We’re back with another packed show as we welcome filmmaker Evgeny Afineefsky to talk about his documentary Winter On Fire. Bernard and Zach go over the standouts of the still-rolling 53rd New York Film Festival as well as talk about this past summer’s disappointing string of summer blockbusters. The boys also discuss actors whose movies they’ll watch no matter what and share their Indie Picks of the Week.

Topics

• Indie Picks of the Week (2:13)
• NYFF (6:46)
• Summer Blockbuster Rage (27:36)
• Actors We Follow (43:53)
• Evgeny Afineefsky (55:02)

WTI Articles Referenced in the Podcast

Carol NYFF Review
Microbe & Gasoline NYFF Review
The Walk Review

Special guest Dave Boyle joins this week’s show to talk about his San Francisco-set neo-noir, Man From Reno. In honor of the film, Bernard, Dave and CJ share their favorite SF-set movies as well as their Indie Picks of the Week. Plus, Bernard reviews Woody Allen’s latest, Irrational Man, starring Emma Stone, Joaquin Phoenix, and Parker Posey.

Also, a quick shout-out to our sponsor MUBI, the curated online cinema that brings its members a hand-picked selection of the best indie, foreign, and classic films. Visit www.mubi.com/waytooindie to try MUBI free for 30 days.

Topics

• Indie Picks of the Week (1:16)
• Man From Reno (9:58)
• Favorite San Fran Movies (16:25)
• Irrational Man Review (38:12)

WTI Articles Referenced in the Podcast

I Am A Ghost review
H.P. Mendoza interview
The Stanford Experiment review
3 1/2 Minutes, 10 Bullets review
Man From Reno review
Dave Boyle interview
Irrational Man review

Subscribe to the Way Too Indiecast

• Subscribe to our podcast on iTunes
• Subscribe on Stitcher
• and please leave us a rating and quick review!

It came as a bit of a surprise to me that Woody Allen‘s latest, Irrational Man, marks the director’s very first collaboration with the “Queen of the Indies” herself, Parker Posey. In the dark collegiate comedy she plays Rita, a lonely woman in an unfulfilling marriage who’s drawn to a similarly depressed philosophy professor (Joaquin Phoenix), whose affections are split with a bright, young student (Emma Stone).

Fans have been itching for years for a director to open the floodgates and let Posey unleash her full range of talents as a film’s lead, and though she plays only a secondary role in Allen’s film, it will hopefully mark the start of a long and fruitful partnership between she and the legendary auteur. They’re slated to work together again for Allen’s 2016 project, and I couldn’t me more excited.

During Posey’s visit to San Francisco on the Irrational Man press tour, I spoke with her in a roundtable interview about working with Allen for the first time, her favorite movies in her filmography, a hilarious deleted scene from Best in Show and much more. Irrational Man is out in theaters this Friday, July 24th. [Warning: minor spoilers ahead.]

Having so much experience under your belt as an actor, do you find it easier at this point in your career to get into a dark headspace for a role? Rita is a lonesome woman.

Experience really builds and ages you in a way where the disappointments can make you feel lonely. I was really happy that I was at the right temperature at this time in my life to express that.

There are elements of Rita’s arc that remind me of your character in Personal Velocity. That movie left me wondering what would happen next for this woman. In your mind, where does Rita go after the end of the movie?

I think it’s really tragic, what happens to her. Hopefully she has a good therapist after suffering this disappointment. I think she has enough hold of her fantasy to bounce back from the “irrational man.” She’s intelligent, even if she’s lost herself. She can easily drown in the waters of him, and Emma, too. They both survive this man. It’s a really cool story, for that reason.

Woody Allen has a famously laid-back directing style. Is that something you appreciated, or did you want a more hands-on approach on-set?

I like a lot of freedom when I work, to be left alone in the world that’s been created for you. We’re sliding into this realm. What was different was, after [shooting], he was nowhere to be found! He’d be in the car, going to dinner. [laughs] It’s practical, too. I want to do well, because he has to go to dinner. We all have to eat, even Woody Allen. That’s something that’s very particular to him. He’s going to be 80 this year, and he has a body of work that’s so impressive. The stakes are already high, but he knows that. His ear is so subtle. He doesn’t want any acting; he wants you to be real. I like that way of working.

I was surprised when I realized that you two hadn’t worked together before.

That’s what everyone says!

I think fans who’ve been rooting for you for years…we’ve been waiting for a director to really unleash you, if you know what I mean.

I’m ready to unleash as well! It’s really frustrating to see stories change. I fantasized as a teenager about growing up and becoming a woman and being in grown-up movies. Now, it’s a lot action and werewolves and genre and vampires and video games and sci-fi, movies that are crafted for a gaming culture. The economy’s not that great and people aren’s seeing movies like they used to, so we’ve suffered the loss of a style and a form that we’ve seen kind of disappear. Part of this experience was feeling really blessed.

I do belong in his world and in these kinds of movies. I cherished the experience. To work with someone who is so talented and has a particular way of working—[I was] able to trust that, even if it was hard. I remember he came up to us one day and was like, “What I wrote isn’t very good. You can add whatever you want; feel free.” I added something, and I hear from the video monitor: “That’s terrible!” [laughs] I was like, “Okay. Where’s the shovel, so I can go bury myself?” You’re laughing and crying at the same time.

Didn’t he come up to you and Joaquin early on and tell you you wouldn’t be fired?

Yeah, yeah. And he put his hands out in a really funny way. “Neither of you are getting fired!”

Did that have any effect on your confidence?

Yeah, of course. But he can very easily elicit that feeling from his actors. That’s his right, if it’s not the right fit. You’re in service of his world and his point of view and what he’s trying to accomplish.

Having job security is a good thing, right?

Yeah. We talked about whether I’d be able to survive being let go, or not being right for the part. I think so. I think so. It was a lot of that at work, which also led to, “I hope I’m still in the movie.”

Well, your name’s on the poster, so that’s a good sign.

I know. They reassured me that I was [in it]. [laughs] I only got my twenty pages, so I didn’t know how important my part was. Woody Allen isn’t the kind of writer who says, “Oh, I’ll figure it out in editing,” you know? He does no ADR. He doesn’t like to loop. So you do a scene and he says, “That was good. But it wasn’t good for sound. We’re gonna go again.” I say, “Well, I’m good at ADR!” But he says, “Well, I don’t like doing that.” It brings such a focus and concentration with the whole crew and the actors. It’s a sport, in a way. You feel like you just want to hit what’s happening live on-camera. Joaquin’s so great. He has so much going on, so it’s easy to connect with him.

A minute ago you were talking about how the movie landscape is changing. We mostly see superhero and sci-fi movies in the theater. You’ve had a turn or two in big-budget movies, specifically Superman Returns, which I thought you were the best part of. I’m curious what your experience on that film was.

It was great. We were in Australia for two months with Brian [Singer]. He’s very talented. He’s very special to be an independent director and be able to go into the $200 million budget with spontaneity.

Would you be open to doing another film like that again if Marvel or DC came calling?

Oh, yeah. I think there’s a misconception [about that movie]. I had a good time approaching that character from the outside of the comic book; what she looks like, how she acts—it’s a different style and I really enjoyed it. It’s condensed and crystallized and a little exaggerated, I guess.

You get to go toe-to-toe with Kevin Spacey in most of your scenes.

I like working with great actors, regardless of budget.

Nothing’s made me laugh harder than your “Busy Bee” scene in Best in Show. Why do you think your fans have latched on to that scene in particular?

I don’t know. I guess it’s just so absurd. That’s all Chris[topher Guest] to me, though. It’s not like I wrote the scene. There was a scene that was cut in that movie where I find a piece of dog poop in my husband’s slipper. Very deliberately, the dog pooped right in there. I’m talking to my cleaning lady like, “How did this happen? What are you going to do about this?! How am I supposed to clean this?!!” It was such a funny thing. That’s all Chris. I wish I knew why that was cut. I guess it lasted too long or didn’t make it into the editing. Just that idea that a dog could be so upset—and a big dog, too! He has a little poop, right in there. It’s just so funny. I can’t take it.

Is there any movie fans bring up that surprise you? Like, “Wow—that took hold!”

The Christopher Guest movies. Dazed and Confused. The Hal Hartley movies. Blade. The House of Yes.

I was hoping for Scream 3 or Josie and the Pussycats.

There are the girls I did Josie for specifically, the twelve-year-olds. I wanted to be really silly and funny to appeal to a seven or eight-year-old. It’s so stupid and fun, something that kids do. Party Girl has lasted.

You’ve been on press tours a lot. Is there one question you wish would go away?

That question. [laughs] When you’re asked a question about, “Time Magazine calls you ‘Queen of the Indies,'” I never knew how to answer that. I was called that at a particular time, and then the industry became something else. Then it becomes about your fame and “What’s it like to be called that?” It’s not like I wake up every morning and my neighbor’s like, “Indie Queen!” You know what I mean?

There’s always that guy—that mopey, beer-bellied loser who sits alone by the fireplace at house parties, looking too lost in thought to give a damn about the goofs dancing around him. He’s the loneliest man in the world. Funny thing: he never leaves the party alone. That’s because there’s always that girl. That warm, doe-eyed girl who finds his wallowing sexy as hell. She’s drawn to him as if under a spell, petting his head like a sick puppy. They always leave together, and it always ends in disaster.

In Woody Allen‘s collegiate comedy Irrational Man, Emma Stone plays that girl to Joaquin Phoenix‘s that guy. A depressed college professor, Phoenix’s Abe Lucas shows up for his first day on the job at fictional Braylin College drunk and stumbling, his reputation as an distinguished philosopher the only thing keeping the dean and other staffers from sending him back home packing. He’s a tormented asshole, bored with the world, imposing his passion for indifference on his students. He sees potential in undergrad Jill (Stone) as a writer; she sees potential in him as her future husband. As Jill becomes more forthcoming about her feelings (it doesn’t take long), Abe insists they keep their afternoon talks strictly platonic, which of course only fans the flames of her desire.

Abe’s less reluctant to romp around with academic colleague Rita Richards (Parker Posey, again stuffed in a role too small), a similarly reclusive soul who offers to “unblock” him after she slinks into his faculty housing for an unexpected late-night rendezvous. Their sad-sack sex sessions are a mostly agreeable distraction for Abe, though he continues to spend lots of time with Jill, chatting about existentialist philosophy over coffee and toast. When they eavesdrop on a curious conversation from a neighboring booth at their local diner, the plot gets strapped with rocket-boosters: Abe finds himself reawakened when, inspired by what he overhears, he decides to plan the perfect murder, offing a total stranger in a stunt of misguided vigilante justice. The fact that he’s a professor of “ethical strategies” is the cruel joke of the movie.

Naturally, Abe’s rejection of Jill’s advances gets reneged when the heat between them becomes undeniable (his newfound—albeit twisted—sense of purpose has also lifted his spirits considerably). Phoenix and Stone, sadly, never reach such levels of synchronization. Maybe it’s her age or her eagerness to impress Mr. Allen, but Stone (like many other actors, to be fair) recites Allen’s dialogue in that stagy, stringent way that suggests they’re inextricably bound to the page. Allen’s writing is good (especially his one-liners), but much like Wes Anderson, you sometimes wish his characters would just cut the shit and talk like normal people.

That’s why Phoenix is so great in this movie; he messes with the game-plan a bit. He breaks up the typical Woody Allen cadence, slurring Abe’s words and taking labored, deep breaths to a rhythm all his own. Allen’s known for giving his actors little to no feedback, and Phoenix and Stone seem to react to that pass/fail style of directing in dramatically different ways, resulting in a pair of disparate performances, one doggedly disciplined, the other wild and naturalistic. Neither are bad, though Posey’s unhinged energy aligns more with Phoenix, making Stone feel even more fractured from the group. It’s frustrating that Posey continues to be cast in roles beneath her gifts, but it’s nevertheless a treat to see her finally collaborate with Allen.

Abe and Jill’s romance is one of Hitchcockian flavor, defined by dangerous obsession and poetic twists of fate. There are some amusing homages to Hitchcock classics, like when we see Abe and Jill stroll through a brightly-lit nighttime fairgrounds á la Strangers on a Train. Still, Allen is in his own voice, focusing on humor and theme rather than suspense. The writing’s at its most playful in the movie’s second act, where we follow Abe opening up to Jill and gleefully plotting out his broad-daylight assassination. Before and after this middle section, the movie feels stilted, save for a wickedly funny life lesson Abe teaches his students via an impromptu game of Russian Roulette.

For a movie about intellectuals rattling off eloquently-worded philosophical sermons, Irrational Man feels strangely shallow. These themes of blocked-up libido, cross-generational romance and existentialist neuroses have all been covered in previous films of Allen’s, which makes his latest seem destined to fade into the background of his crowded oeuvre like so many others. Phoenix is so chaotic and off-kilter as the miserable anti-hero, though, that he manages to keep you on your toes when the movie threatens to fall flat.

Woody Allen‘s summer movie has become an annual event. For well over two decades the writer/director has pumped out a film a year from his shoebox of notes–his work ethic has to be admired. But he’s always been hit or miss, and lately the pattern has seen something good pop up every other year (two years ago we got Blue Jasmine, two years before that Midnight In Paris, between those films we got the forgettable When In Rome and the harmless Magic In The Moonlight). So, the question is, will Allen stick to that formula and give us something noteworthy this year?

Irrational Man surely has potential. The film is led by the excellent pairing of Joaquin Phoenix and Emma Stone, which is more than enough to put tickets in our hands. The always great Phoenix has been on something of a tear of late with his odd ball roles in Her and Inherent Vice, Irrational Man looks to keep up the same sort of wacky/serious vibe.

Like most Allen films, the plot details are scarce: Irrational Man follows a philosophy professor (Phoenix) in the midst of an existential crisis who falls for a student (Stone). As per usual, the film was written and directed by Allen himself (he trusts no one). The small cast is rounded out by Jamie Blackley (If I Stay) and Parker Posey(Grace Of Monaco).

Irrational Man opens July 24th. Check out the very Woody Allen-esque first trailer below.

Irrational Man Official Trailer

This Sunday night everyone will know who the real 2015 Oscar winners are and that person who hasn’t watched a single nominated film this year will probably win your office pool. In our recent Oscar Winners Revisited columns, we’ve gone back to discuss who should have won back in 2011, and 2012. Now we revisit the 2013 Oscars and discuss why we think Best Picture should have gone to Silver Linings Playbook and not to Argo, as well as our picks in the other 5 major categories that year.

Best Supporting Actress

Who Won – Anne Hathaway, Les Miserables
Who Should’ve Won – Amy Adams, The Master

Amy Adams’ understated performance as the reserved but grounded wife in The Master seemed to have been overshadowed by the thunderous performances from leads Philip Seymour Hoffman and Joaquin Phoenix. But she had an essential role in shaping The Master into the brilliant and well-acted film that it became. After Adams walked away empty-handed three previous times at the Oscars (nominated for Junebug, Doubt, and The Fighter), I thought she’d finally receive the shiny gold trophy she deserves. Yet somehow Anne Hathaway received more votes from the Academy with her imperfect singing in the classic musical remake of Les Miserables. One day you will win Ms. Adams, one day. [Dustin]

Best Supporting Actor

Who Won – Christoph Waltz, Django Unchained
Who Should’ve Won – Philip Seymour Hoffman, The Master

2013 felt like a real “anything goes” year for the Best Supporting Actor category. On one side, there was the trio of living legends Alan Arkin, Robert De Niro and Tommy Lee Jones all playing pivotal roles in films that won elsewhere in major categories. On the other were two men better known as character actors: Christoph Waltz and Philip Seymour Hoffman. Waltz picked up his second win in two nominations (both for Tarantino movies) despite some critics noting Leonardo DiCaprio’s superior performance in Django Unchained. All in all, the overlooked nominee in the bunch was Hoffman. Though we didn’t know it then, The Master would be Hoffman’s final Oscar nomination, his strongest collaboration with his friend, filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson. Playing Lancaster Dodd, the cultish leader of The Cause, Hoffman illustrates the charisma necessary to recruit a legion of followers while also depicting Dodd as a man, “a hopelessly inquisitive man.” It’s a staggeringly complex character made knowable through an honest, vulnerable performance. Lancaster Dodd exhibited Hoffman at his best: charming, empathetic, and exceedingly truthful. He deserved a win. [Zach]

Best Actress

Who Won – Jennifer Lawrence, Silver Linings Playbook
Who Should’ve Won – Jessica Chastain, Zero Dark Thirty

Nobody was surprised to hear Jennifer Lawrence’s name called for Best Actress in 2013. She was terrific in Silver Linings Playbook, a film that had Oscar wins written all over it, which made this victory feel like an easy lay-up despite the talented group of nominees that year. Emmanuelle Riva nearly broke us down to tears with Amour, Quvenzhané Wallis won our hearts in Beasts of the Southern Wild, and Naomi Watts left us emotionally stirred in The Impossible. But it was Jessica Chastain who shocked us with her bravery in an unapologetic portrayal of CIA agent in charge of tracking Osama bin Laden in Zero Dark Thirty. Unlike other Hollywood roles for women, Chastain got the chance to play an intelligent, uncompromising heroine, and she did it extremely well. This might have been one of the better years for lead actresses in recent memory, but Chastain’s electrifying performance stood above the rest—perhaps just a touch above Wallis and Lawrence. [Dustin]

Best Actor

Who Won – Daniel Day-Lewis, Lincoln
Who Should’ve Won – Joaquin Phoenix, The Master

With all due respect to the World’s Greatest Actor Daniel Day-Lewis, Joaquin Phoenix’s portrayal of Freddie Quell creates a character far beyond imitation. The enigmatic Quell is noticeably disturbed, speaking out of the side of his mouth and prone to sudden, violent outbursts. Phoenix is said to have used a rubber band to tie his teeth together on a side of his mouth to contribute to Quell’s odd speech pattern. But beyond his vocal choices, Quell is likely Phoenix’s most physical performance. The actor contorts himself, throwing his body into walls and at others with an animalistic quality. This type of performance could feel over-the-top in a lesser production but guided by Paul Thomas Anderson, Freddie Quell is both frightening and sympathetic. More than that, he’s simply unforgettable. [Zach]

Best Director

Who Won – Ang Lee, Life of Pi
Who Should’ve Won – Benh Zeitlin, Beasts of the Southern Wild

Obviously nobody at the time knew that Ben Affleck‘s Argo would go on to win Best Picture, a strange thing since he wasn’t even nominated in this Best Director category. While people were scratching their heads trying to figure out why he and Kathryn Bigelow were snubbed, some were pleasantly surprised (myself included) to see Michael Haneke on the list for Amour (foreign films don’t often get recognized in this category), as well as first-time filmmaker Benh Zeitlin for Beasts of the Southern Wild. Though the race seemed to be between David O. Russell (Silver Linings Playbook) and Steven Spielberg (Lincoln), Ang Lee walked away with his second Best Director award. Remarkably, it was the new kid on the block, Zeitlin, who impressed me the most. He shot Beasts of the Southern Wild on location using mostly local actors, and created a poetic fairy tale most seasoned directors couldn’t produce. Even though he didn’t win, Zeitlin should have felt honored to be in such great company. [Dustin]

Best Picture

Who Won – Argo
Who Should’ve Won – Silver Linings Playbook

This is probably one of my least favorite years for Best Picture, a lot of brilliant films didn’t make the cut while a couple mediocre ones did (cough Les Miserables cough). But I’ll take Silver Linings Playbook over the wondrous Life of Pi, the heartbreaking Amour, and the endlessly moving Beasts of the Southern Wild. Silver Linings is one of the most charming movies of the decade and a delightful throwback to the zany screwball romantic comedies of the ‘30s and ‘40s, a better tribute than the previous years Best Picture winner The Artist. David O. Russell’s chaotic and jumpy style perfectly suits this story of a man suffering from bipolar disorder trying to correct his life amidst an unusual romance, a temperamental football-obsessed father, and any other type of everyday drama that can stand in the way of a positive and happy life. There’s a lightning-in-a-bottle feeling of success to Silver Linings Playbook which the uninspired mess of American Hustle only makes me appreciate more. [Ryan]

Paul Thomas Anderson makes time travel look so easy. His films jump into the era of their stories so wholly, you’d think Anderson walked into the past with his film crew and shot on location. Inherent Vice is no different, with a milieu perfected by shag carpet walls, leather couches, big cars, smoke screens, and plenty of ’70s Los Angeles pulp. So if you’re looking for a gumshoe noir, the credentials are there in abundance, right down to a deadpan narrator. But if you’re looking for a satisfying mystery, Inherent Vice is two and a half hours of brain-twisting that incites feelings, though satisfaction may not be among them. The plot of the film is secondary, nay tertiary, to the atmosphere and characters leading it. So don’t feel bad reacting with utter perplexity to the film’s storyline. And in fact if that’s what your after, maybe read Thomas Pynchon’s book first, because at least there you can earmark pages and underline names.

Watching the film is a bit like trying to grab a goldfish in water. The film begins when stoner private investigator Larry ‘Doc’ Sportello (Joaquin Phoenix) receives an unexpected visit from his ex-girlfriend Shasta Fay Hepworth (Katherine Waterston). She spills on him the story of her new man Mickey Wolfmann, a real estate mogul whose wife and her lover have a plan to send him away to the looney bin and take his money. The next day Tariq Khalil (Michael Kenneth Williams) visits Doc at his “office”—a room at a gynecology office Doc uses—and hires Doc to find an old jail acquaintance of his who owes him money. That acquaintance just happens to work for Wolfmann. Doc takes a trip out to see the latest land development of Wolfmann’s and finds a sex shop on the premises. He’s knocked unconscious and wakes up next to the dead body of Khalil’s jail buddy, surrounded by police.

Thus enters Detective Christian “Bigfoot” Bjornsen (Josh Brolin) a partner-less, Hollywood fame-seeking LAPD officer both determined to screw Doc and use him to help in his own investigation. The exchanges among Doc and Bigfoot are some of the best in the film. After Doc’s Gilligan’s Island-style maritime lawyer, Sauncho Smilax (Benicio Del Toro) helps him out of the police station, he is visited by yet another potential client. A young widow and ex-drug user, Hope Harlingen (Jena Malone) asks Doc to track down her husband, Coy, believing him to be alive. Doc finds Coy (Owen Wilson) easy enough—perhaps a little too easy—when Jade, a girl from the sex shop leads Doc to him while simultaneously warning him to “beware the Golden Fang.” When Shasta goes missing herself, more mystery unravels.

Like fellow LA-based noir Chinatown, the heart of corruption runs deep, and neither the police or FBI can be trusted. Doc is led all over town, and up to a backwards detox house in Ojai. Run-ins with an Aryan biker gang and an underground drug cartel invariably lead to higher stakes. But don’t expect to feel too much tension.

The mystery gets more knotted as this film goes on, broken up with moments of drug-addled weirdness and flashbacks of Doc’s memories of being with Shasta. But like I said the point isn’t exactly to follow along. There’s a lot of dialogue, most of it directly related to the plot, so missing any of it can seem frustrating, but this seems to be Anderson’s intention. In this drug-fueled reverie we’re at the liberty of a distractible hippie. The side-show of interesting things happening around Doc, not to mention the rambling nature of most of the loopy and stoned characters, make it easy to miss key revelations Doc encounters as he sleuths. It’s probably the closest thing to being high any clean person could experience.

The momentum sputters somewhat when the film’s MacGuffin is revealed and suddenly Doc’s motivations seem iffy. And there’s still quite a bit of film left after that point. Things get a little too languid before we’re thrown back into the tornado, almost too confused to feel invested. At that point Inherent Vice becomes more about its moments than its whole, but there are some great ones.

An attempt to track down the people behind the Golden Fang corporation leads to an amusing, jittery, dope-fueled escapade with a coked-out dentist, Dr. Blatnoyd (Martin Short at his weirdest best), and an addict runaway named Japonica (Sasha Pieterse). The huge cast is rounded out by Reese Witherspoon as Doc’s Deputy DA girlfriend, Penny, who simultaneously helps and hinders him in his sleuthing.

Despite the obvious adaptation flaws that make for a more unrealistic mystery—the ratio of discoveries Doc makes versus those that seem to just find him is rather disappointing—Anderson has crafted a two and a half hour dream sequence that is trippy but also diverting. And believe me it’s even better the second time around, not to mention necessary if you want to feel that you’re truly grasping the plot.

Phoenix proves over and over that in the hands of Paul Thomas Anderson he’s quite malleable, and with his mutton chops and a simultaneously stoned but pleasant expression, he’s a surprisingly likable anti-hero. Brolin and his flat-top haircut embodies menacing and ridiculous with an interesting charisma. But as Doc’s dream-girl, Katherine Waterston is the obvious breakout from the film. She really does shine, though it’s interesting to note that in many ways Inherent Vice is more of a bromance than a romance as Doc and Bigfoot, and to some degree Doc and Coy, have the more curious dynamics.

Anderson is nothing if not a man attuned to detail and the film’s visuals reflect his carefulness. It’s at all times psychedelic and beautiful. Adding ballast to each crafted frame is a perfectly curated soundtrack. Anderson may have erred on the side of density for what will most likely be considered a stoner film, and it’s not likely to earn respect as his best film by any means, but there’s always pleasure in watching an auteur work. If you give yourself up to the madcap kookiness of it all, Inherent Vice will lead you down the rabbit hole on an enjoyable escape and leave you with a contact high that isn’t at all unpleasant.

In the midst of Movember, there are a number of men doing their best to spread awareness of men’s health issues with their burgeoning bristles. We at Way Too Indie fully support this “mo”vement — especially if it means that we all get to bask in the glory of millions of moustaches walking around us every day for a whole month. Whether you’ve already got an illustrious comb or you’re just straining to sprout something from a few of your follicles, if you are among the bros striving to grow your own facial man stamp, here’s a list of some of the best moustaches in movie history to keep you in the mood to “mo.”

Groucho Marx, Duck Soup

Among the most famous of moustaches, no ‘Best Of’ list would be complete without Groucho Marx’s trademark broomstache. Shaded by two equally substantial eyebrows, Groucho’s (obviously fake) facial hair was the rimshot to his every fast-flowing joke. Indeed, all one has to do is pick up a pair of those trademark fake nose glasses with attached moustache and anyone can be just as funny as he was. Sort of. [Ananda]

Charlie Chaplin, Modern Times

So Hitler’s toothbrush moustache is a shining example of how one person can ruin a fashion trend (and for the record, even the people of his time hated his look calling it rotzbremse or “snot brake”), but anyone who’s anyone knows Charlie Chaplin had it first, and he made it adorable. Swishing his ‘stache like a broom, he swept up audience’s hearts. And never one to pass up on a comedic opportunity, he went on to parody Hitler in The Great Dictator shortly after. [Ananda]

Frederick Loren, House on Haunted Hill

Because it’s the classiest of classic moves to have at the heart of a haunted house flick a mustachioed and sinister host. Vincent Price combines his wonderful lip crown with a pair of incredibly expressive eyebrows to deliver this most delightful performance. It almost makes you giddy. Yes, even you. [Scarlet]

Rhett Butler, Gone With the Wind

You might have thought it was his sparkling eyes or his darling dimple. But, no, it was most obviously that clever little moustache that kept Scarlett hanging on. Maybe Clark Gable didn’t give a damn, but you wouldn’t think so with how much time and devotion he would need to have taken every morning to keep that well groomed look of his so, well, groomed. [Scarlet]

Sentenza, The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

Ah, Angel Eyes. Nothing like a good twirly, villainous mustache to bring them out, too. Lee Van Cleef was proud of those beady eyes, his main moneymaker. But what better accessory to pair them with than this wonderful example of a mighty moustache? [Scarlet]

Don Vito Corleone, The Godfather 

Marlon Brando is proof positive that there is no need for a dude to be able to nurture a full fledged Yosemite Sam ‘stache in order to illicit the fear of god into those he may need to intimidate. For a good cause of course. Or, at least, family. [Scarlet]

Bandit, Smokey and the Bandit

There are few faces in this world that look downright wrong without their trademark manhandle, and Burt Reynolds is among those people. The Bandit’s smile wouldn’t seem so pearlescent without the accent of a big dark ‘stache. What happens when Burt tries to shave? Deliverance. Enough said. [Ananda]

Peter Mitchell, Three Men and A Baby

Yeah, they were all pretty manly, but there’s a reason Tom Selleck was the Alpha Male of this trio. That facial badge of his just gives him straight up authority among men and they all knew it. Even the baby. [Scarlet]

Hook, Hook

It’s hard to say which is more impressive about Dustin Hoffman’s thin and well-waxed moustache in Hook, the precise way it contrasts under his huge nose or the amazing ability Hoffman had to make it move like its own limb. Never in a movie has a close up on a ticking moustache been so sinister. We’re still getting chills. Good form, old man, good form. [Ananda]

Wyatt and Virgil Earp, Tombstone

Virgil’s moustache is definitely the huskier of the two, but it’s Kurt Russell’s clear blue eyes that would make anyone swoon. And making them pop with that glorious face trophy? It doesn’t help that it’s a perfect replica of something that actually existed in history. #heartbreaker [Scarlet]

The Stranger, The Big Lebowski

As the seminal narrator of The Big Lebowski, Sam Elliott gets very little actual screen time in the film as The Stranger. Which is why it’s even more impressive he made our list. His wisdom for The Dude is added very real depth by the measure of the walrus whiskers accenting his words. The grayness of it has the Gandalf effect of adding poise, even as he mutters such things as “the Dude abides” and “got any more of that good sarsaparilla?” [Ananda]

Bill “The Butcher” Cutting, Gangs of New York

There are villains, and then there are villains with truly impressive facial hair. Daniel Day-Lewis as Bill the Butcher was intimidating enough with his butcher knife and plaid pants, but he took it entirely next level by achieving that most rare of moustaches, what I call the full-bodied rounded point. Like a handlebar, but this version holds on to you. [Ananda]

Borat, Borat

While I would never really suggest anyone sitting through this movie, even for awareness’ sake, there is definitely something to be said for Sacha Baron Cohen’s heavy hitter of man-glory. This was a crowning achievement. How many words can I come up with for moustache? [Scarlet]

Jack, The Darjeeling Unlimited 

When it comes to hitting the facial follicle gene jackpot, Jason Schwartzman had all the right numbers. Jewish Italian pretty much guarantees him the ability to grow whatever kind of facial cover-up he desires. He may play the shortest and youngest of the three brothers, but his distinctive lip luggage gave him all the gravitas he needed.  [Ananda]

Walt Disney, Saving Mr. Banks

When it comes to thinner moustaches it’s (literally) a fine line between your John Waters pencil mark moustache, a pubescent boy’s first attempts at peach fuzz, and the charming subtlety of Walt Disney’s well-spaced bristle. But Tom Hanks definitely pulls it off (I mean, it’s Tom Hanks, he could probably pull off the toothbrush Hitler-look with his overabundance of radiating goodness). Maybe his magic came from the ‘stache? [Ananda]

Theodore, Her

We’re willing to give Joaquin Phoenix some credit and say that his piercing but sad eyes are what made his character so sympathizable in Her, but that common dude brostache added even more of a touch of the everyman. It’s only a shame the virtual Samantha never got to appreciate the comfort some solid lipholstery can bring.  [Ananda]

Charles Mortdecai, Mortdecai

And, coming in 2015, we will finally see Johnny Depp sporting the moustache he deserves.  As a redhead (can I say ginger?) no less.  But that’s your motivation for next year.  Stay strong, my friends. [Scarlet]

Want to contribute to the cause, or grow a ‘stache to support men’s health? Get involved and find details at the Movember website.

Following this morning’s debut of Inherent Vice, writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson and a slew of the film’s cast took the stage at the Walter Reade Theater for a Q&A with assorted press & industry members. Along with Anderson, actors Joaquin Phoenix, Katherine Waterston, Benicio del Toro, Maya Rudolph, Joanna Newsom, Michael K. Williams, Hong Chau, Jena Malone, Owen Wilson, Sasha Pieterse, and Martin Short were all in attendance for the film’s first public screening and subsequent press conference. Tonight, the New York Film Festival and the Film Society of Lincoln Center has uploaded the full talk to their YouTube page for a those eager to hear more about the mysterious new project.

“I saw The Big Sleep and it made me realize I couldn’t follow any of it, and it didn’t matter, ’cause I just wanted to see what was gonna’ happen next anyway,” said Anderson of his influences for Inherent Vice, along with answers to why he shot the film flat vs. scope and how his actors prepared to evoke the 1970s. Check out the full Inherent Vice press conference from NYFF52 below:

Inherent Vice Press Conference

From behind a haze of pot smoke and hippie dreams, P.I. Larry “Doc” Sportello (Joaquin Phoenix) navigates 1970s Los Angeles as cultures clash amidst the paranoid aftermath of the Manson Family Murders. At the onset of Inherent Vice, Doc is awoken by ex-girlfriend Shasta (Katherine Waterston) who’s found herself part of an entangled web involving a real estate tycoon, a biker gang of “Aryan Brotherhood alumni,” and an Indo-Chinese drug cartel. The real estate developer has gone missing, and soon after, Shasta’s gone too. So, Doc begins a hunt for the answers, if only he can figure out the right questions to ask.

If you’ve heard of or are anticipating Inherent Vice and are not already a Thomas Pynchon reader, chances are it’s because the movie is Paul Thomas Anderson‘s latest. Any film listed in the same filmography as Magnolia and There Will Be Blood has a high standard to live up to; however, Vice doesn’t share too much in common with PTA’s most notable works, aside from its California setting. Despite Inherent Vice‘s deep roster of big name stars, it’s not a sprawling ensemble piece like Boogie Nights although Martin Short and Benicio Del Toro a couple of scenes in which they get to briefly steal the show. It’s certainly more of a comedy than his last two films, but the bizarre laughs are rooted in absurdity in a way unlike his early works. Likewise, Inherent Vice isn’t an intricate character study in the fashion of Anderson’s most recent film (also with Phoenix) The Master, it’s more of an examination of a time and characters that belong to it.

For all its strengths, it’s a challenge to grasp everything Anderson throws at the audience in his movie. Inherent Vice‘s convoluted non-story sees characters enter and exit the picture like a revolving door around Doc. Though clever in his own right, Phoenix’s detective is not the type to piece together a complex case; rather, the movie is far more concerned with the heir of mystery than solving the puzzle in a satisfying way. Its subtle touches will likely have to be sussed out during repeat viewings. But as baffling as the film can be on the initial watch, with PTA’s confident direction Inherent Vice remains captivating throughout.

Joaquin Phoenix wanders through a 70s minefield of strange characters with some impressive sideburns in the first trailer released by Warner Bros. for Paul Thomas Anderson‘s new film, Inherent Vice. In the film, based on the Thomas Pynchon novel, Phoenix plays Doc Sportello, a druggie detective searching for his missing ex-girlfriend. Filled with plenty of 70s craziness, the trailer is a bit hard to follow plot-wise, but features the impressive cast joining Phoenix including Josh Brolin, Reese Witherspoon, Owen Wilson, Jena Malone, Benicio Del Toro, and an incredibly haggard looking Martin Short.

The highly anticipated film has a December 12 release date and is world premiering this Saturday at the New York Film Festival. Be sure to catch our current NYFF coverage and enjoy the trailer below.

Inherent Vice trailer

Fresh from Entertainment Weekly’s Fall Movie Preview issue, here’s the first official look at Joaquin Phoenix and Josh Brolin in Paul Thomas Anderson‘s hotly anticipated new movie Inherent Vice. In the image released on EW.com a mutton chop-clad Phoenix stares down Brolin and his buzz cut at what looks like a diner counter. Both of the actors play detectives, though everything from their outfits to their postures suggests the characters will likely be of opposing mindsets.

Inherent Vice is an adaptation of the Thomas Pynchon novel of the same name. Set in 1970s Los Angeles, Phoenix’s drug-loving detective Larry “Doc” Sportello investigates his former girlfriend’s disappearance. Josh Brolin plays “Bigfoot” Bjornson. Inherent Vice is set to make its debut on Saturday, October 4th as the centerpiece gala screening in the New York Film Festival. Its official limited release won’t be until December 12th of this year, before a nationwide rollout in January.

First Image of Inherent Vice

<

Spike Jonzes’s film Her is without a doubt incredibly endearing, thought-provoking, and technologically probable as a socially awkward man (Joaquin Phoenix) in the not so distant future falls in love with his advanced Operating System (voiced by Scarlett Johannson). Though admittedly, the premise sets itself up for people to easily make fun of it. After all, Her is about developing a relationship with a computer. There has already been several spoofs about the film, but we bring you two of the best ones that we have seen so far.

Scarlett Johansson gets replaced by Philip Seymour Hoffman

Jonah Hill plays Joaquin Phoenix and falls for himself, a skit from Saturday Night Live

In the near future of Her, LA has a few new buildings in its skyline and is as smoggy as ever. The haze only adding to its dreaminess. The metro extends all the way to the beach (something all Angelinos have been craving for years), and the fashion trends favor nerd appeal, with high-waisted pants for men and minimal makeup on women. People walk around, hardly acknowledging one another, muttering into the small wireless earpieces they wear to stay constantly connected to their smart devices.

We’ve already become a society that doesn’t bat an eyelash at people staring at small square screens in their hands around the clock, so this next possible step depicted in director Spike Jonze’s vision of the future does seem entirely likely. It’s when Jonze presents another technical possibility that a unique, and dare I say plausible, love story emerges.

Theodore Twombly (Joaquin Phoenix) writes love letters for a living; a romantic profession that fits his introverted and lonely personality. Having recently split with his wife (Rooney Mara), he mopes from work to home, shrugging off invitations from co-workers (Chris Pratt) and long-time friends (Amy Adams and Matt Letscher). Intrigued by new software, he buys himself a new operating system. After answering only a couple quick set-up questions (including a very open ended “how is your relationship with your mother?”), and choosing a female voice for his new OS, Theodore’s new computer is up and running.  She decides to call herself Samantha and with Scarlett Johansson’s sultry voice giving her life, it’s easy to see why Theodore instantly finds himself being pulled into deeper and deeper conversations with her.

Samantha has the ability to learn and adapt and through her newborn digital eyes Theodore begins to see the beauty in his ordinary life, not to mention a companion who always has his best interests at heart. Samantha’s unbridled curiosity and rapacious interest in Theodore are the sort of ingredients that would win any man’s heart. Given he’s also a romantic attuned to the power of words, it isn’t long until he is very much in love with this bodiless digital cloud of a dream girl.

Theodore and Samantha’s relationships have some obvious challenges, which seem surprisingly easily overcome. First off: public acceptance. Turns out people are falling for their operating systems on the regular, and this is a future where people ask very few questions. They overcome their physical differences, being that Samantha lacks any physical form whatsoever, and all I can say is, thank you Mr. Jonze for the black screen during that scene. Later Samantha does try to find herself a surrogate to be with Theodore, but it’s too uncomfortable for him and ends up being a strong “life” lesson for her in accepting her own form. Even the most basic of relational difficulties, jealousy, insecurity, boredom, all seem overcome in time. Instead it’s a more unanticipated technical difficulty that threatens their love in the end and there is no geek squad that can intervene in matters of the heart.

Her is well crafted and engaging to view, with many thoughtful details that include familiar LA locations. Production designer, and long-time Spike Jonze collaborator, K. K. Barrett has thought up a future that seems like it could be one trend away from being the current LA; and set decorator Gene Serdena styles Theodore’s futuristic home in a way that would have the Jetson’s drooling.

Joaquin Phoenix seems to do his best work when given an introverted character, allowing his eyes to convey both the loneliness of Theodore and his reawakening. He and Johansen have a subtle chemistry, the only kind a man and his computer could convey, but one that is believable and endearing. Johansen puts many a voiceover actor to shame, and it’s not hard to imagine the very facial expressions Samantha would make if there were a face to go with that voice.

Whether Jonze really intends for there to be any sort of moral message isn’t exactly obvious. Relationships grow, both together and apart. People, and technology, can and do change. What magic keeps any couple together? It’s really the same old love story we’ve heard a million times, but it never gets old when it’s told right. Society may or may not be headed toward this future possibility, but it can be counted as certain that people will always be looking for love, in whatever form it can and may eventually take. And it’s that age-old quest, reflected in both Theodore and Samantha, that makes Her a fantastic film.

Her trailer

Last week it was announced that Spike Jonze’s latest film Her will close out the New York Film Festival in mid-October. The film stars Joaquin Phoenix as a lonely man who ends up falling in love with an advanced operating system (voiced by Scarlett Johansson) after the breakup of a long-term relationship. Those two are not the only recognizable names in the cast, Amy Adams, Rooney Mara, and Olivia Wilde all also make appearances.

Watch the trailer for Spike Jonze’s Her:

One of the most intriguing films of 2012 was without a doubt Paul Thomas Anderson’s The Master. The film contains some of the best acting performances of the year, which led Philip Seymour Hoffman, Joaquin Phoenix, and Amy Adams to all receive Oscar nominations for their respective roles. Recently, some of the official details of the DVD and Blu-ray release were disclosed.

The Master will be released on Blu-ray and DVD on February 26th, 2013.

Special Features:

• “Back Beyond” Outtakes – Additional Scenes Music by Jonny Greenwood (20 min)
• “Unguided Message” – 8 Minute Short
• Behind the Scenes Featurette
• Trailers
• Teasers
• “Let There Be Light” (1946) – John Huston’s landmark documentary about WWII veterans (58 Minutes)
• Digital Copy

The Master Official trailer:

Read Our Review of The Master

You will be hard pressed to find a film this year that is better acted or better crafted than Paul Thomas Anderson’s The Master. In Anderson’s sixth directorial film comes an epic tale of made up religion that has earmarks of a cult and it’s radical followers. Even though the film never comes out and says it directly, the film at the very least resembles that of Scientology. You end up walking away with more questions than answers as The Master was perplexing as well as absorbing, but above all, it was hypnotic.

From the very beginning we see that Freddie Quell (Joaquin Phoenix) has a drinking problem as well as a troubled sexual past that may explain his erratic behavior. To say that Freddie has a problem with drinking is putting it lightly. He is literally poisoning himself with what he drinks as often times he makes his concoctions with whatever is within reach; sometimes that means paint thinner. As his service in the Navy ends with the end of World War II, he stumbles from job to job until one night he walks aboard a large yacht.

Unbeknownst to him, the yacht belongs to a man named Lancaster Dodd (Philip Seymour Hoffman). Soon enough Freddie meets Dodd, who people call the master, and finds out that he is a self-proclaimed jack of all trades; “a writer, a doctor, a nuclear physicist and a theoretical philosopher, but above all, I am a man.” Dodd is eager to take Freddie under his wing. Freddie, a troubled soul looking for anything to cling on to, has no problems with that.

I found it especially interesting when Dodd introduces his family someone new that he first introduces Freddie before the rest of his family. In fact, the last person he acknowledges is his son, who does not believe what his father his preaching and at one point says, “Can’t you see what he is doing? He is making things up as he goes along.” The connection between the two only grows the more Freddie gets involved.

Freddie is not afraid to beat people up who question what Dodd is preaching. I think that speaks to how much he wanted to attach and be part of something. However, by the end you start to wonder if Freddie is being people up because he is afraid that the questioners are correct. Slowly, it is slightly implied that he may be casting his own doubts on Dodd, like when he is listening to him speak about how laughter is the secret on two separate occasions.

There is a scene early on when Lancaster Dodd interviews Freddie with intrusive questions about his past that is quite possibly the best scene in any film of this year. Emotions fill the screen as you see tears roll down Freddie’s eyes and the vein in his forehead as he screams in anger. It is the kind of scene that takes the air out of the room and makes your knuckles hurt from tension.

The Master had a couple of standout scenes where you get a glimpse of how Freddie sees the world. The obvious scene is when a roomful of people are cheering on Dodd dancing, Freddie sees every woman in the room naked. Another eerie but more subtle moment is when Dodd’s wife asks Freddie to look into her eyes and then change the color of them. You can notice that her eyes do in fact change.

Joaquin Phoenix puts on a performance that I do not think will be matched in his career again. From the very first teaser trailer it was pretty evident that his character is insane. My instant reaction from the little bit that I saw then was this could easily be an Oscar worthy performance by him. Now after seeing the film and his full performance, it only reaffirms my initial reaction.

Nearly matching the phenomenal performance of Phoenix was Philip Seymour Hoffman as the charismatic religious leader. He comes off as a confident speaker that can win over most doubters with his charm but you can tell that he is masking his own problems. In private there are some moments when he relies on his wife Peggy (Amy Adams) to guide him and tell him everything is going to be okay.

The Master felt almost like it was a companion piece to There Will Be Blood (which is currently one of only two perfectly rated films on Way Too Indie). The overall tone felt very much the same courtesy of Jonny Greenwood’s score in both films. But also the subject matter is similar; two powerful leaders who look to take advantage of the weak and powerless. Even though Paul Thomas Anderson replaced his go-to cinematographer Robert Elswit with Mihai Malaimare Jr. for this film, there were many epic shots including some outside tracking shots similar to ones that worked so well in There Will Be Blood.

While The Master did not quite have the instant masterpiece feeling after watching it as There Will Be Blood did, it certainly adds to the already impressive arsenal of films done by Paul Thomas Anderson. He is a modern day master (no pun intended) filmmaker that will years for now be studied and compared to. What makes this film work is that it is as ambiguous to itself just as the characters are portrayed in the film. The Master demands the viewer to read between the lines the whole time with implications but never answers questions for you. The last scene is a perfect example of this as it opens up a different theory that was mentioned earlier in the film depending how you interpret it. It is a challenging but rewarding film if you are willing to connect the dots yourself.

It seems like the word of the day was “delay.” After arriving at Toronto the line-up for picking up tickets took nearly an hour. That’s not a complaint though, anyone who has been to TIFF is fully aware that waiting in line is just part of the festival. Either way, gone were my hopes of rushing Imogene or Paradise: Love so off I went to Spring Breakers.

Unfortunately Spring Breakers ended up getting delayed by over a half hour, meaning that in order to catch my next screening I had to bail out on the film towards the end (I’m guessing there were 15-20 minutes left). I can’t give a proper review, but from what I did see it seemed like Harmony Korine hasn’t really changed for me. With his previous films like Mister Lonely and Trash Humpers, Korine was able to pull out some beautiful, amazing moments but couldn’t sustain that feeling throughout. Spring Breakers starts out strong with a montage of college kids partying which is the first of many montages peppered throughout. These were the best parts of the film, but as a collective whole the film became exhausting. I’d rather not get into too much detail since I haven’t seen the entire thing, but I do know one thing for sure. James Franco kills it in this. Believe the hype.

RATING: N/A

Spring Breakers

But of course, after Spring Breakers was the main event. I got in line for The Master and…ended up waiting some more due to an hour long delay. To add even more insult to injury, aside from a quick intro by Paul Thomas Anderson there was no sign of the cast and no Q&A. Considering the screening was charged at a premium because of a Q&A with the cast/director I’m guessing a lot of people weren’t too happy.

But on to the movie, which is sure to confuse many once it gets a wide(r) release. The film, which is simply about a mentally disturbed seaman (Joaquin Phoenix) becoming friends with the leader of a cult (Philip Seymour Hoffman) in 1950, has plenty of powerful moments. The use of 65mm film and feel of There Will Be Blood from the trailers might suggest a similarly epic story, but this is much more intimate than the insane bombast of Daniel Plainview. Phoenix wipes away his entire misstep with I’m Still Here in this, becoming so involved with his character that he’s unrecognizable at certain points. Hoffman is terrific as well, and the two of them getting Oscar nods is probably set in stone. My issue is that none of the great moments (and a shout out to the use of 65mm which was gorgeous) came together as a whole, which led to a very slow pace. I would need a rewatch to really settle in on how I feel about The Master, but my initial reaction is that it’s good. It’s just not the masterpiece that his last film was.

RATING: 7 (tentative)

The Master

COMING UP: I start to head into the Wavelengths direction with the half-silent Tabu, followed by Haneke’s Cannes winner Amour and the return of Ryuhei Kitamura with No One Lives.

Recap of some of my Tweets from today:

Follow @WayTooIndie for full coverage of the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival!

Went to pick up tickets, and now in my first of many lines for the fest. Can’t wait for SPRING BREAKERS and THE MASTER #TIFF12

— Way Too Indie (@WayTooIndie) September 7, 2012

Front of the spring breakers line is almost entirely young girls who are here for the cast. Poor souls have no clue what they’re in for.

— Way Too Indie (@WayTooIndie) September 7, 2012

From what I saw SPRING BREAKERS was a typical Korine movie for me. Hit and miss, with incredible highs and dull lows. #TIFF12

— Way Too Indie (@WayTooIndie) September 8, 2012

THE MASTER: going to take another watch before I get a better idea of what to think. Plenty of amazing stuff but it doesn’t come together

— Way Too Indie (@WayTooIndie) September 8, 2012

Today is the day Paul Thomas Anderson fans can rejoice. In the same day that we received the movie poster for Anderson’s upcoming film, The Master, we now have the full length trailer. Up until this point The Weinstein Company only toyed with us by giving us two teaser clips but they now released a full 2 minute and 37 second trailer for The Master.

From watching the trailer it appears that Joaquin Phoenix might have given his best performance to date which could earn him an Oscar nod come award season. From the trailer The Master certainly looks like Anderson could match the level of notoriety as his previous film, There Will Be Blood, did.

The Master will be released in theaters on October 12th.

Watch the official trailer for The Master:

We still do not know a whole lot about Paul Thomas Anderson’s highly anticipated film The Master. So far there has been two teaser trailers and news that Tom Cruise was unhappy about it’s portrayal of Scientology. But today one more small piece of information has been surfaced, a movie poster for The Master.

The Master Synopsis:

A 1950s-set drama centered on the relationship between a charismatic intellectual known as “the Master” whose faith-based organization begins to catch on in America, and a young drifter who becomes his right-hand man.

Movie poster for The Master:

It has been less than a month since the movie lords graced us with a first glimpse of P.T. Anderson’s newest film, The Master. But it was literally just a glimpse as it served more as a teaser clip than a full blown trailer. Today we have been blessed with the second teaser clip for The Master, which comes in at about the same runtime of a minute and a half.

Absent in the teaser was title character Philip Seymour Hoffman, who finally makes an appearance here as the charismatic leader known as “The Master” whose religion is about to take off in America. Joaquin Phoenix, a troubled ex-Navy man, becomes his right-hand man.

We will still have to wait for the full trailer to be released but this certainly wets our appetite for what will hopefully be P.T. Anderson’s next masterpiece. The Master will be released in theaters on October 12th.

Watch the second teaser clip for The Master:

To be honest, there is no other director out there today that gets me more excited to see their films than P.T. Anderson. It has been 5 very long years since his last film There Will Be Blood, which many including ourselves considered an instant masterpiece. Today the first teaser clip of his latest work entitled The Master has been released.

In this clip we see Joaquin Phoenix in the 1950’s who is a drunken sailor before he meets a charismatic religious leader played by the magnificent Philip Seymour Hoffman. It has long been rumored that Hoffman’s character would be a Scientology leader based on Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard. Amy Adams will also star in the film and Jonny Greenwood returns again to do the original score.

The Master is one of this year’s most anticipated films but we will not have to wait much longer. The film will open on October 12th, 2012. Check out the teaser clip below.