The Film Fatale • Posts Tagged ‘The Master’

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The Master (2012)

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The Master (2012)

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MONDO POSTER: “The Master”
the folks at Mondo are trotting out funky posters for all of this year’s Best Picture nominees. they’ve previewed a couple, but the rest will roll out during the show. of the first three, “The Master” is the one i dug the most.
FILM.COM

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MONDO POSTER: “The Master”

the folks at Mondo are trotting out funky posters for all of this year’s Best Picture nominees. they’ve previewed a couple, but the rest will roll out during the show. of the first three, “The Master” is the one i dug the most.

FILM.COM

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THE MASTER (2012)
[[MORE]]Paul Thomas Anderson’s The Master is perhaps one of the most visually striking films I’ve seen to date. The film centers around Freddie Quell (Joaquin Phoenix), a disturbed Navy sailor whose aimless and untamed life captures the attention of a charismatic leader of a group known as The Cause. The Cause believes in, among other things, time travel, and the idea that the human body is merely a vessel for souls that are trillions of years old (even though the Earth itself, pointed out by one skeptic at a Cause party, is a mere few billion years old). Lancaster Dodd (Philip Seymour Hoffman) is the founder of this group. A self-described writer, doctor, theoretical philosopher, nuclear physicist and above all, a man, Lancaster Dodd holds a fascination for seeking to return man to his natural state of perfect. This natural state of perfect entails taking control of one’s emotions and being perpetually aware that man is not an animal, and that he is not a slave to the base whims of the id. Dodd’s self-appointed mission to fix people for the greater good of society draws him to Freddie, whose mood swings and drunken antics scream “project!” to the self-important leader. As such, he takes Freddie in and conducts a series of experiments - called “informal processing” - that are designed to get to the root of the cause of Freddie’s erratic behavior.
I thought The Master was an interesting story and one that was told in a visually impressive manner. Not only were the performances by Phoenix, Hoffman and Amy Adams phenomenal, but Paul Thomas Anderson’s ambitious direction really paid off in a film that will surely keep people talking. Anderson seems to be developing a style that is almost Kubrickian as he releases more and more films. Stanley Kubrick is well known in the industry for his love of symmetry in film, and Anderson certainly seems to be taking his cue from someone many consider The master of visual technique. There Will Be Blood was an early testament to what the filmmaker could do with a period piece, but with lovely cinematography that consisted of breathtaking wide shots of landscape and striking coloring, The Master contains all of these aforementioned elements and then some. Not only were there several perfectly symmetrical shots, but the first shot of the film - of crystal blue green ocean waves frothing and splashing in the midday sun - took my breath away in its composition and depth. Anderson’s choice to shoot the film in 70mm, something a lot of people thought was a gimmick, made an absolute difference in making the film look so unique and interesting. Everything seemed bigger, clearer, more pronounced. I found myself looking at everything on the screen that seemed to be painted in much greater detail than any other film I’ve ever seen. And add to that, the costumes and set designs were so authentic that it was almost as though the audience was hypnotized by Lancaster Dodd himself to be immersed in this strange and enigmatic world.

I could go on and on about how technically beautiful the film was, but I would be doing a disservice to Joaquin Phoenix, whose performance in this movie was absolutely riveting. Phoenix could not have been more perfect for the role of a deeply troubled man who was only really searching for some place to belong. Having spent his life at sea while in the Navy certainly left an impression on him, for this was a man who brought his sea legs to shore and couldn’t quite learn how to walk properly again. And what better place to belong than with a cultish group whose mission it was to repair troubled souls? I though it was a rather poetic notion, that a man who had all his life only searched for someone or something to anchor him down and keep him grounded found solace in a cult. In many ways a scenario such as this one would make sense, and although it’s not an original idea (last year’s Martha Marcy May Marlene held a slightly similar idea), it’s certainly executed in a marvelous manner. And with Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood orchestrating the pulsating music of the film, it’s no wonder why Paul Thomas Anderson’s latest has gotten a lot of buzz.
Admittedly, although the film has a lot going for it technically, there were some moments that to me were either too drawn out or were just a little bit self-indulgent. For example, although I understood why there were certain scenes that included full frontal nudity (this was to relate to the audience what Freddie’s mindset was), I felt that they went on unnecessarily too long. I also found the ending to be just a little bit contrived. Some scenes dragged on a bit, others were better paced. One thing I do have to mention is that there were certainly scenes that were just laugh out loud funny, and I think The Master succeeds in blending good narrative with engaging characters. I also did want to mention that several people walked out of the movie theater during my screening, which I thought was pretty funny. Which brings me to express that The Master surely is not for everyone. It’s certainly not going to appeal to anyone with a short attention span.
Overall, I thought it was a solid film from Anderson, with excellent performances from Phoenix, Hoffman and Adams. I absolutely loved Jonny Greenwood’s soundtrack and felt that it was a huge factor in the film’s atmospheric quality. As with There Will Be Blood, Anderson really showcases his mettle as a visual director. The writing could have been sharper, and the pacing could have been better, but these mistakes are easy to ignore. I can’t wait to see what Anderson will come up with next.

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THE MASTER (2012)

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