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3%% Per Administrivia/CreatorPageGuidelines, only tropes associated to a creator's works are allowed on this wiki's pages, and tropes that only apply to the creator's personal life as if the creator is a fictional character are not allowed. Please do not apply tropes about the creator's personal life as if they are a fictional character.
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6[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/pt_anderson_9433.jpg]]
7[[caption-width-right:300:P.T. Anderson will not take your shit. His eyes and [[TheUnsmile mild smirk]] say so.]]
8
9[floatboxright:Influences:
10+ Creator/JonathanDemme, Creator/RobertAltman, Creator/MartinScorsese, Creator/StanleyKubrick, Creator/StevenSpielberg, Creator/AlfredHitchcock, Creator/OrsonWelles, Creator/MaxOphuls, Creator/MikeLeigh, Creator/DavidMamet, Robert Downey, Sr., Creator/JohnHuston, Creator/AkiraKurosawa]
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12Paul Thomas Anderson (born June 26, 1970), also known as P.T. Anderson or PTA, is an American filmmaker regarded as one of the greatest of his time, with notable works of his including ''Film/BoogieNights'', ''Film/{{Magnolia}}'', ''Film/PunchDrunkLove'' and ''Film/ThereWillBeBlood''.
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14Anderson has been said to belong to the "VCR Generation" of filmmakers, grouped with directors such as Creator/QuentinTarantino, Creator/RichardLinklater, and Creator/KevinSmith, and described as filmmakers whose careers were founded not upon film school training, but from an enthusiastic love of movies. He is the sole screenwriter for all of his films.
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16We will describe Anderson's directorial style thusly: if Creator/RobertAltman and Creator/MartinScorsese had [[CrackPairing made sweet, passionate love]] and Creator/JonathanDemme and Creator/StanleyKubrick were the godfathers, P.T. Anderson would have been the fruit of their [[NoYay priapic loins]].
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18Awful mental pictures aside, Anderson was Hollywood royalty well before he became a director, being the son of the late actor and announcer Creator/ErnieAnderson, whose most famous character Ghoulardi inspired the name of his production company. His life partner is Creator/MayaRudolph, and they have four children together.
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20Not to be confused with Creator/PaulWSAnderson (although both have gone by merely Paul Anderson before) and science fiction author P'''o'''ul Anderson.
21----
22!!'''Filmography'''
23[[index]]
24* ''Film/CigarettesAndCoffee'' (short film) (1993)
25* ''Film/HardEight'' (1996)
26* ''Film/BoogieNights'' (1997)
27* ''Film/{{Magnolia}}'' (1999)
28* ''Film/PunchDrunkLove'' (2002)
29* ''Film/ThereWillBeBlood'' (2007)
30* ''Film/TheMaster'' (2012)
31* ''Film/InherentVice'' (2014)
32* ''Junun'' (2015) (documentary short) [[note]] Anderson's first documentary, about his composer from ''There Will Be Blood'' onwards, Jonny Greenwood, recording his new album in India with Israeli composer Shye Ben Tzur and local musicians at the [[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mehrangarh_Fort Mehrangarh Fort]] in Rajasthan.[[/note]]
33* ''Film/PhantomThread'' (2017)
34* ''Film/LicoricePizza'' (2021)
35[[/index]]
36
37----
38!!P.T. Anderson and his works provide examples of:
39%% Remember, creators don't get trivia pages. Trivia items on this page should stay here.
40* AbusiveParents: A recurring trend in his work is emotionally abusive or distant parental figures.
41* AcclaimedFlop: Every film he directed was a critical success and a box office bomb except ''Film/BoogieNights'' and ''Film/ThereWillBeBlood'', which were also successful at the box office; and ''Film/PhantomThread'' at least broke even.
42* AllMenArePerverts: Sexual voyeurism in ''Boogie Nights'', a call to a phone sex line in ''Punch-Drunk Love'', etc. But ''The Master'', with its severely sex-addicted main character, takes the cake.
43* {{Angrish}}: Characters often get so flustered that they resort to inarticulate yelling.
44* AuteurLicense: Gained one after ''Film/BoogieNights'' and kept it ever since.
45* AuthorAppeal: He's got a real love for messed up characters unable to get their lives sorted out.
46* BeingEvilSucks: His characters tend to be their own worst enemies and victims of their worst flaws as much as everyone around them and Anderson tends to regard them with pity rather than scorn.
47* BeYourself: A common theme in his characters is eventually accepting who they are, warts and all.
48* BerserkButton:
49** Apparently cancer jokes are this, as his father Ernie died of it. He has said that Creator/DavidFincher should've gotten cancer simply for the jokes about it in ''Film/FightClub''. It takes a dark turn once you realize Fincher's own father died of cancer a few years later.
50** He seems to really dislike film snobbery, as he dropped out of film school shortly after his first lecturer said that anyone who wants to make a film like ''Film/Terminator2JudgmentDay'' should leave, despite never making such kinds of films like that himself. He's also defended comic book films as being artistic.
51* BlackComedy: We're talking no-light-escaping, blacker-than-death comedy.
52* BlackAndGreyMorality / GreyAndGrayMorality: His preferred approach to characters. Almost no one in his works is ever all good or bad and he tries to sympathize with and find humanity in even the worst people.
53* BornInTheWrongCentury: A common trait among his protagonists is them being out of step with the times.
54* ByronicHero: Deconstructed mercilessly throughout his work. His characters are extremely unfulfilled without human connection, while [[Film/ThereWillBeBlood Daniel Plainview]], the one protagonist of his who rejects companionship, is far and away his coldest, most vile character.
55* CentralTheme: Themes in his films include dysfunctional family relationships, the power of forgiveness, alienation, regret, loneliness, and destiny.
56* ChurchOfHappyology: His film ''Film/TheMaster'' sounds suspiciously like a Happyology concept: A "charismatic intellectual" starts a religion in the 1950s.
57* CopiouslyCreditedCreator: While his previous films are all written, directed, and produced by him, ''Phantom Thread'' and '' Licorice Pizza '' also had him credited as a cinematographer.[[note]]Anderson later stated that the cinematography on the former was a collective effort, and thus there would be no credit.[[/note]]
58* CreatorBacklash:
59** In the commentary for it, he regards his first movie, ''{{Film/Hard Eight}}'' with a mixture of dread and contempt, calling it by its original title, [[InsistentTerminology ''Sydney'']] and talking about the ExecutiveMeddling it faced.
60** He also felt that ''Film/{{Magnolia}}'' was twenty minutes too long.
61* CreatorProvincialism: Tends to set his movies in his childhood home of the San Fernando Valley.
62* CreatorThumbprint: Tends to reference the ''Literature/BookOfExodus'' [[spoiler:with the Plague of Frogs]] in ''Film/{{Magnolia}}'' and the origin of ''Film/ThereWillBeBlood''.
63* DysfunctionalFamily: His films often explore the relationship between a family of very dysfunctional people.
64** Daniel and his relationship with his son H.W. in ''Film/ThereWillBeBlood'' seems to be more about capitalistic interest and economic utility.
65** In ''Film/PunchDrunkLove'', poor Barry Egan is such a mental mess because of the pressure put on him by his seven overbearing sisters.
66** ''Film/{{Magnolia}}'' focuses on several failed parent-child relationships that are based on long-term hatred because of abandonment, assault, or abuse.
67* DysfunctionJunction: The majority of his characters aren't exactly emotionally stable.
68* {{Ensembles}}
69* EpicMovie: Most of his films are epics with some being more traditional (''Film/ThereWillBeBlood'') and some more intimate while having a grandeur to it. (''Film/{{Magnolia}}'') He even said in interviews that one of the reasons for ''Film/PunchDrunkLove'' 's origin was to make a more accessible film that didn't run over two hours.
70* EpicTrackingShot: Shows up in a few of his works.
71* FamilyOfChoice: One of the major themes in his movies is the need for a family (usually non-biological) and how denying/betraying it can lead to one's downfall.
72* FreudianExcuse: If his characters display awful or self-destructive behavior, it's usually for very sympathetic reasons.
73* HeAlsoDid:
74** He also does music videos for [[Music/{{Radiohead}} bands]] and [[Music/JoannaNewsom artists]] who've either worked with him or [[Music/FionaApple know him]] [[Music/{{Haim}} personally]].
75** Not only that but he's also done occasional work with many [[Series/SaturdayNightLive SNL]] alums. Aside from ''Punch-Drunk Love'' and [[Creator/MayaRudolph being married to an alum]], he’s worked on [[http://m.moviepilot.de/people/ben-affleck/videos/69217 an SNL short parodying MTV's Fanatic with Ben Affleck]], a sketch for David Spade's former show, a series of staged vignettes with Fred Armisen and Maya Rudolph, a cameo in ''Series/DocumentaryNow'', [[http://www.slashfilm.com/adam-sandler-netflix-special-paul-thomas-anderson/ and a Netflix special for Adam Sandler]]. ''Anchorman'' was almost an example, as seen below.
76* HookerWithAHeartOfGold: Many of his films including ''Hard Eight'', ''Boogie Nights'', ''Inherent Vice'' etc. usually have a hooker who is sweet, generous, or kind-hearted.
77* HumansAreBastards / HumansAreFlawed: His films are known for exploring characters who have realistic flaws. However, his main protagonists are usually more like bastards (with the exceptions of [[Film/InherentVice Larry "Doc" Sportello]] and [[Film/PunchDrunkLove Barry Egan]] [[Main/NiceGuy who are generally very sweet and caring people]]).
78* KitschyLocalCommercial: ''Magnolia,'' and ''Inherent Vice'' had these. ''Punch-Drunk Love'' has one in the DVD supplements.
79** The pornos in ''Boogie Nights'' get an honorable mention, for their inspired StylisticSuck.
80** The main characters in ''Licorice Pizza'' make one, for Joel Wachs' mayoral campaign.
81* LighterAndSofter: ''Literature/InherentVice'' has a more comedic tone to it than his other movies, and Anderson said in interviews that he was inspired by [[Film/{{Airplane}} Zucker]] [[Film/TopSecret Abrahams]] and [[Film/TheNakedGun Zucker]] movies.
82** Same could be said for ''Punch-Drunk Love,'' a ninety-minute Adam Sandler rom-com, when compared to the mammoth, depressing epic that was ''Magnolia.''
83** And repeated with ''Phantom Thread'', with much of the movie being a restrained chamber drama [[spoiler:that also has one of his few unambiguous [[EarnYourHappyEnding happy endings]].]] ''Licorice Pizza'' has earned notice for being his jolliest film to date, being a straight example.
84* MagnumOpusDissonance: Considers ''The Master'' to be the film he's most proud of, while many people cite either ''Boogie Nights'' or ''There Will Be Blood''.
85* MoodWhiplash: It doesn't matter what the first half of the film was like; once you reach the midpoint of the film, all bets are off. P.T. Anderson is fond of what he describes as "gearshift movies."
86* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed: A number of his films directly invoke real-life stories and people, like John Holmes inspiring Dirk Diggler, the Scientology-like cult in ''The Master '' or film producer/former child actor Gary Goetzman becoming ''Licorice Pizza’s'' Gary Valentine. He’ll often change names and add fictitious elements of his own to avoid direct comparisons.
87* NoEnding / GainaxEnding: All his films from ''{{Film/Magnolia}}'' onwards have had one or both endings.
88* JustForFun/OneOfUs: Not only has he defended comic book movies and the Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse (especially in light of Martin Scorsese’s comments towards Marvel movies), but he’s also enjoyed the ''Franchise/MenInBlack'' films, stating that ''Film/MenInBlack3'' was beautiful and made him cry.
89* PopStarComposer: Aimee Mann, Jon Brion and from ''Blood'' onwards, [[Music/{{Radiohead}} Jonny Greenwood]], have provided scores for his films.
90* ProductionPosse:
91** Includes the late Creator/PhilipSeymourHoffman, who appeared in five of Anderson's first six films, Creator/JulianneMoore, Creator/JohnCReilly, Creator/LuisGuzman, and Creator/PhilipBakerHall. Until his death in 2014, Hoffman appeared in every P.T.A. movie except ''Film/ThereWillBeBlood'' and ''Film/InherentVice'', while his son Cooper appears in ''Film/LicoricePizza''.
92** Mark Bridges was the costume designer for all of Anderson's films.
93** Robert Elswit has been the cinematographer for all of them except ''Film/TheMaster'' and ''Film/PhantomThread''.
94** As of late, [[Music/{{Radiohead}} Jonny Greenwood]] has been his composer from ''Film/ThereWillBeBlood'' onwards.
95*** From [[Film/TheMaster the looks]] [[Film/InherentVice of things]], it seems like Creator/JoaquinPhoenix, and to a similar extent Creator/DanielDayLewis have become the latest members of this group.
96* ReclusiveArtist: Of a sort. Many specifics about his films are shrouded in secrecy until release, he doesn't do many interviews and refuses to be much of a participant on special features, believing his films should speak for themselves. However, starting with ''Film/InherentVice'', he started averting this, with the release of ''Phantom Thread'' getting him an appearance on ''Series/JimmyKimmelLive'', and well-received Q&As on Twitter and Reddit.
97* SceneryPorn: Especially ''Film/ThereWillBeBlood'' and ''Film/TheMaster.'' There's a reason that the former won [[UsefulNotes/AcademyAward Best Cinematography.]]
98* SignatureStyle: His movies are filmed using a dynamic camera. They are usually sneaky period film about a character who seems alienated from the rest of the world and has to learn about accepting themselves as they are. His films often show characters going through growing pains to reveal deeper insights about how culture has been formed.
99** They often have an expressive syncopated score.
100** He even tackles deep human connections whether it's through romance in ''Film/PunchDrunkLove'' or it's a surrogate family like ''Film/BoogieNights''.
101* SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism: His films go all over the place.
102** ''Film/BoogieNights'' and ''Magnolia'' are semi-hopeful.
103** ''[[Film/PunchDrunkLove Punch-Drunk Love]]'' and ''[[Film/LicoricePizza Licorice Pizza]]'' are downright optimistic.
104** Film/PhantomThread and Film/InherentVice lie somewhere in the middle of the scale.
105** A few of his films like Film/ThereWillBeBlood and Film/TheMaster can lean closer to the cynical side.
106* SmashToBlack
107* SoundtrackDissonance: A perfect example would be near the end of ''Film/ThereWillBeBlood'' in which, after Daniel [[spoiler: kills Eli and announces that he's "finished"]]. What plays right before we get to the credits? [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6EhQd4nugps This]].
108* StepfordSmiler: He's very fond of characters whose outward happiness and charisma mask deep self-loathing and seriously troubled backstories.
109* ThrowItIn: His films feature a lot of improvised scenes.
110* TrollingCreator: While at the Cannes press conference for ''Film/{{Magnolia}}'', he announced that his next film would be [[Film/PunchDrunkLove an hour-and-a-half-long rom-com starring Adam Sandler]] to a room full of people who just watched a three-hour-long, emotionally draining epic.
111* WhatCouldHaveBeen:
112** On a podcast promoting ''Film/TheBigShort'', [=Adam McKay=] recounts how Anderson read a script he and Creator/WillFerrell wrote (consisting of a musical number with sharks among other things) and when it couldn't get produced, he told them to write a script and whatever they made, he'd produce. And that script became ''Film/AnchormanTheLegendOfRonBurgundy''. Had Paul not gone on to make ''Film/PunchDrunkLove'' at that time, it would've been the only film he'd produce without directing.
113** There were also rumors about him writing Creator/RobertDowneyJr's adaptation of ''Pinocchio'', with directing rumors not far behind. That fell through a few weeks later and Downey is looking for another writer. Such a collaboration would have been fitting as Downey's father, Robert Downey Sr, was one of PTA's biggest influences.
114* WorkingWithTheEx: Despite breaking up with Music/FionaApple, and along with her album ''Extraordinary Machine'' allegedly being about their relationship falling apart, Anderson later directed the video for "Hot Knife" off of ''The Idler Wheel...''

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