Inherent Vice (2014)

Dear Mister Anderson,

The first work of yours which I ever saw was the movie Magnolia, your work impressed me and during your career I’ve seen almost all of your movies including Punch Drunk Love, There Will Be Blood and The Master. Also didn’t want to miss your latest film, Inherent Vice. I couldn’t wait to find out what it was about and what to expect from it. See, I never read the book this movie is based on, but as you know how to make movies I had confidence this would be a nice surprise.

I like the fact that you decided to work together with Joaquin Phoenix again, who gave a stunning performance in your previous film, The Master. So I have no issues with casting him in the main role of a stoner named Doc, a private investigator who ends up in a mysterious, complex case and meets strange people. That concept of the movie (except for the stoner bit) reminded me a bit of Chinatown, but with more comedy. As a director you are at the top of knowing how to tell a story in a visually compelling way and yet again you prove that here.

Can you please pass my compliments to the location scouts, set designers and the wardrobe people? They have succeeded in giving the viewer the feeling that this movie actually was shot during the seventies. Even the actors make it believable through the use of slang in their lines. I enjoyed seeing that actors/actresses like Josh Brolin, Owen Wilson, Reese Witherspoon and Benicio del Toro also were interested in working with you on this movie. Especially Brolin as badass detective Bigfoot was a joy to watch.

Still, I am wondering why you made the decision to make the plot so complicated that there came a moment where I was completely lost and didn’t have a clue what was going on? I didn’t understand what Phoenix was looking for, who gave him the assignment and what his relationship to Bigfoot was.

Fortunately the various funny situatios and beautiful imagery managed to keep my attention, but to me the most important thing about a movie is a gripping story. As the movie doesn’t have this I left the cinema with very mixed feelings. I wanted to ask you if this was a conscious choice to show Docs state of mind or didn’t I pay enough attention? I don’t think I’m the only one feeling like this and struggling with it. It makes me wonder if this will be a movie that will be appreciated by a wide audience. Despite not being the biggest fan of your movie I still look forward to seeing what you will come up with next as you are a unique filmmaker who is responsible for movies that not many people make anymore.