Kaustubh Rajnish I generally enjoy slow moving noir films but Inherent Vice was incomprehensible to me. What was happening here? and if the idea was to cause confusion what is the point of it all. Maybe the point of the film was that sometimes we are part of such big confusing things that we cant possibly interpret it all. Never the less, no point in rating something i could not understand. Though PTA is one of my favourite directors this one is a miss for me. Only cool takeaway - "Inherent Vice" what a beautiful phrase. And maybe Inherent Vice's vice is inherent vice as it draws to a close.

joecoby45 Inherent Vice is an all time low for writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson. A man with incredible talent and whom has made several great films throughout his career. Inherent Vice however is a sloppy mess of a film with a completely incoherent story that is confusing and convoluted throughout. Not to mention its totally uneventful. Nothing of importance ever really happens in this film and plenty goes unresolved. There are no well developed or interesting characters in the entire story, not even our main character "Doc" played by the incredible Joaquin Phoenix. He and the whole supporting cast do the best they can with what they are given, but that sadly is not much at all.It really doesn't feel like much effort is put into the production. Its almost as if you can tell the people involved were not feeling passionate about this project at all and who can blame them? Its really crap.At least with PTA's last film The Master it was very artistic which made up for its lack of a story. Here there isn't any artistic value at all. Its just 2 and a half hours of pointless meandering with undeveloped/uninteresting characters. There is hardly anything redeeming about this.

thisanant Have to admit , i did not see this coming . may be the best way to enjoy a movie is to watch it without expectations . i watched it due to Joaquin Phoenix and was everything i want a movie to be , great script with unbelievable chemistry and it is hilariously funny , in fact it is one of the best comedy , and it is a piece of art . i thank every one involved in the movie . i loved it .

Screen_Blitz Paul Thomas Anderson has an endowment for freshly provocative storytelling, a gift he has demonstrated in the past with such endeavors as 'Boogie Nights', 'Magnolia', 'There Will Be Blood', and 'The Master' to name some. It is only little wonder why he was one of the few filmmakers compatible for this irreverent hipster-themed comedy inspired by the novel by Thomas Pynchon. Inherent Vice is a decidedly loopy stoner comedy that straps you on a roller coaster through the eccentric Los Angeles counterculture during the psychedelic 60s and 70s when sex, drugs, and rock n' roll exploded into society like wildfire. At the core of this provocative ride is a darkly humorous murder plot that spirals into a devilishly complex fable with the firepower to either entertain viewers with its a heavy haul of idiosyncratic characters and style, or frustrate them its seemingly nonsensical narrative. Set in 1970, this film centers on Doc Spatello (played by Joaquin Phoenix), an absent-minded, pot- loving Los Angeles investigator who's approached by this ex- girlfriend Shasta (played by Katherine Waterston) about her current boyfriend (played by Eric Roberts) and his former lover being a target for a kidnapping. Upon going on an investigation, and a white supremacist suspect (played by Christopher Allen Nelson) is murdered and Doc is informed by Detective Bigfoot (played by Josh Brolin) of Shasta's disappearance. Pursuing after the criminals responsible, Doc is unexpectedly placed on a collision course against a string of mysterious figures including a suspicious musician (played by Owen Wilson), an undercover police informat Sauncho (played by Benicio Del Toro), a Black guerilla family member (played by Michael Kenneth Williams), and mysterious cult leader; each of whom may or may not have a connection behind the murder.For moviegoers aching for a stylish stoner comedy with darkly funny set pieces and eccentric characters dancing into the mix, this movie certainly delivers. For those pining for a coherent story and a wholesome sense of humor, that is a whole another story. This feverishly offbeat stoner epic is one of those rare cinematic endeavors that is much more easier to engage with when you are not bruising your brain trying to follow the plot. Paul Thomas Anderson, the exhilarating storyteller he is, brings a hefty hand in flooding the story with what appears like a dozen of separate subplots and introducing a number of eccentric supporting characters that feels like a chore to count. This unusual style of writing accounts to an irreverent, but brutally confusing that renders the narrative into a state of ambiguity. Sitting through this tale, it is far from unreasonable for viewers to ask "what does this character have to do with anything?" or "what is the point of this?". The truth of why this story sets out to be confusing however, is that it intends on matching the lead character's state of drug intoxication, and as a result evokes the same amount of confusion as what the lead character is facing. It is a unique style of storytelling that echoes of works of Terry Gilliam's 'Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas'. The prime figure of the story is Joaquin Phoenix's Doc Spatello, a goofy stoner who finds himself colliding with a wide number of colorful characters, each of which deliver some smart social commentary on the counterculture of drug-fueled 60s and 70s including the Cold War, racial politics, and the eccentric social environment of Los Angeles that defined the so-called era. It is an adventure that accounts to an appealing blend of whimsical humor and shocking conspiracies that lead to some unpredictable (and occasionally unpleasant) scenes. Judging his writing in the ensemble cast piece 'Magnolia', it is a unique style that best fits Paul Thomas Anderson's directing methodology, while fueling those bothered by the perplexing plot with frustration and possibly boredom.Returning on screen to Anderson's directorial world is Joaquin Phoenix who made his first collaboration with Anderson in 'The Master', which was perhaps more superior than this endeavor. This time, he grapples on the role of Doc Spatello, and gives an devilishly charismatic performance. It is a role that allows Phoenix is expand upon his acting chops with idiosyncratic humor and substance, while channeling on Jeff Daniels's Mr. Lebowski with his drug-fueled humor and intoxicating dialogue. Phoenix is the one that manages to stand out above the absurdly bloated cast, partially since he acquires the most screen time. Josh Brolin delivers plenty of fortitude as Detective Bigfoot for his time, and his chemistry with Phoenix works like a charm. Katherine Waterston makes a good use of her screen time with her flashy sex appeal, particularly in one scene showing a lingering shot of her in the nude while seductively chatting with Phoenix. Owen Wilson brings some good humor to his role, but falls short of screen time. The remainder of the cast consists of a large number of actors and actresses (Reese Witherspoon, Michael Kenneth Williams, Maya Rudolph, Benicio Del Toro, and Martin Short to name a few) are left stranded in underdeveloped roles that pit them almost nothing to work with, which only comes to show how terrifyingly difficult it is to develop so many characters squeezed into a 148-minute runtime. Inherent Vice is a bizarrely entertaining stoner epic that is destined to leave devout fans of Paul Thomas Anderson's works engaged, while leave others stranded in sheer frustration for his absurdly confusing plot. This is easily one of those cinematic tales that will polarize audiences, and for good reasons. After all, it is not your average part-comedy, part-mystery flick. It is one that opens light on the unique style of Anderson directorial skills, while showing little interest of indulging in coherency.