The Master (2012)
Average Rating: 8.1/10
Reviews Counted: 220
Fresh: 189 | Rotten: 31
Smart and solidly engrossing, The Master extends Paul Thomas Anderson's winning streak of challenging films for serious audiences.
Average Rating: 8.2/10
Critic Reviews: 47
Fresh: 39 | Rotten: 8
Smart and solidly engrossing, The Master extends Paul Thomas Anderson's winning streak of challenging films for serious audiences.
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Average Rating: 3.4/5
User Ratings: 40,444
My Rating
Movie Info
A striking portrait of drifters and seekers in post World War II America, Paul Thomas Anderson's The Master unfolds the journey of a Naval veteran (Joaquin Phoenix) who arrives home from war unsettled and uncertain of his future - until he is tantalized by The Cause and its charismatic leader (Philip Seymour Hoffman). -- (C) Weinstein
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Cast
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Joaquin Phoenix
Freddie Quell, Freddie ... -
Philip Seymour Hoffman
Lancaster Dodd -
Amy Adams
Mary Sue Dodd, Peggy Do... -
Laura Dern
Helen, Helen Sullivan -
Jesse Plemons
Val Dodd -
David Warshofsky
Philadelphia Police, Ph... -
Rami Malek
Clark -
Price Carson
V.A. Doctor -
Mike Howard
Rorschach Doctor -
Sarah Shoshana David
V.A. Nurse -
Bruce Goodchild
V.A./Doctor Interview -
Matt Hering
V.A. Patient -
Dan Anderson
V.A. Patient -
Andrew Koponen
V.A. Patient -
Jeffrey Jenkins
V.A. Patient -
Patrick Biggs
V.A. Patient -
Ryan Curtis
V.A. Patient -
Jay Laurence
V.A. Patient -
Abraxas Adams
V.A. Patient -
Tina Bruna
Portrait Customer -
Kevin Hudnell
Portrait Customer -
Hunter Craig
Portrait Customer -
Ryder Craig
Portrait Customer -
Rodion Salnikov
Portrait Customer -
Emily Gilliam
Portrait Customer -
Kody Klein
Portrait Customer -
Amy Ferguson
Martha the Salesgirl -
W. Earl Brown
Fighting Businessman -
Frank Bettag
Frank -
Ariel Felix
Filipino Worker -
Vladimir Velasco
Filipino Worker -
John Mark Reyes
Filipino Worker -
Brian Fong
Filipino Worker -
Diane Cortejo
Young Filipino Woman -
Leonida A. Bautista
Nana -
Myrna de Dios
Angry Filipino Woman -
Katie Boland
Young Woman -
Ambyr Childers
Elizabeth Dodd -
Lorelai Hoey
Baby -
Martin D. Dew
Norman Conrad -
Joshua Close
Wayne Gregory -
Jillian Bell
Susan Gregory -
Kevin Walsh
Cliff Boyd -
Lena Endre
Mrs. Solstad -
Madisen Beaty
Doris Solstad -
William H. O'Brien
Hiring Hall Voice -
Kevin J. O'Connor
Bill William -
Patty McCormack
Mildred Drummond -
Mimi Cozzens
Chi Chi Crawford -
Zan Overall
Bartender -
Barbara Brownell
Margaret O'Brien -
Jill Andre
Beatrice Campbell -
Brigitte Hagerman
New York Party Girl -
Charley Morgan
New York Lawyer -
Christopher Evan Welch
John More -
Barlow Jacobs
James Sullivan -
Gigi Benson
Dancer -
Liz Clare
Dancer -
Fiona Dourif
Dancer -
Audrey Finer
Dancer -
Rose Fox
Dancer -
Bailey Hopkins
Dancer -
Mari Kearney
Dancer -
Sarah Klaren
Dancer -
Ally Johnson
Dancer -
Brittany Kilcoyne McGrego...
Dancer -
Larain Ring
Dancer -
Kimberly Ables Jindra
Processing Patient -
Theodore M. Crisell
Jail Bird -
Tom Knickerbocker
Judge Phoenix -
Eban Schletter
Band Member - Piano -
Scott Rodgers
Band Member - Drum -
Melora Walters
Band Member - Voice -
Emily Jordan
British Receptionist -
Amanda Caryn Jobbins
British Receptionist -
Olivia Rosemarie Barham
Pub Customer -
Napolean Ryan
Pub Customer -
Jennifer Neala Page
Winn Manchester
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The Master Trailer & Photos
All Critics (220) | Top Critics (47) | Fresh (191) | Rotten (31) | DVD (3)
In the end it may not have the emotional uplift the Academy or a popular mainstream audience craves, but make no mistake, this is an enthralling drama about a peculiarly American restlessness, and the striving for insight and grace.
Top Critic[A] challenging, psychologically fraught drama.
The actors' commitment to their roles is impressive, but it's tethered to a weightless, airless movie, a film so enamored of itself, the audience gets shut out.
The Master may go down as one of Paul Thomas Anderson's most compelling works for two simple reasons: Joaquin Phoenix and Philip Seymour Hoffman.
Where There Will Be Blood transmuted sullen earth into flame and launched it violently skyward, The Master is, as its opening shot advertises, a more fluid undertaking, a story of ebb and flow.
The Master is as confounding as it is magnificent.
THE MASTER is challenging, perplexing, at times infuriating - and always thoughtful. Indelible. And always, always beautiful.
by itself, gives lie to the idea that Americans don't make great, nuanced, complicated films. It's sublime.
Paul Thomas Anderson's The Master is a challenging film, like most of his work. One that evokes a spellbinding performance out of Joaquin Phoenix.
Despite sumptuous cinematography and sublime acting, Paul Thomas Anderson's latest film ultimately feels a touch pointless.
There is not too much by way of extras in the new Blu-ray release of the under appreciated film, "The Master," but what is there is excellent.
Phoenix and Hoffman both put on clinics, and Anderson's story, though meandering, never stalls.
Possibly the most misunderstood American movie of last year, Paul Thomas Anderson's most striking and original movie to date ultimately reveals itself to be a great thwarted American love story.
Admirável ao permitir que o filme desenvolva seus temas e personagens ao seguir em direções frequentemente inesperadas, Anderson continua a demonstrar seu talento como cineasta tanto pela maturidade de seus temas quanto por seu preciosismo estético.
Refusing to wrestle with the veracity or the real implications of The Cause, one begins to question what is underpinning the entire exercise, an ambiguity that, as with Kubrick, will require multiple viewings to unravel.
The at-times-impenetrable film will require multiple viewings to fully appreciate the multitude of themes and subtext.
Anderson has achieved his mid-century epic, and in its pure 65mm sumptuousness, the great American movie.
THE MASTER is a brilliant film. THE MASTER is a confounding film. The Master is a terrible film. THE MASTER may talked about for the ages or forgotten in a few years. THE MASTER may be a masterpiece, THE MASTER may be empty of content...
THE MASTER is brilliant and/or confounding and/or terrible. It may be talked about for the ages or forgotten in a few years. It may be a masterpiece, and/or it may be empty of content masked by strong moments of acting prowess and visual flare.
With almost no narrative progression, this film is basically a character study in which the main characters remain little changed and enigmatic.
The least accessible of Anderson's films, and the least enjoyable, but it's intelligent and original enough for him to remain a "must-see" director.
For me, it is a masterpiece, a visually stunning explosion of pure cinema, emotionally charged with a penetrating psychological punch. If you are bored by this film, to paraphrase the great Samuel Johnson, then you are bored with life.
This is ( ... ) for cinephiles. You are expected to love it, but it sometimes left me scratching my head.
The Master is not short but, once you fill in the blanks, you find yourself constructing a meta-film that, if realised, would play for many, many more hours.
Audience Reviews for The Master
Super Reviewer
Super Reviewer
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- Val Dodd: He's making all this up as he goes along. You don't see that? I could go to sleep for hours and when I woke up I wouldn't have missed a thing.
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- British Receptionist: You look like you've traveled here.
- Freddie Quell: How else do you get someplace?
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- Freddie Quell: What do you do?
- Lancaster Dodd: I am a writer, a doctor, a nuclear physicist and a theoretical philosopher. But above all, I am a man, a hopelessly inquisitive man, just like you.
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- Lancaster Dodd: I would like to talk to you today about cold feet, and narrow minds. People with cold feet cannot move forward. People with narrow minds cannot move side to side.
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- Lancaster Dodd: Are you thoughtless in your remarks?
- Freddie Quell: No.
- Lancaster Dodd: Is your life a struggle?
- Freddie Quell: No.
- Lancaster Dodd: Is your behavior erratic?
- Freddie Quell: No.
- Lancaster Dodd: Are you unpredictable?
- Freddie Quell: [farts and laughs]
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- Mary Sue Dodd: He's dangerous, and he will be our undoing if we continue to have him here. Perhaps he's past help. Or insane.
Discussion Forum
| Topic | Last Post | Replies |
|---|---|---|
| The Master - terrible | 3 days ago | 72 |
| You fucktards, this movie is superb | 7 days ago | 7 |
| Oscar Nominations | 53 days ago | 41 |
| Rotten Tomato Rankings | 56 days ago | 0 |
Latest News on The Master
March 1, 2013:
Digital Multiplex: The Master, The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2, and MoreThis weekend in streaming, we've got an Oscar-nominated drama (The Master) and the conclusion to a...
January 24, 2013:
Joaquin Phoenix in Talks for Inherent ViceClearly, Phoenix and Paul Thomas Anderson enjoyed their time together on "The Master."
December 18, 2012:
Toronto Film Critics Association 2012 Awards WinnersOn December 18th, the Toronto Film Critics Association revealed the winners of the TFCA 2012 Awards,...
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And what we have here is a film that I've had one of the hardest times getting through.
Freddie Quell is a sex-obsessed alcoholic drifter with a troubled past who is struggling to adjust to post-war life in America. One drunken night he stows away on the boat of Lancaster Dodd, the charismatic leader of a fringe movement known as The Cause. Uncertain of the future and himself, Quell becomes heavily involved with Dodd and his followers and, despite their best efforts to help him, his demons just may get the best of all of them.
Inspired by L. Ron Hubbard and Scientology (to a degree), this is a fascinating character study about the effects of a master and servant type of relationship in a cult-like setting. The best words I can think of to describe this film would be difficult, challenging, and uncomfortable.
That last one is especially true, as the film has this overwhelming atmosphere of dread and uneasiness through every single frame. I thought that There Will Be Blood was a heavy film, but this one raises the bar. It easily makes for some great thought and discussion afterwards.
The film is hard to like, but easy to respect. The characters aren't the most appealing of people. especially Freddie, and a lot of the time, you really don't know what the film is trying to say, or what the point of everything is. I like that it doesn't spoon feed the audience, but maybe its a bit too meandering, ambitious and ambiguous.
Two things really save it though, and that is the cinematography and the acting. This is PTA's first film without long time cinematographer Robert Elswit, but the results are still staggeringly beautiful and stunning. The film was shot in 65mm, and unfortunately I didn't get the chance to see it on a big screen. It' is striking and gorgeous all the way through, and there's some great trademark long takes and tracking shots as well.
Joaquin Phoenix is in top form here, and it is great to see him back in action, He really smolders as the screwed up, unpleasant, and mysterious Freddie. Going toe to toe with him is long time PTA collaborator Philip Seymour Hoffman as Dodd, and dear Lord, is this a great performance. He might not be as griping as Daniel-Day Lewis in TWBB, but he is nevertheless amazing to watch. Amy Adams appears as Dodd's wife Mary Sue Dodd, and holy crap! She's really quite creepy and unsettling, and it makes me want to rethink my crush on her, similar to Ellen Page's performance in Hard Candy.
I love Anderson, and I think he's a really important filmmaker, but sometimes, I just don't know about him. This film, like its characters, is a hard nut to crack. It's really good, but I have just enough issues with it to keep from gushing about it like I usually do with PTA's work. I recommend it, but only go in knowing that this one's not an easy ride, despite how beautiful the landscape may be.