Inherent Vice (2014)

Directed by

Paul Thomas Anderson

Genre

drama film, comedy film, comedy drama, crime film, romantic comedy film

Country

United States

Runtime

2h 29m

Rated

R

Rating

6.5 of 10 from 2,733 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

In 1970s Los Angeles, a stoner private investigator named Doc Sportello gets tangled in a series of missing persons cases and crime schemes. He tries to find his ex-girlfriend and her new boyfriend, which leads him through a maze of shady characters and police corruption.

sprawlinghazydarkly comicparanoidwindingstylizednostalgicmumbling

What happens

Inherent Vice is a 2014 American neo-noir black comedy crime film written, co-produced, and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, based on the 2009 novel by Thomas Pynchon. The ensemble cast includes Joaquin Phoenix, Josh Brolin, Owen Wilson, Katherine Waterston, Eric Roberts, Reese Witherspoon, Benicio del Toro, Jena Malone, Maya Rudolph, Martin Short and Joanna Newsom. The film follows Larry "Doc" Sportello, a well-intentioned but fumbling stoner, hippie, and private investigator embroiled in the criminal underworld of 1970 Los Angeles, investigating three cases linked by the disappearance of his ex-girlfriend and her wealthy new boyfriend. Anderson's adaptation of Inherent Vice had been in development since 2010, and is the first Pynchon novel to be adapted for the screen. Anderson was previously inspired by Pynchon's novel V. while writing the screenplay for The Master (2012), and would go on to loosely adapt Vineland into One Battle After Another (2025). It is Anderson's second collaboration with Phoenix, following The Master, and involves a number of his other collaborators, including producers Daniel Lupi and JoAnne Sellar, cinematographer Robert Elswit, editor Leslie Jones, and composer Jonny Greenwood. Inherent Vice premiered at the New York Film Festival on October 4, 2014, and began a limited theatrical release in the United States on December 12, 2014, by Warner Bros. Pictures. The film received positive reviews from critics, with many praising the performances, costumes, and screenplay, but some criticizing the complicated plot. It was nominated for several awards, including Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Costume Design at the 87th Academy Awards, and Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for Phoenix at the 72nd Golden Globe Awards. The National Board of Review named it one of the ten best films of the year. It is considered a cult film.In 2016, it was voted the 75th best film since 2000 in the BBC's international critics' poll. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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