(Drivebycuriosity) - Thomas Pynchon is an ambitious author and famous for his dense and complex novels. Paul Thomas Anderson is an equally ambitious movie director and famous for his complicated films. So, when Anderson turns a Pynchon book into a movie you can expect an complicated and ambitious work of cinematic art.
The film "Inherent Vice", directed by Anderson and based on the same named Pynchon novel, is exactly that (imdb). If you had hoped for a clear story then you are in the wrong movie. The film is an eclectic roller coaster of hilarious, sometimes funny and sometimes dramatic scenes and ideas spiced with a lot of jokes and slapstick.
The most entertainment comes from the constantly appearing and disappearing unanimously excellent actors (characters). Anderson collected and managed a formidable cast: Joaquin Phoenix is the "black hole" around whom the whole spectacle is spinning. The actor showed again his strengths as a distressed man who´s getting along anyway. Josh Brolin delivered also a memorable performance. They had congenial support from Jena Malone, Reese Witherspoon, Katherine Waterston, Benicio del Toro, Owen Wilson, Martin Short and many more.
Cinematographer Robert Elswit, who´s work I recently had admired in "Nightcrawler" (driveby), delivered another feast for the eyes. Even sleazy places look beautiful. The soundtrack enhanced the fun considerably. And one of the hottest sex scenes of independent cinema also compensated for the challenges of the plot.
Paul Thomas Anderson showed again why he is one of the stars on the firmament of the American independent cinema.
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