With multiple masterpiece under his smash , Paul Thomas Andersonis one of the most prominent and revered filmmakers working today . boogie-woogie Nightsis a striking portrayal of the Golden Age of Porn , There Will Be Bloodis a transcendent epic poem arguably on equation withThe Godfather , andPunch - Drunk Loveis one of the greatest romances ever portrayed on the bounteous screen .

Anderson ’s trend did n’t come to him fully formed in a fatal pipe dream ; it ’s the solution of a cocktail of cinematic influence mix together to make something young . So , here are 10 movies that have influence Paul Thomas Anderson ’s directorial flair .

Goodfellas (1990)

Anderson reportedly watchedGoodfellasevery calendar week when he was shootingBoogie Nightsbecause he wanted to emulate its zippy pacing andepic , yet intimate stakes . Martin Scorsese ’s biopic of Henry Hill ispossibly the slap-up mob movie ever made ; with its cutting true - to - life ending , it ’s a prophylactic narrative about the grim side of the mafia modus vivendi .

Scorsese himself was inspired to giveGoodfellasits breakneck pace and all - over - the - place storytelling style by the opening scenes of François Truffaut’sJules and Jim .

refer : Every Paul Thomas Anderson Movie Ranked

Ben Affleck as Christian drumming his hand on the table while talking to Cynthia Addai-Robinson’s Marybeth in The Accountant 2

The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre (1948)

While he was writing the script forThere Will Be Blood , Paul Thomas Anderson reportedly watched John Huston ’s classic westernThe gem of the Sierra Madreevery night before he went to layer .

Anderson said of thefilm ’s influence , “ When I watch this again , all of life ’s questions and answers are there in the motion picture : the way to make moving picture , hold up your life , get along , everything . ”

Jaws (1975)

“ Jawswas a big , braggart , big , great , big heap to me,”said Paul Thomas Andersonof Steven Spielberg ’s industry - alter , shark - hunting chef-d’oeuvre . When Anderson was a kid , Jawswas one of two motion-picture show ( along withThe Wizard of Oz ) that he watched over and over again .

The nifty thing aboutJawsis thatit ’s not really about a shark ; the shark is just there to force the three very different booster to work together .

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

Anderson ’s fashion has been hard inspire by Stanley Kubrick , but one picture show of his that he ’s refer as being particularly brilliant is his sci - fi epic2001 : A Space Odyssey , which charts the chronicle of humanity before boldly leaping into its future .

Specifically , Anderson was influenced by Kubrick ’s use of music in his movies .   Andersonsweepingly adjudge , “ It ’s so hard to do anything that does n’t owe some kind of debt to what Stanley Kubrick did with music in picture . ineluctably , you ’re going to terminate up doing something that he ’s plausibly already done before . ”

Stray Dog (1949)

Akira Kurosawa ’s offence dramaStray Dogplays like a Japanese take on the American celluloid noir . It tells the story of one bad sidereal day in the living of a untested , inexperienced detective .

Despite the complex plotting of a lot of Anderson ’s movies , what he hump about this one is the simplicity of its storytelling : “ you may say it in one sentence : a rookie cop lose his gun . It ’s unbelievable . ”

Rear Window (1954)

A 2nd viewing of Alfred Hitchcock’sRear Windowbefore makingPhantom Threadchanged Anderson ’s perception of it .

Heexplained , “ Rear Windowreally spoke to me , especially Grace Kelly ’s performance and the sorting of whole idea that Jimmy Stewart was this bachelor who would never get married and he ’s a single guy cable and ‘ I ’m a photographer ’ and ‘ I ’m out there in the jungle and you do n’t want any part of this ’ and that kind of matter . ” This dynamic clearly act upon Reynolds and Alma ’s riotous relationship inPhantom Thread .

The Silence Of The Lambs (1991)

When Anderson was demand to name three directors who have influenced his career the most , he replied , “ Jonathan Demme , Jonathan Demme , and Jonathan Demme . ”

In particular , Anderson has manoeuver toThe secrecy of the Lambsand Demme ’s use of closeup of actors ’ facestalking directly to the camerain conversation scenes .

Raging Bull (1980)

Your average P.T. Anderson friend , from Dirk Diggler to Daniel Plainview to Reynolds Woodcock , will have a astounding gloaming from grace . This follows the tragic trajectory of boxer Jake LaMotta in Martin Scorsese’sRaging Bull . Robert De Nirobrought agonizing exposure to Jake ’s violent rage .

The final view ofBoogie Nights , with Dirk talking to himself in the mirror of a dressing room , is a direct analogue to the last shot ofRaging Bull , in which De Niro emulates LaMotta emulate Marlon Brando ’s “ I coulda been a contender ” monologue fromOn the Waterfront .

Putney Swope (1969)

Robert Downey , Sr . ’s rage hitPutney Swopehas been named by Anderson as a polar influence on his approach to filmmaking . A pet of many underground photographic film buff , Putney Swopeis a searing satire of the ad manufacture .

Don Cheadle’sBoogie Nightscharacter Buck Swope wasnamed in honor of this film , with permission from Downey ( who makes a abbreviated cameo coming into court in the movie ) .

Short Cuts (1993)

adapt from a handful of Raymond Carver history , Robert Altman’sShort Cutsis asprawling anthologythat provides a rounded portrayal of lifetime in Los Angeles through the perspectives of various disparate quality .

Anderson formulated his own take on this premise withMagnolia , another straggle dramatic epic poem about the everyday lives of Los Angelinos . Anderson has also clearly taken inspiration from Altman ’s filmNashville , but the influence ofShort Cutsis a lot more obvious .

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Paul Thomas Anderson Influences Feature

Goodfellas Martin Scorsese

Dobbs and Curtin smiling in The Treasure of the Sierra Madre

The shark’s first appearance in Jaws

2001 A Space Odyssey Keir Dullea

Stray-Dog-1949

Jimmy Stewart looking through a lens in Rear Window

Silence of the Lambs Cell

Raging Bull

Pepi and Ruth Hermine in Putney Swope as President and First Lady

Julianne Moore in Short Cuts

Movies

Paul Thomas Anderson