Paul Thomas Anderson's evolution from a brash, self-anointed "Indiewood"
auteur to one of his generation's most distinctive voices has been one
of the most remarkable career trajectories in recent film history. From
early efforts to emulate his cinematic heroes to his increasingly
singular late films, Anderson has created a body of work that balances
the familiar and the strange, history and myth: viewers feel perpetually
off balance, unsure of whether to expect a pitch-black joke or a moment
of piercing emotional resonance.
This book provides the most complete account of Anderson's career to
date, encompassing his varied side projects and unproduced material; his
personal and professional relationships with directors such as Jonathan
Demme, Robert Altman, and Robert Downey Sr.; and his work as a director
of music videos for Fiona Apple, Joanna Newsom, and Haim. Ethan Warren
explores Anderson's recurring thematic preoccupations-the fraught
dynamics of gender and religious faith, biological and found families,
and his native San Fernando Valley-as well as his screenwriting methods
and his relationship to his influences. Warren argues that Anderson's
films conjure up an alternate American history that exaggerates and
elides verifiable facts in search of a heightened truth marked by a
deeper level of emotional hyperrealism. This book is at once an
unconventional primer on Anderson's films and a provocative reframing of
what makes his work so essential.
