Thursday, January 20, 2000

Interview: Boston Globe

The Boston Globe, Written By Beth Carney & Jim Sullivan
January 20, 2000

Harvard Film Archive Screening of Magnolia - January 19, 2000

Director Paul Thomas Anderson is doing his best to keep attention on his new movie ``Magnolia.''

"It's a three-hour movie. I know what that means to people. They might get to it a little later," said the 29-year-old director, who screened his film and fielded questions yesterday at the Harvard Film Archive.

"I guess I've always looked at the three-hour movie as a genre by itself," said Anderson, whose breakthrough hit "Boogie Nights" was also a viewing commitment at 2 1/2 hours. "I get suspicious any time I go to see a three-hour movie, and not because you're afraid you're going to be bored or anything. You just instantly structure your day differently. You think: You know, we should eat before we go see this movie."

"Magnolia" intertwines the stories of nine people over the course of a day in the San Fernando Valley in vignettes that include biblical references, a sky raining frogs, and a scene in which characters burst into song simultaneously.

"I guess I went through a strange time" before writing the movie, Anderson said, "and this is what I found."

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