"Inherent Vice"-- (Paul Thomas Anderson)

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inherent_Vice_(film)

 

 

Inherent Vice is an upcoming American crime comedy film written and directed byPaul Thomas Anderson, based on the novel of the same name by Thomas Pynchon. The film stars Joaquin Phoenix, Josh Brolin, Owen Wilson, Katherine Waterston,Reese Witherspoon, Jena Malone, Joanna Newsom and Benicio del Toro. It will be the first feature film to be officially adapted from a work by Pynchon.

[Michael*]

Joanna Newsom? How random.

 

The book is a great read (if a little slight by Pynchon's usual standards), and a fun take on the now well-trodden hard-boiled LA detective story. Looking forward to seeing what Anderson does with it.

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I have zero experience with reading pychon, but a friend of mine is huge fan of Pynchon's writing.  His favorite is 'Gravity's Rainbow'. 

 

What is this crime book about and will it cover universal themes (PTA's interest)?

[Michael*]

I haven't been brave enough to try reading 'Gravity's Rainbow' just yet, I'm still trying to work my way up to it. This was the most accessible Pynchon book I've come across so far, though.

 

For the kind of story that it is, the plot is a pretty typical one. It's darkly funny, very twisty, with a number of seemingly isolated events that gradually interlock, and a heavy emphasis on examining the social attitudes of the sixties. There's a colossal cast (for reference, I had to jot down the names of some of the people involved and what connected them while I was reading ), but the main character is a guy called Doc Sportello (to be played in the movie by Joaquin Phoenix, I believe), a lonely and permanently stoned private eye who bumbles his way through most of his cases, often solving them through sheer good fortune. As you might expect, his occupation and view of the world are rather at odds with his hippy ideals; he carries a deep sense of loss for what he thinks the previous decade could and should have become, and has a resentment of corporate greed and the self-involvement of the exploited. Think of it as an angrier and more politicised ‘Big Lebowski’ and you’ll be on the right lines.

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Is 'Gravity's Rainbow' difficult to read?  He credits Pychon's books for inspiring him to be a better writer.  

 

So let's see with PTA did with the Master and TWBB...

 

-PTA's TWBB was supposedly based on Upton Sinclair's "Oil".  Film critics however, have noted that the film borrows little from the socialist polemic of Sinclair outside of the setting.   One of my favorite books: Yergin's tome "The Prize" (Pulitzer prize) is a hagiographic history of the oil industry but it in fact complements TWBB quite well even though it does not carry marxist messages.

 

-'The Master' was rumored to be an 'anti-Scientology' film but it ended up not taking this advocacy route.

 

So I found that PTA, in both films, refrained from hamming things up with socialist or anti-scientology/anti-religious cliches and went towards the more difficult task of portraying the rarely (openly) seen snippets of the human condition.  He deep dived into one (TWBB) or two (the Master) key characters.

 

I think it is probable then, that he will continue with his usual methods unless revealed otherwise.  

[kbutt394]

^Yes, I think Gravity's Rainbow is infamous for being a tough read and I personally thought it lived up to its reputation. 

 

I think Pynchon and PTA are a good and interesting match. Pynchon is a little more political than PTA, even in a "fluffier" book (for Pynchon) like Inherent Vice, but not enough to present any sort of problem for PTA's usual proclivities. 

 

I think you're right on about PTA avoiding any sort of heavy-handed criticism against capitalism or religion. He seems more interested in the psychology and motivations behind great/terrible people, and their relationships with other (possibly great/terrible) people. It's one of the many reasons I love him forever and always

 

Whereas in TWBB and The Master, he really tried to get into the minds of one or two characters, especially in the context of some interesting mentor/mentee or father/son contexts, Inherent Vice focuses more broadly on a wider cast of characters and a specific time period. In that way, it's kind of similar to Boogie Nights. It also has a lot of dark, weird humour, similar to Boogie Nights. 

 

Boogie Nights is one of my favourite PTA films and I can't wait to see him take on another ensemble type of movie. 

 

tl;dr my anticipation for this film has consumed my life

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May I ask: What did you get out of reading it, personally?

 

 

^Yes, I think Gravity's Rainbow is infamous for being a tough read and I personally thought it lived up to its reputation. 

 

I think Pynchon and PTA are a good and interesting match. Pynchon is a little more political than PTA, even in a "fluffier" book (for Pynchon) like Inherent Vice, but not enough to present any sort of problem for PTA's usual proclivities. 

 

I think you're right on about PTA avoiding any sort of heavy-handed criticism against capitalism or religion. He seems more interested in the psychology and motivations behind great/terrible people, and their relationships with other (possibly great/terrible) people. It's one of the many reasons I love him forever and always

 

Whereas in TWBB and The Master, he really tried to get into the minds of one or two characters, especially in the context of some interesting mentor/mentee or father/son contexts, Inherent Vice focuses more broadly on a wider cast of characters and a specific time period. In that way, it's kind of similar to Boogie Nights. It also has a lot of dark, weird humour, similar to Boogie Nights. 

 

Boogie Nights is one of my favourite PTA films and I can't wait to see him take on another ensemble type of movie. 

 

tl;dr my anticipation for this film has consumed my life

[kbutt394]

May I ask: What did you get out of reading it, personally?

[Michael*]

Official trailer has finally arrived.