Let it be said that Boogie Nights is indeed a powerful piece of work. If not a masterpiece, it is at least the work of a talented journeyman who has mastered many of the elements of his craft. Since Anderson is responsible for both screenplay and direction, he can be the recipient of the lion's share of both praise and blame. Fortunately for him, there is more of the former than the latter, as Anderson is able to characterize the late 70's and early 80's porno scene with relatively good taste and many powerful dramatic characterizations.
Boogie Nights is the story of Eddie Adams (Mark Wahlberg of "Calvin Klein" fame). A busboy with a spectacular natural endowment, he makes an impression on porno director Jack Horner (Burt Reynolds), not only for what he keeps in his shorts, but for his eagerness to participate in Jack's dream of making a porno movie that can be appreciated for its own filmic merits. Eddie leaves his monster of a mother (Joanna Gleason), assumes the more suggestive name of "Dirk Diggler" and joins Horner's band of weirdoes and misfits. These include the maternal Amber Waves (Julianne Moore), the unselfconscious Rollergirl (Heather Graham), and Dirk's instant best friend, the dim Reed Rothchild (John C. Reilly). These three, along with Dirk, make up the main cast of the movies which are directed by Horner and financed by the perverse Colonel James (Robert Ridgely).
The movie has a very fine cast, with many notable character actors in smaller roles, such as William H. Macy as a cuckolded producer, magician Ricky Jay as a cinematographer who has seen it all, Don Cheadle as a porn "actor" with cowboy tastes and odd ambitions, Philip Baker Hall as a mafiaesque producer, and Philip Seymour Hoffman as a nebbishy production assistant with a secret. Inevitably, with such a large and interesting cast, one wishes to see more of some actors and less of others: I thought Hoffman turned in a quirky, real performance, while perhaps we saw too much of Moore's maternal side (must we have the fact that she is literally and metaphorically a mother of lost children pressed into our faces?). Cheadle's plans to open a stereo store also grow tedious as the film went on.
The imperfections here lie more with Anderson the screenwriter than Anderson the director. Very likely he became so enamored by his characters that he couldn't help but write more for each. In this respect, perhaps he would have done better to have written a shorter screenplay and later filled out the characters in the form of a novel. Others have also noted that Anderson's dialogue is undistinguished.
In any case, the movie does give us an engaging drama, as well as huge slices of life from the late 70's to the early 80's, an era which is now being exploited more and more by filmmakers. In this film, that era is portrayed as one of great flux, especially for the porn industry. We see the rise and fall of Dirk Diggler, although it curiously doesn't touch on the later AIDS epidemic among the more promiscuous.
Burt Reynolds has been touted by many as a surefire Oscar nominee for his performance as the fatherly director Jack Horner. While his performance was good, it was far from great. Perhaps expectations for him were so low after a lifetime of terrible movies and terrible performances that a performance that was accomplished but unspectacular was mistaken for brilliant. Mark Wahlberg, who plays the lead, has been deservedly derided for years for his mannered public persona. However, he is qutie good, affecting even, as Eddie Adams/Dirk Diggler. Possibly the finest performance in the film came from the previously mentioned Philip Seymour Hoffman. As his role was too small to even be classified as "supporting," however, I would not give an Oscar nod to him, nor to any other performer in the cast. Actually, the entire ensemble deserves recognition, as this film has had the finest ensemble acting of any film I've seen since Lone Star.
The wandering camera (Robert Elswit, cinematography) and lightning fast editing (Dylan Tichenor) are some of the best on celluloid this year and add immeasurably to the film as a whole. The production design, costumes, and music were an excellent evocation of the era, perhaps the 80's more so than the 70's. All in all, Anderson's production is an excellent one all around, worthy of comparison, as many have noted, to Robert Altman. Now, just some work on the screenplay and it would be near perfect.
Three-and-a-half stars
Copyright 1998 by Dale G. Abersold
