021 |archive-date=May 31, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150531032303/https://nationalsocietyoffilmcritics.com/about-2/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| [[National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress|Best Supporting Actress]]
| Julianne Moore {{small|(also for ''[[A Map of the World]]'' and ''[[An Ideal Husband (1999 film)|An Ideal Husband]]'')}}
| {{draw|2nd Place}}
|-
| rowspan="11"| Online Film & Television Association Awards
| Best Picture
| [[JoAnne Sellar]] and Paul Thomas Anderson
| {{nom}}
| align="center" rowspan="11"| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.oftaawards.com/film-awards/4th-annual-film-awards-1999/ |title=4th Annual Film Awards (1999) |publisher=Online Film & Television Association |access-date=May 15, 2021 |archive-date=May 9, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210509083541/http://www.oftaawards.com/film-awards/4th-annual-film-awards-1999/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| Best Director
| Paul Thomas Anderson
| {{nom}}
|-
| Best Supporting Actor
| Tom Cruise
| {{won}}
|-
| Best Supporting Actress
| Julianne Moore
| {{won}}
|-
| Best Youth Performance
| [[Jeremy Blackman]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| Best Original Screenplay
| Paul Thomas Anderson
| {{nom}}
|-
| Best Original Song
| "Save Me" <br> Music and Lyrics by Aimee Mann
| {{nom}}
|-
| Best Adapted Song
| "[[One (Harry Nilsson song)|One]]" <br> Music and Lyrics by [[Harry Nilsson]]
| {{won}}
|-
| Best Casting
| Cassandra Kulukundis
| {{nom}}
|-
| colspan="2"| Best Ensemble
| {{won}}
|-
| Best Cinematic Moment
| "[[Frog]]s"
| {{nom}}
|-
| rowspan="4"| [[Online Film Critics Society Awards 1999|Online Film Critics Society Awards]] {{small|(1999)}}
| colspan="2"| Top 10 Films
| {{draw|6th Place}}
| align="center" rowspan="4"| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://ofcs.org/awards/1999-awards-3rd-annual/ |title=1999 Awards (3rd Annual) |publisher=[[Online Film Critics Society]] |date=January 3, 2012 |access-date=November 21, 2021 |archive-date=August 17, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210817155808/https://ofcs.org/awards/1999-awards-3rd-annual/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| [[Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actress|Best Supporting Actress]]
| Julianne Moore
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Screenplay|Best Screenplay]]
| Paul Thomas Anderson
| {{nom}}
|-
| colspan="2"| [[Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Cast|Best Ensemble]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Online Film Critics Society Awards 2000|Online Film Critics Society Awards]] {{small|(2000)}}
| colspan="2"| [[Online Film Critics Society Award for Best DVD|Best DVD]]
| {{nom}}
| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://ofcs.org/awards/2000-awards-4th-annual/ |title=2000 Awards (4th Annual) |publisher=[[Online Film Critics Society]] |date=January 3, 2012 |access-date=November 21, 2021 |archive-date=January 21, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130121121646/https://ofcs.org/awards/2000-awards-4th-annual/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| [[18th Robert Awards|Robert Awards]]
| [[Robert Award for Best American Film|Best American Film]]
| rowspan="2"| Paul Thomas Anderson
| {{nom}}
| align="center"| 
|-
| [[San Sebastián International Film Festival]]
| Film of the Year
| {{won}}
| align="center"| 
|-
| rowspan="6"| [[4th Golden Satellite Awards|Satellite Awards]]
| colspan="2"| [[Satellite Award for Best Film|Best Motion Picture – Drama]]
| {{nom}}
| align="center" rowspan="6"| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.pressacademy.com/award_cat/2000/ |title=2000 Satellite Awards |publisher=[[Satellite Awards]] |access-date=August 24, 2021 |archive-date=April 29, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200429122404/https://www.pressacademy.com/award_cat/2000/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| [[Satellite Award for Best Director|Best Director]]
| Paul Thomas Anderson
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture|Best Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama]]
| Tom Cruise
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Satellite Award for Best Original Screenplay|Best Screenplay – Original]]
| Paul Thomas Anderson
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Satellite Award for Best Original Song|Best Original Song]]
| "Save Me" <br> Music and Lyrics by Aimee Mann
| {{nom}}
|-
| colspan="2"| [[Satellite Award for Best Cast – Motion Picture|Outstanding Motion Picture Ensemble]]
| {{won}}
|-
| rowspan="3"| [[6th Screen Actors Guild Awards|Screen Actors Guild Awards]]
| [[Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture|Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture]]
| Jeremy Blackman, Tom Cruise, [[Melinda Dillon]], April Grace, <br> [[Luis Guzmán]], [[Philip Baker Hall]], Philip Seymour Hoffman, <br> [[Ricky Jay]], [[William H. Macy]], [[Alfred Molina]], Julianne Moore, <br> [[John C. Reilly]], [[Jason Robards]], and [[Melora Walters]]
| {{nom}}
| align="center" rowspan="3"| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sagawards.org/awards/nominees-and-recipients/6th-annual-screen-actors-guild-awards |title=The 6th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards |publisher=[[Screen Actors Guild Awards]] |access-date=May 21, 2016 |archive-date=November 1, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111101204346/http://www.sagawards.org/awards/nominees-and-recipients/6th-annual-screen-actors-guild-awards |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| [[Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role]]
| Tom Cruise
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role]]
| Julianne Moore
| {{nom}}
|-
| rowspan="2"| [[1999 Stinkers Bad Movie Awards|Stinkers Bad Movie Awards]]
| Worst On-Screen Hairstyle (Male)
| Tom Cruise
| {{nom}}
| align="center" rowspan="2"| <ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.thestinkers.com/pr_winners99.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020217144540/http://www.thestinkers.com/pr_winners99.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 17, 2002 |title=Press Release - Stinkers 1999 Winners |date=February 17, 2002}}</ref>
|-
| colspan="2"| Most Intrusive Musical Score
| {{nom}}
|-
| rowspan="3"| [[Toronto Film Critics Association Awards 1999|Toronto Film Critics Association Awards]]
| colspan="2"| [[Toronto Film Critics Association Award for Best Film|Best Film]]
| {{won}}
| align="center" rowspan="3"| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://torontofilmcritics.com/past-award-winners/ |title=Past Award Winners |publisher=[[Toronto Film Critics Association]] |date=May 29, 2014 |access-date=August 24, 2021 |archive-date=December 23, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181223152030/https://torontofilmcritics.com/past-award-winners/ |url-status=live }}</ref> <br> <ref>{{cite news |title=Toronto Critics Pick ''Magnolia'' as Best Film of 1999 |work=[[The Globe and Mail]] |date=December 17, 1999}}</ref>
|-
| [[Toronto Film Critics Association Award for Best Director|Best Director]]
| rowspan="2"| Paul Thomas Anderson
| {{won}}
|-
| [[Toronto Film Critics Association Award for Best Screenplay|Best Screenplay]]
| {{won}}{{efn|Tied with [[Charlie Kaufman]] for ''[[Being John Malkovich]]''.}}
|-
| [[Turkish Film Critics Association Awards]]
| colspan="2"| Best Foreign Film
| {{draw|7th Place}}
| align="center"| 
|-
| [[Village Voice Film Poll]]
| colspan="2"| Best Film
| {{draw|8th Place}}
| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://mubi.com/awards-and-festivals/village-voice?year=1999 |title=1999 Village Voice Film Poll |publisher=[[Mubi (streaming service)|Mubi]] |access-date=July 5, 2021 |archive-date=May 8, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210508173053/https://mubi.com/awards-and-festivals/village-voice?year=1999 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| [[52nd Writers Guild of America Awards|Writers Guild of America Awards]]
| [[Writers Guild of America Award for Best Original Screenplay|Best Screenplay – Written Directly for the Screen]]
| Paul Thomas Anderson
| {{nom}}
| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wga.org/awards/awardssub.aspx?id=1551 |title=Awards Winners |date= |publisher=[[Writers Guild of America Awards]] |archive-url=https://archive.today/20121205095022/http://www.wga.org/awards/awardssub.aspx?id=1551 |archive-date=2012-12-05 |access-date=2010-06-06}}</ref>
|-
| [[21st Youth in Film Awards|Young Artist Awards]]
| [[Young Artist Award for Best Leading Young Actor in a Feature Film|Best Performance in a Feature Film – Leading Young Actor]]
| Jeremy Blackman
| {{nom}}
| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.youngartistawards.org/noms21.htm |title=21st Annual Young Artist Awards |access-date=2011-03-31 |publisher=[[Young Artist Award]]s |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120719182252/http://www.youngartistawards.org/noms21.htm |archive-date=2012-07-19}}</ref>
|}

* In 2004, the [[American Film Institute]] nominated the song "[[Save Me (Aimee Mann song)|Save Me]]" from this film for [[AFI's 100 Years ... 100 Songs]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.afi.com/Docs/100Years/songs400.pdf |title=AFI's 100 Years ... 100 Songs Nominees |access-date=August 14, 2016 |archive-date=April 17, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150417023552/http://afi.com/Docs/100Years/songs400.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Themes==
Essays have been written on the [[Theme (literature)|theme]]s in ''Magnolia'',<ref>{{cite web |author=Richard Stanwick |url=http://cinetext.philo.at/magazine/stanwick/magnolia.html |title=Richard Stanwick: Magnolia |publisher=Cinetext.philo.at |date=February 25, 2003 |access-date=September 5, 2012 |archive-date=June 1, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130601043107/http://cinetext.philo.at/magazine/stanwick/magnolia.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.killermovies.com/m/magnolia/reviews/d2k.html |title=Magnolia Movie Review |publisher=Killermovies.com |access-date=September 5, 2012 |archive-date=May 27, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130527040312/http://www.killermovies.com/m/magnolia/reviews/d2k.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20000107/REVIEWS/1070303/1023 |title=Magnolia :: rogerebert.com :: Reviews |publisher=Rogerebert.suntimes.com |date=January 7, 2000 |access-date=September 5, 2012 |archive-date=March 9, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130309081229/http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F20000107%2FREVIEWS%2F1070303%2F1023 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |author=Magnolia and Meaning |url=http://www.culturesnob.net/2003/09/magnolia-and-meaning/ |title=Magnolia and Meaning &#124; Movies |date=September 8, 2003 |publisher=Culture Snob |access-date=September 5, 2012 |archive-date=January 31, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130131031445/http://www.culturesnob.net/2003/09/magnolia-and-meaning/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |last=Ramlow |first=Todd |url=http://www.popmatters.com/pm/review/magnolia1/ |title=Magnolia (1999) |magazine=PopMatters |access-date=September 5, 2012 |archive-date=August 22, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120822035705/http://www.popmatters.com/pm/review/magnolia1 |url-status=live }}</ref> such as regret; loneliness;<ref name="weinraub"/> the cost of failed relationships as a result of parents, particularly fathers, who have failed their children;<ref name="field">{{cite news | last = Field | first = Syd | title = ''Magnolia'': An Appreciation | publisher = SydField.com | url = http://www.sydfield.com/featured_magnolia.htm | access-date = January 22, 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080214002243/http://sydfield.com/featured_magnolia.htm | archive-date = February 14, 2008 | url-status = dead | df = mdy-all }}</ref> and cruelty to children and its lasting effect (as demonstrated by the sexual assault perpetrated on Claudia by Jimmy).<ref name="ebertgm"/>

===Raining frogs and Exodus (Bible) reference===
{{Further|Raining animals}}
At the end of the film, [[frog]]s rain from the sky. Throughout the film, there are references to the [[Book of Exodus]] 8:2 "And if thou refuse to let them go, behold, I will [[Plagues of Egypt#Frogs2ndPlague|smite all thy borders with frogs]]."

The film has an underlying theme of unexplained events, taken from the 1920s and 1930s works of [[Charles Fort]]. Fortean author [[Loren Coleman]]'s 2001 book "Mysterious America: The Revised Edition" includes a chapter entitled "The Teleporting Animals and ''Magnolia''", addressing the film.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://lorencoleman.com/books-by-loren-coleman/ |title=Books by Loren Coleman |publisher=The Cryptozoologist : Loren Coleman |date=2012 |access-date=February 8, 2016 |archive-date=February 15, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160215225927/http://lorencoleman.com/books-by-loren-coleman/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The chapter discusses how one of Fort's books is visible on the table in the library and the film's end credit thanking Charles Fort.<ref name="coleman">{{cite book | last=Coleman | first=Loren | title=Mysterious America: The Ultimate Guide to the Nation's Weirdest Wonders, Strangest Spots, and Creepiest Creatures | publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]] | year=2007}}</ref>

The only character who seems to be unsurprised by the falling frogs is Stanley. He calmly observes the event, saying, "This happens. This is something that happens." This has led to the speculation that Stanley is a [[prophet]], [[allegorically]] akin to [[Moses]], and that the "[[slavery]]" to which the film alludes is the exploitation of children by adults.<ref name="hipps">{{cite web | last=Hipps | first=Shane | title=''Magnolia'': The Exodus for Kids | publisher=Metaphilm | date=May 9, 2003 | url=http://metaphilm.com/philm.php?id=96_0_2_0 | access-date=January 23, 2008 | archive-date=December 14, 2007 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071214230952/http://metaphilm.com/philm.php?id=96_0_2_0 | url-status=live }}</ref> These "father issues" persist throughout the film, as seen in the abuse and neglect of Claudia, Frank, Donnie, Stanley, and Dixon.<ref name="pta">{{cite book | last=Anderson | first=Paul Thomas | title=The Paul Thomas Anderson Shooting Script Set: ''Magnolia'' and ''Punch-Drunk Love'' | publisher=[[Newmarket Press]] | date=January 26, 2004}}</ref>

==Home media==
The [[DVD]] release includes a lengthy behind-the-scenes [[documentary]], ''That Moment''.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Lussier|first1=Germain|title=Watch: 'That Moment,' A 72 Minute Documentary on P.T. Anderson's 'Magnolia'|url=http://www.slashfilm.com/72-minute-magnolia-documentary/|website=[[/Film]]|access-date=July 3, 2016|date=July 8, 2014|archive-date=September 16, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160916025454/http://www.slashfilm.com/72-minute-magnolia-documentary/|url-status=live}}</ref>

==See also==
* {{anl|Fragile masculinity}}
* {{anl|Synchronicity}}
* {{anl|Transgenerational trauma}}

==Notes==
{{Noteslist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

== Further reading ==
*{{Cite news |last=Nicholson |first=Amy |date=2024-08-27 |title=The Year Tom Cruise Gave Not One but Two Dangerously Vulnerable Performances |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/08/27/movies/tom-cruise-eyes-wide-shut-magnolia.html |access-date=2024-08-29 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |url-access=subscription}}

==External links==
{{sisterlinks|d=yes|display=''Magnolia''|q=Magnolia (film)|c=Category:Magnolia (film)|n=no|b=no|v=no|voy=no|m=no|mw=no|wikt=no|s=no|species=no|f=no}}
* {{IMDb title}}
* [https://www.avclub.com/the-best-and-worst-of-magnolia-s-multiple-melodramas-1836941555 The Best and Worst of ''Magnolia''’s Multiple Melodramas] from ''[[The A.V. Club]]''

{{Paul Thomas Anderson}}
{{Navboxes 
|title = Awards for ''Magnolia''
|list =
{{Florida Film Critics Circle Award for Best Film}}
{{Florida Film Critics Circle Award for Best Cast}}
{{Golden Bear 2000-2019}}
{{Guldbagge Award Best Foreign Film}}
{{National Board of Review Award for Best Cast}}
{{Satellite Award for Best Cast – Motion Picture}}
{{TFCA Award for Best Film}}
}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Magnolia}}
[[Category:1999 films]]
[[Category:1999 drama films]]
[[Category:Aimee Mann]]
[[Category:American drama films]]
[[Category:Best Foreign Film Guldbagge Award winners]]
[[Category:1990s French-language films]]
[[Category:1990s German-language films]]
[[Category:Films about cancer in the United States]]
[[Category:Films about death]]
[[Category:Films about depression]]
[[Category:Films about dysfunctional families]]
[[Category:Films directed by Paul Thomas Anderson]]
[[Category:Films featuring a Best Supporting Actor Golden Globe winning performance]]
[[Category:Films scored by Jon Brion]]
[[Category:Films set in Los Angeles]]
[[Category:Films set in the San Fernando Valley]]
[[Category:Films shot in Los Angeles]]
[[Category:Films with screenplays by Paul Thomas Anderson]]
[[Category:Golden Bear winners]]
[[Category:Hyperlink films]]
[[Category:Films about incest]]
[[Category:New Line Cinema films]]
[[Category:1990s English-language films]]
[[Category:1990s American films]]
[[Category:American psychological drama films]]
[[Category:1990s psychological drama films]]