Paul Thomas Anderson: influences, peers and legacy

Every connection with its receipt

Paul Thomas Anderson's cinema is a Valley-bred synthesis: Altman's sprawling ensembles, Scorsese's kinetic swagger, and a pop-song sensibility that made him one of the great music-video directors of his era. This mix traces both careers — the filmmaker and the collaborator of Jonny Greenwood, Fiona Apple and Haim — from his 1970s American New Wave idols out to the successors now working in his shadow.

The Kynda mix for Paul Thomas Anderson

• Key Influence · Nashville by Robert Altman (1975). Altman is the influence Anderson has acknowledged most openly, and Nashville's braided ensemble of two dozen lives converging on one event is the direct template for Boogie Nights and Magnolia. The admiration became a working relationship: Anderson served as standby director on Altman's final film, A Prairie Home Companion (2006), present on set in case the ailing 80-year-old could not continue — a torch-passing rare in American film.
• Influencia Obscura · Real Life by Albert Brooks (1979). Brooks's mock-documentary about a filmmaker destroying a suburban family by filming them is a cult object Anderson has praised, and its queasy comedy of performance and self-delusion feeds the television-studio sequences of Magnolia and the infomercial grandiosity of Punch-Drunk Love's Barry Egan. Brooks also acted in Anderson's Licorice Pizza as Jack Holden's agent Rex Blau, closing the circle.
• Local Roots · Chinatown by Roman Polanski (1974). Anderson is a native of Studio City and has built an entire filmography out of Los Angeles geography — the Valley of Boogie Nights and Magnolia, the Encino of Licorice Pizza. Chinatown is the founding text of the LA noir he engages directly in Inherent Vice, where water, oil and land speculation corrupt the city, and whose tone of sun-bleached institutional rot shapes There Will Be Blood's California oil fields.
• Beyond the Medium · Oil! by Upton Sinclair (1927). Anderson found Sinclair's muckraking novel of California petroleum while struggling with a script about family feuding, and took from it the oilman, the preacher and the Southern California derricks that became There Will Be Blood. He kept Sinclair's indictment of capital and revivalist religion while discarding most of the plot, turning a socialist polemic into a study of one man's appetite.
• Peer · Jackie Brown by Quentin Tarantino (1997). Released the same year as Boogie Nights, Tarantino's Elmore Leonard adaptation shares its mood exactly: a seventies-soundtracked Los Angeles of strip malls and faded performers, affection for genre actors reclaimed from obscurity. Both men emerged as the video-store-literate American independents of the mid-nineties, and both cast against decades of typecasting — Pam Grier for one, Burt Reynolds for the other.
• From the Canon · Magnolia by Paul Thomas Anderson (1999). The fullest statement of his Altman inheritance and his most musical film: nine Valley storylines built around Aimee Mann's songs, which Anderson has said he wrote to rather than scored afterwards, culminating in characters singing along to Wise Up. The biblical rain of frogs and the dying-father motif established the register of sincerity and operatic excess that defines his first decade.
• Key Collaborator · Bodysong by Jonny Greenwood (2003). Anderson heard Greenwood's orchestral work for the Bodysong documentary and sought him out for There Will Be Blood; the Radiohead guitarist has scored every Anderson feature since, from Phantom Thread's romantic piano to Inherent Vice's woozy strings. Bodysong is the proof-of-concept — Penderecki-inflected dissonance, free-jazz eruptions and gentle melodies from a rock musician writing for ensemble.
• Legacy · Good Time by Josh and Benny Safdie (2017). The Safdies have repeatedly cited Anderson among the American directors who made their kind of filmmaking seem possible, and Anderson in turn championed their work publicly. Good Time's queasy propulsion, its synth score pushed to the front of the mix, and its casting of a teen-idol star against type as a desperate striver all follow the Anderson playbook of Punch-Drunk Love.

What influenced Paul Thomas Anderson

• Robert Altman. The article names Anderson as a director influenced by Altman. (also via Magnolia, Nashville, Short Cuts) “It resides most obviously in the work of Paul Thomas Anderson : Boogie Nights, Magnolia and Inherent Vice are virtual cover versions of Altman.” (The Guardian)
• Martin Scorsese. The article says Anderson cited Scorsese as an influence. (also via Boogie Nights, Goodfellas) “He has cited Robert Altman , Martin Brest , Jonathan Demme , Robert Downey Sr. , Alfred Hitchcock , John Huston , Alex Cox , Stanley Kubrick , Akira Kurosawa , Mike Leigh , David Mamet , Anthony Mann , Max Ophüls , Martin Scorsese , Stev…” (Wikipedia)
• Orson Welles (1915). The article says Anderson cited Welles as an influence. (also via There Will Be Blood, Citizen Kane) “He has cited Robert Altman , Martin Brest , Jonathan Demme , Robert Downey Sr. , Alfred Hitchcock , John Huston , Alex Cox , Stanley Kubrick , Akira Kurosawa , Mike Leigh , David Mamet , Anthony Mann , Max Ophüls , Martin Scorsese , Stev…” (Wikipedia)
• Oil! by Upton Sinclair (1927). Oil! (Upton Sinclair) — culture for Paul Thomas Anderson (also via There Will Be Blood) “There Will Be Blood (2007), Anderson's fifth film, is loosely based on Upton Sinclair 's 1927 novel Oil!” (Wikipedia)
• Jonathan Demme. The article says Anderson cited Demme as an influence. (also via Melvin and Howard) “He has cited Robert Altman , Martin Brest , Jonathan Demme , Robert Downey Sr. , Alfred Hitchcock , John Huston , Alex Cox , Stanley Kubrick , Akira Kurosawa , Mike Leigh , David Mamet , Anthony Mann , Max Ophüls , Martin Scorsese , Stev…” (Wikipedia)
• Robert Downey Sr.. The article says Anderson cited Downey as an influence. (also via Putney Swope) “He has cited Robert Altman , Martin Brest , Jonathan Demme , Robert Downey Sr. , Alfred Hitchcock , John Huston , Alex Cox , Stanley Kubrick , Akira Kurosawa , Mike Leigh , David Mamet , Anthony Mann , Max Ophüls , Martin Scorsese , Stev…” (Wikipedia)
• Stanley Kubrick (1928). The article says Anderson cited Kubrick as an influence. (also via The Master) “He has cited Robert Altman , Martin Brest , Jonathan Demme , Robert Downey Sr. , Alfred Hitchcock , John Huston , Alex Cox , Stanley Kubrick , Akira Kurosawa , Mike Leigh , David Mamet , Anthony Mann , Max Ophüls , Martin Scorsese , Stev…” (Wikipedia)
• Book of Exodus. The article identifies references to Exodus 8:2 in Magnolia. (via Magnolia, There Will Be Blood) “Anderson tends to reference the Book of Exodus , either explicitly or subtly, like in recurring references to Exodus 8:2 in Magnolia , [ 133 ] which chronicles the plague of frogs , culminating with the literal raining of frogs in the fi…” (Wikipedia)
• Aimee Mann. The article says Mann’s music inspired Magnolia. (via Magnolia, Bachelor No. 2 or, the Last Remains of the Pupil) “The result was the ensemble piece Magnolia (1999), which tells the story of the peculiar interaction of several people in San Fernando Valley. [ 43 ] [ 44 ] It was inspired by the music of the singer-songwriter Aimee Mann , [ 45 ] who wr…” (Wikipedia)
• Nashville by Robert Altman (1975). Nashville (Robert Altman) — titan for Paul Thomas Anderson “He was a standby director during the 2005 filming of Robert Altman's A Prairie Home Companion for insurance purposes, as Altman was 80 years old and in poor health.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Goodfellas by Martin Scorsese (1990). GoodFellas (Martin Scorsese) — titan for Paul Thomas Anderson “He has cited Robert Altman, Martin Brest, Jonathan Demme, Robert Downey Sr., Alfred Hitchcock, John Huston, Alex Cox, Stanley Kubrick, Akira Kurosawa, Mike Leigh, David Mamet, Anthony Mann, Max Ophüls, Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, …” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Melvin and Howard by Jonathan Demme (1980). Melvin and Howard (Jonathan Demme) — titan for Paul Thomas Anderson “He has cited Robert Altman, Martin Brest, Jonathan Demme, Robert Downey Sr., Alfred Hitchcock, John Huston, Alex Cox, Stanley Kubrick, Akira Kurosawa, Mike Leigh, David Mamet, Anthony Mann, Max Ophüls, Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, …” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Vineland by Thomas Pynchon (1990). Vineland (Thomas Pynchon) — culture for Paul Thomas Anderson “It was followed by The Master (2012) and Inherent Vice (2014), an adaptation of the 2009 novel by Thomas Pynchon.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health by L. Ron Hubbard (1950). Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health (L. Ron Hubbard) — culture for Paul Thomas Anderson “Paul Thomas Anderson's 2012 film The Master features a religious leader named Lancaster Dodd, played by Philip Seymour Hoffman, who is based on Hubbard and shares a physical resemblance to him.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Martin Brest. The article says Anderson cited Brest as an influence. “He has cited Robert Altman , Martin Brest , Jonathan Demme , Robert Downey Sr. , Alfred Hitchcock , John Huston , Alex Cox , Stanley Kubrick , Akira Kurosawa , Mike Leigh , David Mamet , Anthony Mann , Max Ophüls , Martin Scorsese , Stev…” (Wikipedia)
• Alfred Hitchcock (1899). The article says Anderson cited Hitchcock as an influence. “He has cited Robert Altman , Martin Brest , Jonathan Demme , Robert Downey Sr. , Alfred Hitchcock , John Huston , Alex Cox , Stanley Kubrick , Akira Kurosawa , Mike Leigh , David Mamet , Anthony Mann , Max Ophüls , Martin Scorsese , Stev…” (Wikipedia)
• John Huston (1906). The article says Anderson cited Huston as an influence. “He has cited Robert Altman , Martin Brest , Jonathan Demme , Robert Downey Sr. , Alfred Hitchcock , John Huston , Alex Cox , Stanley Kubrick , Akira Kurosawa , Mike Leigh , David Mamet , Anthony Mann , Max Ophüls , Martin Scorsese , Stev…” (Wikipedia)
• Alex Cox. The article says Anderson cited Cox as an influence. “He has cited Robert Altman , Martin Brest , Jonathan Demme , Robert Downey Sr. , Alfred Hitchcock , John Huston , Alex Cox , Stanley Kubrick , Akira Kurosawa , Mike Leigh , David Mamet , Anthony Mann , Max Ophüls , Martin Scorsese , Stev…” (Wikipedia)
• Akira Kurosawa (1910). The article says Anderson cited Kurosawa as an influence. “He has cited Robert Altman , Martin Brest , Jonathan Demme , Robert Downey Sr. , Alfred Hitchcock , John Huston , Alex Cox , Stanley Kubrick , Akira Kurosawa , Mike Leigh , David Mamet , Anthony Mann , Max Ophüls , Martin Scorsese , Stev…” (Wikipedia)
• Mike Leigh (1943). The article says Anderson cited Leigh as an influence. “He has cited Robert Altman , Martin Brest , Jonathan Demme , Robert Downey Sr. , Alfred Hitchcock , John Huston , Alex Cox , Stanley Kubrick , Akira Kurosawa , Mike Leigh , David Mamet , Anthony Mann , Max Ophüls , Martin Scorsese , Stev…” (Wikipedia)
• David Mamet. The article says Anderson cited Mamet as an influence. “He has cited Robert Altman , Martin Brest , Jonathan Demme , Robert Downey Sr. , Alfred Hitchcock , John Huston , Alex Cox , Stanley Kubrick , Akira Kurosawa , Mike Leigh , David Mamet , Anthony Mann , Max Ophüls , Martin Scorsese , Stev…” (Wikipedia)
• Anthony Mann. The article says Anderson cited Mann as an influence. “He has cited Robert Altman , Martin Brest , Jonathan Demme , Robert Downey Sr. , Alfred Hitchcock , John Huston , Alex Cox , Stanley Kubrick , Akira Kurosawa , Mike Leigh , David Mamet , Anthony Mann , Max Ophüls , Martin Scorsese , Stev…” (Wikipedia)
• Max Ophüls. The article says Anderson cited Ophüls as an influence. “He has cited Robert Altman , Martin Brest , Jonathan Demme , Robert Downey Sr. , Alfred Hitchcock , John Huston , Alex Cox , Stanley Kubrick , Akira Kurosawa , Mike Leigh , David Mamet , Anthony Mann , Max Ophüls , Martin Scorsese , Stev…” (Wikipedia)
• Steven Spielberg (1946). The article says Anderson cited Spielberg as an influence. “He has cited Robert Altman , Martin Brest , Jonathan Demme , Robert Downey Sr. , Alfred Hitchcock , John Huston , Alex Cox , Stanley Kubrick , Akira Kurosawa , Mike Leigh , David Mamet , Anthony Mann , Max Ophüls , Martin Scorsese , Stev…” (Wikipedia)
• François Truffaut (1932). The article says Anderson cited Truffaut as an influence. “He has cited Robert Altman , Martin Brest , Jonathan Demme , Robert Downey Sr. , Alfred Hitchcock , John Huston , Alex Cox , Stanley Kubrick , Akira Kurosawa , Mike Leigh , David Mamet , Anthony Mann , Max Ophüls , Martin Scorsese , Stev…” (Wikipedia)
• Billy Wilder (1906). The article says Anderson cited Wilder as an influence. “He has cited Robert Altman , Martin Brest , Jonathan Demme , Robert Downey Sr. , Alfred Hitchcock , John Huston , Alex Cox , Stanley Kubrick , Akira Kurosawa , Mike Leigh , David Mamet , Anthony Mann , Max Ophüls , Martin Scorsese , Stev…” (Wikipedia)
• David Foster Wallace. Wallace taught Anderson at Emerson College. “Anderson attended Santa Monica College [ 24 ] before spending two semesters as an English major at Emerson College , where he was taught by David Foster Wallace .” (Wikipedia)
• Michael Caton-Jones. Caton-Jones is identified as Anderson’s mentor. “Michael Caton-Jones served as Anderson's mentor. He saw him as someone with "talent and a fully formed creative voice, but not much hands-on experience", and gave him some hard and practical lessons.” (Wikipedia)
• Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle. The Master character was conceived as a Moriarty-style archenemy in relation to the Doctor's Sherlock Holmes-like role, drawing on the Conan Doyle stories. (via The Master) “Conceived as " Professor Moriarty to the Doctor's Sherlock Holmes "” (Wikipedia)
• Scientology. The article reports the assumption that Scientology underlies the film while noting that it is not named in it. (via The Master) “Though the film does not refer to the movement, it has "long been widely assumed to be based on Scientology ."” (Wikipedia)
• Real Life by Albert Brooks (1979). Real Life (Albert Brooks) — ghost for Paul Thomas Anderson (themoviedb.org)
• Wanda by Barbara Loden (1970). Wanda (Barbara Loden) — ghost for Paul Thomas Anderson (themoviedb.org)
• Citizen Kane by Orson Welles (1941). There Will Be Blood (Paul Thomas Anderson) — legacy for Citizen Kane (via There Will Be Blood) (themoviedb.org)
• Francis Ford Coppola. Boogie Nights (Paul Thomas Anderson) — legacy for Francis Ford Coppola (via Boogie Nights) (themoviedb.org)

Peers and kindred spirits

• Jonny Greenwood (1971). Jonny Greenwood began a series of film-scoring collaborations with director Paul Thomas Anderson. (also via Bodysong) “Anderson is noted for his collaborations with the cinematographer Robert Elswit , the costume designer Mark Bridges , the composers Jon Brion and Jonny Greenwood , and actors including Philip Seymour Hoffman , Daniel Day-Lewis , John C. …” (Wikipedia)
• Fiona Apple. Anderson directed music videos for Apple. (also via Fetch the Bolt Cutters) “He has directed music videos for artists including Fiona Apple , Haim , Aimee Mann , Joanna Newsom , Michael Penn , Radiohead , and the Smile .” (Wikipedia)
• Short Cuts by Robert Altman. Short Cuts (Raymond Carver) — geography for Paul Thomas Anderson (also via Magnolia) “The gigantic acting ensemble, themes of dysfunctional families, three-hour runtime and the casting of Julliane Moore in Magnolia has led to a lot of comparisons with Robert Altman's film Short Cuts , to the point where some people consid…” (Wikipedia)
• Paul Dano (1984). Dano credits Paul Thomas Anderson's writing and direction as central to his performance in There Will Be Blood. “I think Paul Anderson, who wrote the script, as well as directed it, he's just as good a writer as he is a director.” (Fresh Air (NPR))
• Putney Swope by Robert Downey Sr. (1969). Putney Swope (Robert Downey Sr.) — geography for Paul Thomas Anderson “He has cited Robert Altman, Martin Brest, Jonathan Demme, Robert Downey Sr., Alfred Hitchcock, John Huston, Alex Cox, Stanley Kubrick, Akira Kurosawa, Mike Leigh, David Mamet, Anthony Mann, Max Ophüls, Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, …” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Bodysong by Jonny Greenwood (2003). Bodysong (Jonny Greenwood) — collaborator for Paul Thomas Anderson “Anderson is noted for his collaborations with the cinematographer Robert Elswit, the costume designer Mark Bridges, the composers Jon Brion and Jonny Greenwood, and actors including Philip Seymour Hoffman, Daniel Day-Lewis, John C.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Fetch the Bolt Cutters by Fiona Apple (2020). Fetch the Bolt Cutters (Fiona Apple) — collaborator for Paul Thomas Anderson “He has directed music videos for artists including Fiona Apple, Haim, Aimee Mann, Joanna Newsom, Michael Penn, Radiohead, and the Smile.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Robert Elswit. Elswit is named among Anderson’s collaborators. “Anderson is noted for his collaborations with the cinematographer Robert Elswit , the costume designer Mark Bridges , the composers Jon Brion and Jonny Greenwood , and actors including Philip Seymour Hoffman , Daniel Day-Lewis , John C. …” (Wikipedia)
• Mark Bridges. Bridges is named among Anderson’s collaborators. “Anderson is noted for his collaborations with the cinematographer Robert Elswit , the costume designer Mark Bridges , the composers Jon Brion and Jonny Greenwood , and actors including Philip Seymour Hoffman , Daniel Day-Lewis , John C. …” (Wikipedia)
• Jon Brion. Brion is named among Anderson’s collaborators. “Anderson is noted for his collaborations with the cinematographer Robert Elswit , the costume designer Mark Bridges , the composers Jon Brion and Jonny Greenwood , and actors including Philip Seymour Hoffman , Daniel Day-Lewis , John C. …” (Wikipedia)
• Philip Seymour Hoffman. Hoffman is named among Anderson’s collaborating actors. “Anderson is noted for his collaborations with the cinematographer Robert Elswit , the costume designer Mark Bridges , the composers Jon Brion and Jonny Greenwood , and actors including Philip Seymour Hoffman , Daniel Day-Lewis , John C. …” (Wikipedia)
• Daniel Day-Lewis. Day-Lewis is named among Anderson’s collaborating actors. “Anderson is noted for his collaborations with the cinematographer Robert Elswit , the costume designer Mark Bridges , the composers Jon Brion and Jonny Greenwood , and actors including Philip Seymour Hoffman , Daniel Day-Lewis , John C. …” (Wikipedia)
• John C. Reilly. Reilly is named among Anderson’s collaborating actors. “Anderson is noted for his collaborations with the cinematographer Robert Elswit , the costume designer Mark Bridges , the composers Jon Brion and Jonny Greenwood , and actors including Philip Seymour Hoffman , Daniel Day-Lewis , John C. …” (Wikipedia)
• Joaquin Phoenix. Phoenix is named among Anderson’s collaborating actors. “Anderson is noted for his collaborations with the cinematographer Robert Elswit , the costume designer Mark Bridges , the composers Jon Brion and Jonny Greenwood , and actors including Philip Seymour Hoffman , Daniel Day-Lewis , John C. …” (Wikipedia)
• HAIM (2007). Anderson directed music videos for Haim. “He has directed music videos for artists including Fiona Apple , Haim , Aimee Mann , Joanna Newsom , Michael Penn , Radiohead , and the Smile .” (Wikipedia)
• Quentin Tarantino. Boogie Nights (Paul Thomas Anderson) — geography for Quentin Tarantino (via Boogie Nights, Jackie Brown) (themoviedb.org)
• Chinatown by Roman Polanski (1974). Chinatown (Roman Polanski) — geography for Paul Thomas Anderson (themoviedb.org)
• Jackie Brown by Quentin Tarantino. Jackie Brown (Quentin Tarantino) — peer for Paul Thomas Anderson (themoviedb.org)
• Rushmore by Wes Anderson (1998). Rushmore (Wes Anderson) — peer for Paul Thomas Anderson (themoviedb.org)
• Being John Malkovich. Being John Malkovich (Spike Jonze) — peer for Paul Thomas Anderson (themoviedb.org)
• Bachelor No. 2 or, the Last Remains of the Pupil by Aimee Mann (2000). Bachelor No. 2 or, the Last Remains of the Pupil (Aimee Mann) — collaborator for Paul Thomas Anderson “He has directed music videos for artists including Fiona Apple, Haim, Aimee Mann, Joanna Newsom, Michael Penn, Radiohead, and the Smile.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Cameron Crowe (1957). Boogie Nights (Paul Thomas Anderson) — peer for Cameron Crowe (via Boogie Nights) (themoviedb.org)

Who Paul Thomas Anderson influenced

• Waves by Trey Edward Shults (2019). Waves (Trey Edward Shults) — legacy for Paul Thomas Anderson (themoviedb.org)
• Good Time by Josh and Benny Safdie (2017). Good Time (Josh and Benny Safdie) — legacy for Paul Thomas Anderson