Yes, No, Maybe So: "The Master"
Saturday, July 21, 2012 at 4:02PM Hot on the heels of this beautiful new teaser poster for The Master, movie poster as chilled wine, we get the full trailer! P.T. Anderson's long awaited big screen return teaser post recalls the also evocative and text-focused teaser poster for There Will Be Blood which will be a very tough act to follow.
Even the Academy, which had resisted his sometimes challenging, defiantly eccentric and untraditional melding of epic treatment to non-traditionally-epic subject matter got into There Will Be Blood. But if anyone can live up to that film, wouldn't it be P.T.? He's never made anything less than a good movie and quite often he manages instant classics: Hard Eight, Boogie Nights, Magnolia, Punch Drunk Love, and There Will Be Blood. (Good luck finding anyone else with a filmography that consistently fine!)
Trailer and Yes No Maybe So breakdown follow...
YES
- The images are so crisp, evocative, and well chosen. Can't wait to see the imagery on the big screen.
- Joaquin Phoenix is often a stunning actor. I absolutely love the creeping doubt on his face, listening to the son diss his own father, Phoenix's idol. "He's making all this up as he goes along. Can't you see that?"
- ...and speaking of which, the casting of Jesse Plemons as the son of Philip Seymour Hoffman and Amy Adams strikes me as inspired even though he was never my favorite actor from Friday Night Lights.
- The subject matter has greatness in it; we need more smart movies about the dangers of idealogues.
- Most trailers use previously composed scores. If this is an old one I want to know which. If it's new, it's yet another great score for a P.T. movie.
- The questionnaire recitation feels unnerving for its universality. "Are you thoughtless in your remarks? Do your past failures bother you? Is your life a struggle? Is your behavior erratic?" Anyone could answer yes and drop their defences, and therein lies the cultish danger.
NO
- This has nothing to do with the movie but I'm already dreading the Oscar Campaign Category Fraud that's on its way because The Master is obviously a mano a mano movie, a two male lead battle. Who goes supporting fradulently? What worthy supporting player character actor will have to sacrifice a once-in-a-lifetime nomination so that Phoenix and Hoffman can have their third and fourth, respectively?
- Real "No"s are not applicable. I haven't got any.
MAYBE SO
- "I am a writer, a doctor, a nuclear physicist, a theoretical philosopher. But above all I am a man. Just like you." -- I actually love Philip Seymour Hoffman's line reading of this. And just his voice in general in this trailer. Surprise! Or maybe Joaquin Phoenix's delayed disbelief amusement ('this man. just like me?') makes me love it? I don't know. Point being: I love P.T. Anderson so much that I can even live with his PSH Addiction; this is their fourth collaboration. I don't care for his work in other Anderson films (but for Magnolia in which he's super) but I hope for the best.
TWO RANDOM SCREENCAP THOUGHTS THAT DON'T FIT THESE CATEGORIES
Amy Adams... can she give Hathaway a run for the Supporting Actress prize? I also hate it when gorgeous actresses have to frump it up onscreen but what can you do? She's playing a fundamentalist.
This is the exact look I have on my face when I watch Joaquin Phoenix act! He's a dangerous screen presence. You feel like anything might happen.
After this short glimpse of P.T. Anderson's The Master how YES NO MAYBE SO are you?
Reader Comments (45)
YES: everything
BUT: Where's Laura Dern? She's supposed to be here. :) I hope it's because her performance will be a real brief dynamite that kills at the first viewing. :)
It's completely wonderful to see Joaquin Phoenix come out of all that weirdness because you can feel he has a lot more to give. He looks absolutely mesmerizing.
I love the naval theme underlined with all those vivid BLUES. Ugh it's all so beautiful.
Big yes from me.
Has anyone taken a step back and realized just how crazy the next couple of years are going to be for Amy Adams? This seems like a career high point if I've ever seen one. This year, she has The Master AND Trouble the Curve with Clint Eastwood. Next year is in the Spike Jonez film and Man of Steel. Not to mention she has the next David O. Russell film on the horizon. If it's ever going to be her time to get that Oscar, it'll be in the next couple of years.
I'm so excited for this movie. I love the clips and trailers we've been getting for this movie because they give you enough of a look at the movie but we still have ABSOLUTELY no idea what is going on in them or the movie. Isn't that the points of advertising instead of just giving away all the plot points in the trailers?
Also, I'm not sure how I could handle a Hathaway vs. Adams two horse race. I know its way to early to tell but both women are some of my favorites and it would break my heart to watch one go unrewarded.
Perhaps for The Master you should've done a one time only special episode of the series entitled, "Yes, No, Maybe So, Holy Crap, Fuck Yeah!"
Huge Yes ... it all sounds great!
Huge Yes ... it all sounds great!
If it makes anyone feels any better about Adams vs Hathaway, I'm pretty sure Olivia Williams is going to win for Hyde Park on the Hudson anyway...
I think PSH is about to win his second Oscar for a lead that goes supporting here. I agree Nat-it's a pity that some character actor that could get a huge nomination that would get them a decade of work is about to be passed over here.
Can we please finally give Amy Adams an Oscar? It is KILLING me that she doesn't have one yet.
It's difficult for Amy to not look gorgeous. Besides this is more of a minor frup up than a full hag up, so it does't reek that much of a shallow awards play.
Oh and I'm a yes. Everyone else can have Batman. This is where my fanboy mania is focused.
For some reason I find all of Amy Adams' performances to be rather one dimensional and don't quite understand why she is cast in so many prestige films???
Nate, the music from the trailer is actually from Howard Shore's score for The Lord of the Rings. I believe it's actually the music that plays when Gandalf dies.
I said before, but yes, I love the trailer and I think, with Harvey hands, it has a lot of potential fo breaking at Oscars -Also the recent situation around the Scientology -Cruise divorce and Travolta sex scandals- will help to BO.
Maybe it sounds a category fraud, but after the trailers and the promo posters, Weinstein is promoting Phoenix as lead (First billing, more scenes around him) and with Hoffman campaigned in the supporting category alongside DiCaprio -Especially if he's convinced with DiCaprio's Oscar prospects).
About Amy Adams, she's my second nominee after Hathaway in the supporting category, but i'm having interest in "Trouble with the Curve". According with Robert Lorenz, this film is more as a father-daughter intimate drama than sport drama and Adams is a revelation. Maybe Adams could win in the leading category:
-Even when Warner Bros. has a lot of contenders, they haven't any in the female lead category -At least they campaign for Hathaway's Catwoman-, so maybe they have support for Adams.
-The Female lead category -at least right now-, is wide open and we don't have a young starlet with a deglam role -Cotillard, Portman-, a BO star -Bullock- or a respected veteran -Streep and possible Winslet- being a frontrunner and most of the contenders have disadvantages:
*Jessica Chastain: Maybe an ensemble film
*Jamie Cheung: "Asiaphobia" within AMPAS and not distribuitor yet
*Marion Cotillard: Foreign Language performance
*Penélope Cruz: Maybe in Venice we'll know more of the film"
*Viola Davis: Bordeline and maybe rejection ala "Waiting for Superman"
*Judi Dench: At most filler nom.
*Dakota Fanning: Too young for winning? and not distribuitor yet
*Maggie Gyllenhaal: Ditto with "Waiting for Superman"
*Helen Hunt: According to Scott Feinberg, after talking with executives of Fox Searchlight, is possible for Hunt being relegate in the supporting category instead Dench and Wallis
*Nicole Kidman: If Kidman wasn't nominated for Birth and Margot at the Wedding, forget it with "The Paperboy"... Even Millenium isn't exactly a demanding distribuitor
*Keira Knightley: A polarizing actress and the expectations of the adaptation are huge to fail. Also Seeking... mixed reception and poor BO could hurt her chances.
*Jennifer Lawrence: Two genre performances and one as bordeline performance
*Laura Linney: Maybe a subtle and bordeline performance
*Carey Mulligan: Another respected novel with big expectations also, the meaty roles are in the supporting category. At least Mulligan has the British vote in her favor.
*Emmanulle Riva: Uknown status and foreign language performance
*Amanda Seyfreid: Maybe just enough for nomination and not distribuitor yet
*Maggie Smith: Comedy performance and two Oscars. Even for Havey is an uphill battle, especially after Streep's third Oscar.
*Quvenzhané Wallis: She's 8 years old debutant actress
*Michelle Williams: Lukewarm reviews for the film and Magnolia studios
*Mary Elizabeth Winstead: As Seyfreid, maybe just enough for nomination and overshadowed by Wallis
Each day pass, I believe Adams could surprise in the leading category. She's A-List star with BO films and working with respected thespians. If the reviews are good enough and with media attention, Adams could win in the leading category
100% in. I'm not sure Hathaway is a sure thing - it's not happening for Batman, so Les Mis will need to give her some meat. This is a great choice for Adams and I could see her taking it. She's one of the best character actresses around these days.
Phoenix is creepy as hell. Playing to his strengths could be a Best Actor Oscar. I bet PSH goes supporting.
This has not been a good week for Laura Dern aficionados - first she was robbed of an Emmy nomination and now there's no sign of her here.
Nevertheless, I'm excited for the film.
Yes. It's going to be great... but I do wonder if it'll be more of something to be impressed by than something that can be enjoyed. I really respect TWBB and think it's filmmaking of the highest quality, but it wasn't exactly a film I could love because it seemed so restrained and distant.
Maybe that's just me.
Edwin: That statement is true for the new Superman teaser trailer.
The music is original Jonny Greenwood for this movie.
The lead acting categories aren't double nominee friendly, although they will be when Julia and Meryl share again for August.
The supporting actor category only goes up in quality of winners when it's filled with secondary, third, and fourth leads.
eurocheese, actually i'm predicting her for Les Misérables. Even if the film is like Nine, she could be nominated for the most tragic character of the play. The win, it depends for the reviews for the film
Hell yes! And I do hope Hathaway wins best supporting actress, she was fantastic in "The Dark Knight Rises." Maybe my favorite thing about the movie.
A huge yes for me, am not looking forward to watching anything else this year. In regards to the score, I do believe it is another Jonny Greenwood original; his score to There Will be Blood was fantastic.
Good comment on the images being so crisp; that was the first thing I noticed as well. Robert Elswit was the cinematographer on all of his previous films but didn't shoot this one. Judging by the trailer, it looks as if he doesn't really miss him.
YES ! Very very excited about this - and I would love to see Phoenix holding an Oscar next year .. Academy overlooked great work in Reservation Road & Two Lovers (but admittedly both movies quiet hard to digest).
His Cash performance is definitely one of the most impressing and best male performances of the decade - was heartbroken to see his co-star walking away with all the glory.. and sure I loved PSH (but didn't really warm up with "Capote".. and he will be always a great choice for a second Supporting Oscar in the next 20 years anyway)..
Time to be (finally) awarded next year:
Phoenix / Davis or Linnley / Benning or Gylenhall ... and Moore of course!
God... Joaquin Phoenix is a time bomb! I can see him getting a Best Leading Actor Oscar nod alongside some big names like Day-Lewis or Bill Murray.
That awkward moment when you realise how poor the cinema industry was when Phoenix was in the "stand-by" mode!
Yes all the way. A negative answer was never an option!
Amy's voice-over, not specifically mentioned in the article, suggests a remarkable shift from her other performances. I'd also note the moment when she gives the suspicious eye/death stare to Christopher Evan Welch as the Doubting Thomas figure. Woof.
Hard to believe this film had such a time getting together in the first place. Remember when it was meant for Reese Witherspoon and Jeremy Renner? I certainly could see those two in these roles, but I imagine we ended up with the darker pair. Yay!
I'm a big yes ... I've loved PTA ever since Boogie Nights, and Magnolia is one of my favorite movies. Plus I would've given Joaquin the Oscar back for Walk the Line; I think he's one of the greats. And the scientology tie-in to this film is fascinating (I'll admit I've read more about it than I care to admit since Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes announced their divorce).
This is actually their fifth feature collaboration after Hard Eight, Boogie Nights, Magnolia, and Punch-Drunk Love.
I am such a "YES" that I can't really explain it. Glad you are too!
I'm sorry, but I don't get the Amy Adams obsession lol. I mean I like her, but I never thought she was amazing...idk.
I still have my money on Anne right now...with a huge film like Batman and then Les Mis (which she would get it for), I don't see how she'll miss out. But you can't say anything for sure right now!
Philip: I entirely agree with you, Hathaway will beat Bening and the Academy's Adams obsession is a bit much. She certainly wasn't better than Leo in The Fighter or Davis in Doubt.
I was stunned by Amy Adams in the trailer. It seems like she actually has a GOOD ROLE, not just a cut-and-paste supportive wife. I think she has a serious shot!
Definitely YES. In the meantime, a couple thoughts:
Am I the only one who thinks Hoffman will go lead and Phoenix will go supporting? James McAvoy and Forest Whitaker in "The Last King of Scotland" is the best example I can conjure of a two-lead film where the more explosive performance, Whitaker's, gets campaigned in lead while McAvoy's younger true protagonist is put in supporting. It's often how the mentor/pupil are divvied up. See also: Dench/Blanchett in "Notes on a Scandal" (which got it right) and Streep in "The Devil Wears Prada" (not that Hathaway was ever a contender for that anyway...)
Really hoping right about now that Laura Dern is to this what Viola Davis was for "Doubt" or William Hurt was to "A History of Violence." I like Adams, but I can't help but wish Dern was playing the wife. Really miss seeing her in big roles.
Alex, maybe in the case of Whitaker-McAvoy debacle was because at that time, McAvoy was a relative uknown and his age didn't help in the leading category. In the Dench-Blanchett case, the story is told by Dench's perspective and even when Blanchett's character make actions, Dench reacts as an opposite way. I make your point for Streep-Hathaway...
The more I think about it, I don't think it'll happen for two reasons:
*As I said before, the Weinsteins are making Phoenix as the lead focus of the story, even when you see the trailer, a third part of it is just for Phoenix's background, the teasers also have that and he's the first billing even instead Hoffman. Trivia: the last time where a lead actor was billing in other place was in 1992. Emma Thompson was third billing after Hopkins and Redgrave. I don't considerate Mulligan and Sibide because they're promoted as relevations.
*DiCaprio's prospects. If he's Oscar worthy, as Harvey said in a declaration before and winning a second Oscar is difficult at these times, it is very likely to relegate Hoffman as a supporting actor and having 2-2 with Phoenix as lead and DiCaprio as supporting -Ironic, isn't it?-
Just a minor point that PSH was truly outstanding in Boogie Nights. His performance is still memorable to me to this day.
/4rtful -- it doesn't matter if it goes up in quality. It still betrays the purpose of having a supporting category to begin with. That was created specifically as a way to honor below the line actors who contributed greatly to the success of their movie, not movie stars slumming because it's easier to win that way. grrrr
Brandz -- i hated him in that movie!
Stephen -- i don't remember that? Reese, huh? I wish she would work in better films. (sigh)
Sorry I can't become more sympathetic to your cause but women over a certain age usually are over because of their age — black women are nothing but jokes, fat ones, the list of the 4 out of 5 women in Supporting Actress winners says so — the Supporting Categories are rarely as good as their bigger siblings and even then it's about star f**king.
People who scream nuance are being contrarian — learn your Academy for better or worse: usually worse and you'll navigate the waters quiet easy.
4rtful -- i know my Academy quite well, thank you. But I also have a belief system and a desire to use my powers for good: in the promotion of great artists of the cinema who don't get multi-million dollar paychecks, not as a zombie who just embraces the status quo.
I intend to go down screaming. There is really no reason whatsoever that the supporting categories shouldn't be every bit as interesting as the lead categories WITHOUT fraud.
You know, I'm not the biggest PTA fan (I largely find his films to be very well-done, but highly overrated... except for Boogie Nights, which is great, full stop), but this looks amazing, and the cast is VERY exciting, even if PSH is a bit tiring. Always love Amy Adams and Joaquin Phoenix is so unpredictable as an actor - one of the more fascinating screen presences of his generation. I'm very much looking forward to this.
Supporting to be interesting without secondary leads would mean homework for the Academy and they hate having to think for themselves: Havery Weinstein and his history of dirty Oscar wins, and if you really care you'd want less traditional studio bait and more auteur driven outlier performances from character performers, unknowns, and foreigners who don't have to play the cute game like Frenchie did this year.
4rtful -- and i don't want these things? What are you getting at? Or are you just trying to start a fight?
I flew off the rails in the last posting but my main point is that Supporting to be honest and quality requires the Academy to care and they just don't. Many of the veterans who are Oscar-less best bets outside of Lifetime Achievement awards are the Supporting category — secondary leads are usually played by character actors anyway (Philip Seymour Hoffman).
The lead acting races are generally vanilla and that's no racial pun. They like nominating a Jack Nicholson for As Good As It Gets and Meryl Streep for waking up in the morning — when they venture out to an unknown, a veteran given a chance, outlier and auteur driven performances, they're mere window dressing and then they go onto reward Harvey's choice or the beloved veteran — usually with the women you have to be pretty or pretty young and sympathetic (Hilary Swank).
All is not lost for once-in-a-lifetime-character actor guy, if PSH goes supporting. There´s always the DiCaprio spot.
I think we just found our Best Picture frontrunner.
If it lives up to any expectations and has Harvey majorly pushing it + the zeitgeist of the subject matter and the overdue factor of PTA, I think this might be it.
I don't wanna be premature and say that it ultimately wins in the end but if everything is in place (and it seems like it very much is right now) then I can't see another contender popping up with such gravitas.
I'm a HELL YES btw.
I WOULD be a total yes, and I might see this (eventually) if PT Anderson makes the right sort of follow-up. (The Bone People, for example.) But like I've said (way too many times), I couldn't in good conscience support THIS director right now, but I would HATE to have to keep him on a personal blacklist.
I'm late to this post, but I just gotta say, I'm totally that person who thinks Amy Adams was better than Melissa Leo in The Fighter. This trailer looks phenomenal, but I have loved every Paul Thomas Anderson movie I've seen, so I was an automatic yes.