Quick recap: Eddie is a mostly unremarkable 17 year old whose one special talent skyrockets him to porn stardom.

John C. Reilly is a national treasure

Fun (?) fact: Boy, did Burt Reynolds hate Paul Thomas Anderson while filming this movie. The two constantly fought throughout the whole thing, and after watching a rough cut, Reynolds said he regretted ever signing on. He ended up being nominated for several awards and many people think it’s his best role of his career.

Fitting that I watch this movie after purchasing a pair of rollerblades. I’ll never be near as graceful as Heather Graham though.

My thoughts: Boogie Nights was a treat from beginning to end, which I realize is the corniest thing I could say about a movie about porn, but it’s true. Looking through the list of actors, I mentally squealed with each name- William H. Macy, Julianne Moore (my crush), Don Cheadle, THE Philip Seymour Hoffman (whom I will always love) and….Mark Wahlberg. Yeah, that last one didn’t do much for me. I have nothing against Marky Mark or his Funky Bunch, but he’s never been on any of my favorites list, unless you count Favorite Siblings of Members in New Kids on the Block. But Mark Wahlberg surrounded by actors I do genuinely love totally did it for me. I can’t say that I’ll ever really warm up to him, but I can at least say he has talent.

The entire movie is wonderful but I especially loved the feel of the movie. The 70s were such a good time for music and fashion and Anderson did an incredible job getting it just right. Sure, some of it was exaggerated because we are talking about porn stars here, but every scene still felt realistic and made me wonder if I was actually watching something based on a true story.

I don’t think I’m spoiling anything in saying that Boogie Nights doesn’t end as horribly as I thought it might. I know next to nothing about the porn industry, except for a longform article about James Deen I read one time. I remember that it seemed like way more work than I expected it to be and that was a little disappointing. Boogie Nights shows off the fun but I don’t think ever takes the road of glamorizing what went on. Not that Anderson should be the morality police, but where’s the drama in watching sexy people have fun? I think I was most surprised by the transition of film to video cassettes in the era and how that affected the industry. Porn has always had a seedy history but before home movies, directors at least strived to make something of quality. It’s an interesting perspective that never occurred to me before watching the movie.

Final review: 5/5

Up next: Gandhi