Paul Thomas Anderson: Four Basics

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8 жыл бұрын

There are a handful of filmmakers whose craft is a cut above the rest. Paul Thomas Anderson has "it." This video essay breaks PTA's style down into four basic areas. Although there are a ton of elements that go into his creative process from start to finish that aren't outlined here, you can get a lot of mileage from following the following rules:
1.) Move the camera!
2.) Incorporate light and color into your production design
3.) Write and shoot for characters. The performers will be drawn to work that gives them meaty scripts to work from.
4.) Include sound and score into your process from the onset.
This video is intended for educational purposes only, and the creator holds no copyright on any of the material referenced in the essay. Thanks for watching!
A link to the PTA commentary on Max Ophuls (1930's): • Paul Thomas Anderson o...

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@PanterAmetal100 8 жыл бұрын

One of the top movies of the last several years is imho hands down the Master, it really felt like a real movie, not a "movie-in-pretense" or any "undercooked" picture. Felt like a novel-in-the-shape-of-a-movie. Also liked Inherent Vice.

@DT-lq1ds 5 жыл бұрын

I loved The Master and all of PTAs other works but even after 3 viewings, Inherent Vice eludes me. I think it’s the abundance scenes with long, drawn-out, quiet dialogue and that I haven’t read the book. Should I go back for round 4?

@futuropasado 5 жыл бұрын

Agree. The Master is my top film of this decade.

@charlesbukowski9752 4 жыл бұрын

@D T - might be a good idea if you read the book then do round 4.

@itsallgoodman4108 3 жыл бұрын

D T its supposed to evoke a feeling. Maybe you havent felt the feeling of slowly losing your life and morals to marijuana and pills while the world moved on eithout you. Inherant Vice is a dark movie in my opinion. Its an examination of the death of the hippie

@futuropasado 5 жыл бұрын

The Master is my top film of this decade. Requires multiple views. Its the only modern film that compares with Kubricks best works.

@randywhite3947 4 жыл бұрын

Joaquin Shang what’s your top ten?

@adityachaurasia2532 3 жыл бұрын

@@randywhite3947 And yet it was not nominated for the best film.

@sharknado623 3 жыл бұрын

@@adityachaurasia2532 not any of Anderson's films.

@mrbass093 2 жыл бұрын

What’s your top ten?

@Danielroams 8 жыл бұрын

This is a brilliant analysis of why Paul Thomas Anderson is a great filmmaker. Well done!

@theframers5950 8 жыл бұрын

You should do more of these. Thanks for the hardwork!

@ManufacturingIntellect 8 жыл бұрын

Nice. Thanks for putting this together.

@MrSatmary 8 жыл бұрын

WHY did you CHANGE There Will Be Blood's score during 5:01 when you're pointing out how incredible the score is?!?!! that specific song isn't used at that specific moment. c'mon man. what are you doing?

@rogerramos412 7 жыл бұрын

This bother me a lot too. It took me out of the video.

@noeyotos6565 8 жыл бұрын

Awesome stuff! Looking forward to more.

@maryschuttler7942 8 жыл бұрын

This is fabulous! Informative and entertaining :)

@brunoduluoz8614 8 жыл бұрын

Great video! Thanks Lanny!

@okmachine 8 жыл бұрын

P.T.A., my filmic savior..

@nolanbarth52 8 жыл бұрын

You need to make some more videos! That was awesome!

@salvadorslim3234 3 жыл бұрын

Great PTA breakdown

@songmoralde8230 8 жыл бұрын

do more of this vids man! great job :)

@christopherguzman4936 8 жыл бұрын

this is great, im actually doing an essay on him for film class so this helps.

@willconover5014 8 жыл бұрын

make more about filmmakers. This is beautifully done. Im gonna subscribe to see what comes next. great job

@willconover5014 8 жыл бұрын

very very interested. Dope.

@framesoffilm3445 6 жыл бұрын

Awesome as man!!

@darshandutta7333 6 жыл бұрын

thank you for making this...more analysis please

@vaughancapstick9961 4 жыл бұрын

Great stuff! Thanks 👍

@CalebSlain 8 жыл бұрын

Good video! Although I can assure you Bob Elswit isn't opping his own steadicam shots. ;)

@Giesskannenstimme 8 жыл бұрын

Thanks for sharing man!!

@TheZaco32 7 жыл бұрын

Great video!

@akshaykumaresh 8 жыл бұрын

Great video!! Could you please add the link to the talk by pt Anderson that you have at the beginning of the video...

@Kenji.95 8 жыл бұрын

Very awesome man. You planning to do more videos about film?

@Asmondian 8 жыл бұрын

Great job men. Do you have any web / blog / something where we can find more about your vids - analysis - info? Thx again. Sucribed.

@AndrewLemonade 7 жыл бұрын

whats the song that plays in the background at the start and finish? thanks

@TonyVirili 8 жыл бұрын

Great job, +Lanny Boyer, I'm subscribing.

@lannyboyer8625 8 жыл бұрын

Thanks, Tony. I've got some work to do!

@benminhanh5926 8 жыл бұрын

i like the way you cut

@godfatherman777 8 жыл бұрын

what's the song that starts around 2:30?

@arandomnerd1898 7 жыл бұрын

Does anyone know the author quintessential of PTA? I absolutely adore the way he writes. He puts so much thought and care into everything in his stories. But I've seen all of his films and I need more! Any books or authors that are similar to PTA and his work would be highly appreciated. (And yes, I've already read "Inherent Vice" and "Oil!") BTW your breakdown is perfect.

@arandomnerd1898 7 жыл бұрын

***** I do like me some Kaufman. Thanks!

@withnail-and-i 7 жыл бұрын

Robert Altman is arguably his most direct influence (Short Cuts, The Long Goodbye and so on). Also Werner Herzog for his attention to detail (Fitzcarraldo). Others I could name, but know of them you probably already would.

@arandomnerd1898 7 жыл бұрын

And I Oh yeah, I remember hearing about how Altman is PTA's role model. I'll have to check them out. Thank you!

@DeleriousOdyssey 8 жыл бұрын

Great Video

@jqyhlmnp 8 жыл бұрын

Well made, rivals Ralph Sepe. Tell me when you do more!

@09222P 8 жыл бұрын

Great video! Just started getting into his movies recently. Saw Magnolia a couple years ago, and watched Inherent Vice today. Both are great films. I think it would be interesting and funny if PTA got Hugo Weaving to work on one of PTA's films, especially considering the "Mr.Anderson, Welcome Back" line from Matrix 2 xD.

@billyparham630 6 жыл бұрын

what is the song in the end?

@untitled8005 5 жыл бұрын

Number 1 basic of PTA would be his characters. You can't even argue otherwisem

@oldboy65637 7 жыл бұрын

these four elements are def. present in most of his filmography, and he is great at all these things, but i think i take some issue with thesis that doing all these will automatically make a film great. like, PTA does great moving camera stuff & needle drops, but he does other stuff more and more as he makes films. one of the most rivetting sequences he's done (the processing scene in the master) is almost entirely still-frame & musicless. or the confrontation bertween Sandler & Hoffman at the end of PDL, is a still two-shot with no music. this isnt to give you shit mind you, but i think it's a little more accurate to say that PTA (and other giants) are great bc they understand moments that need music & movement, & moments to just siddown & let the actors read the script (which are increasingly original, funny, poetic, moving)

@eduardomachado3356 2 жыл бұрын

Song at 0:43?!? Pleaaaase

@damienjordan9 3 жыл бұрын

what is the track at 2:30?

@MoizTheRelaxer 7 жыл бұрын

Cohen Bros next please

@GTAtrailerOfficial 7 жыл бұрын

He's the new Kubrick

@bargel9530 7 жыл бұрын

he's better

@ginofactap 7 жыл бұрын

not better, but pretty masterful indeed.

@1qwasz12 7 жыл бұрын

P.T. has two or three levels of communication. Sweet! Kubrick has 5 or more.

@reservoirfrog1 7 жыл бұрын

Who, Fincher?

@1qwasz12 7 жыл бұрын

David Fincher has directed Se7en, Fight Club, The Social Network, Zodiac, and Gone Girl.

@naheenhabib7299 7 жыл бұрын

Paul Thomas Anderson is underrated and he should direct and write films that are big budgeted and he is a director that should be hailed the same as Scorsese and Kubrick but people don't realize that because they see him as the level of Werner Herzog and the coen brothers type

@naheenhabib7299 7 жыл бұрын

he should also try and push himself more into genres that are challenging

@naheenhabib7299 7 жыл бұрын

he worked in all sorts of genres like Western,romance,comedy, psychological,drama,crime etc. but he should try horror,thriller,slasher. I mean Paul Thomas Anderson could make horror to a new direction al

@forsure1149 5 жыл бұрын

@RicardoMadrid He's among the masters. He joins them in ranks. Scorsese has some hits or miss but PTA's roster is filled with masterpieces. You're what the hip hop community calls an "oldhead". Just because it's old, it doesn't mean it's better. PTA is a master, better than Scorsese when it comes to storytelling and rivals Kubrick. You just sound salty and pretentious.

@ladies_man217. 3 жыл бұрын

I honestly thought you were the narrator in Magnolia for a second 🤦‍♂️😂. You sound alike

@marathiboi96 5 жыл бұрын

The opening score, which one is it

@agastyamishra999 2 жыл бұрын

anyone know?

@magic___window 8 жыл бұрын

I'm a huge fan of PTA, but jesus fuck this is the most masturbatory thing I've ever seen regarding a director, my god.

@lannyboyer8625 8 жыл бұрын

Check out Fincher And The Other Way Is Wrong. That's an excellent essay to get off on.. ;)

@buffery333 8 жыл бұрын

+Lanny Boyer no, thats actually a bit informative. this is simply splooge

@TheMovieguy223 8 жыл бұрын

+buffery333 Agreed

@TheGeorgeD13 7 жыл бұрын

Completely disagree. BOTH are extremely informative.

@marcosyarza6324 6 жыл бұрын

Fuck you, but yeah you're right

@romanstepanik7804 8 жыл бұрын

Break the Internet Lanny Boyer

@kevinhojnacki3270 8 жыл бұрын

Whats the first song from?

@kevinhojnacki3270 8 жыл бұрын

+Lanny Boyer Thanks man awesome work on the video too

@kinhamid9665 4 жыл бұрын

Under the Skin The Master The Lighthouse The Grand Budapest Hotel Wolf of Wall Street Blade Runner 2049 Birdman Whiplash Annihilation Once Upon a Time in Hollywood Some of the best of the decade imo :)

@ajjingunia 2 жыл бұрын

Love how you talk about adam Sandler's character for half the video but don't mention him on the acting list 😂 Great video btw find myself back here often

@IsidroUrquia 7 жыл бұрын

I FEEL DIRTY.

@haydensnyder 8 жыл бұрын

Probably my favorite Paul Thomas Anderson: Four Basics Remix so far, but it needs more Snoop Dogg in it.

@Krisselvlogs 8 жыл бұрын

Will you be posting more film video essays on this channel?

@lucyfer4420 8 жыл бұрын

"If you wanna be like PTA you better : ............" what comes next can be perfectly applied to Spanish genius Pedro Almodovar. He's among the Great Ones.......Do you agree?

@roxberry246 5 жыл бұрын

Haha Robert Elswit definitely does not operate the tracking shots, that's what steadicam operators are for. Dolly tracking yes, but even then he's operating the camera, not the dolly itself.

@roxberry246 5 жыл бұрын

Lanny Boyer But you’re definitely right, a very physical job nonetheless. Solid work on the video.

@sewerface 7 жыл бұрын

Score is not the same thing as the soundtrack bruh

@OriginalKimQueiroz 8 жыл бұрын

Honestly, your video isn't bad. You have a good eye for movies and does a great job at editing. But, it seems so much to me as a copy of Tony Zhou's Every Frame a Painting ("Hi, my name is Lanny...") and adds so little to what every post about PTA on the internet says, that I kinda got bored. Anyway, do not stop with your work, youtube really needs good people doing video essays on such important films/filmmakers, just try to do something more unique and besides from copying from others, learn from what they've done and do your best to keep on. I'm just trying to be helpful here, hope that doesn't offend you, good luck!

@gamemaster2311 7 жыл бұрын

Lanny Boyer I look forward to more videos!

@DZSignal 8 жыл бұрын

People are quick to name Tarantino the greatest director of our generation, but then they clearly have not seen all of PTA's work, and kubrick is still better than both of them.

@AlternativeSack123 8 жыл бұрын

Kubrick's not of this generation however

@DZSignal 8 жыл бұрын

Bingding Memedream misspoke, didn't mean generation, meant since the age of film, i.e. all time.

@AlternativeSack123 8 жыл бұрын

DZSignal Ahh I see, Yeah, Tarantio is certainly great but not as much as others that are sometimes overlooked

@DZSignal 8 жыл бұрын

Bingding Memedream i just get mad when i meet people who think they know a lot about film just because they've seen pulp fiction lol

@DZSignal 8 жыл бұрын

Lanny Boyer very true! i know seeing pulp fiction early as a teen definitely influenced my tastes later, but i mean i've met people who think kill bill or jackie brown is obscure and it's just headaches... lol

@sydneywellington22 5 жыл бұрын

Lanny, when you are saying "the best filmmakers on the planet", you are really speaking about USA, aren't you? (Anyway, PTA is in this group).

@markm734 3 жыл бұрын

No love for Inherent Vice?

@robertshaus5941 5 жыл бұрын

More lanny

@jamesaltonfilms 3 жыл бұрын

“aspect ratio like the back of his hand?” 1:45

@franzhaas3712 6 жыл бұрын

LANNY . I WONT YOUR MOVIE!

@jackpot96 7 жыл бұрын

Great video, but I think you omit one of his greatest obsessions, characters working for purpose in their lives. Check this video by Jack's Movie Reviews out: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/qdh2pZtnzdquk2g.html

@DestroyerX61 3 жыл бұрын

Too much tracking and panning, too dizzying

@ftuT 7 жыл бұрын

NIce try, but very amateur, naive try. You just say things like a fan boy with no objectivity (except for the camera work, but that goes nowhere). And then you just say a list of great actors. That doesn't mean anything. For what's worth great actors like Frances McDormand, John Voigt, Anthony Hopkins, or John Turturro have worked with Michael Bay. But Reynolds also worked with Uwe Boll, so what's the deal with that.