Boogie Nights (1997)

User Review

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  TheMovieDiorama

  8 / 10

  Boogie Nights tackles a rather bizarre industry, that being pornography. Can't say I've seen many theatrical released dramas about adult films, so this is new territory. Pornography is, obviously, very popular and this film showcases the rise of said industry in the 70's and its downhill in the 80's. It centres around the fictional Dirk Diggler (that name...it's just beautiful) and how he finds success through a adult film director named Jack Horner. Being in that type of business, Dirk starts becoming susceptible to the lavish lifestyle and the drugs and crime that follow. A fascinating albeit daring subject to tackle, director Paul Thomas Anderson manages to make it a rather compelling story. Slight tonal inconsistencies, particularly in the third act where it just loses steam but overall I found this to be thoroughly entertaining with dark comedic moments. It's another Anderson movie where his direction takes precedent. Super nice long takes that just lets the characters interact. Whether it be having sex, sniffing cocaine or running away from a shotgun wielding psychopath, the characters resembled the 70's. The disco attire looked fantastically authentic and really made me want to get down and boogie in my lounge (was so tempted...). Acting was outstanding all round. Julianne Moore and Burt Reynolds deserved their award nominations. Mark Wahlberg pulled off that sparky confident teenager role well. When it came to filming the pornography, the acting was incredibly cheesy which was sooo good to see. They honestly nailed it. Then seeing how porn progressed to amateur and drive-by within the 80's was interesting. I'm not addicted to porn or anything, but it's a refreshing subject to watch instead of slavery, haunted houses or World War II. So yes, despite the inconsistent tones this was incredibly enjoyable with phenomenal direction.

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