The Master

2012 2h 17m EN

👍

7.1

SOLID

🍅

85%

FRESH

💯

METACRITIC

⭐

7.1

IMDB

★7.1TMDB · 3,434🍅85%Rotten Tomatoes●86Metacritic★7.1IMDB · 200,699

Drama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Freddie, a volatile, heavy-drinking veteran who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, finds some semblance of a family when he stumbles onto the ship of Lancaster Dodd, the charismatic leader of a new "religion" he forms after World War II.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Joaquin Phoenix
Freddie Quell
Philip Seymour Hoffman
Lancaster Dodd
Amy Adams
Peggy Dodd
Rami Malek
Clark
Laura Dern
Helen Sullivan
Jesse Plemons
Val Dodd
Ambyr Childers
Elizabeth Dodd
Madisen Beaty
Doris Solstad

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Paul Thomas Anderson
Writers: Paul Thomas Anderson
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Earned back only 88% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 14 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

CAST

Did you know

257+ people credited in cast and crew — a small city's worth of labour.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, shot by Mihai Malaimare Jr.. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Jonny Greenwood. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Leslie Jones shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Joaquin Phoenix and Philip Seymour Hoffman and Amy Adams carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt1560747 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Paul Thomas Anderson directs. Mihai Malaimare Jr. behind the camera. Jonny Greenwood scores. Leslie Jones cuts. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Earned back only 88% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
2Released 14 years ago.
3257+ people credited in cast and crew — a small city's worth of labour.
4Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, shot by Mihai Malaimare Jr.. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Jonny Greenwood. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor Leslie Jones shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Joaquin Phoenix and Philip Seymour Hoffman and Amy Adams carry the top of the cast.
8IMDB entry: tt1560747 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Classified under 16 themes, including "post-traumatic stress disorder (ptsd)", "sexual obsession", "religion", "drifter".

The technical file

Cinematography: Mihai Malaimare Jr.
Original score: Jonny Greenwood
Editing: Leslie Jones
Production design: David Crank
Costume design: Mark Bridges
Makeup / hair: Miia Kovero
VFX supervisor: Gregory D. Liegey
Sound: Michael Semanick
Stunt coordinator: Garrett Warren
Runtime: 137 min · 2h 17m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $32,000,000
Box office: $28,258,060
Return: 88% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: The Master (2012)
Rotten Tomatoes: 85% 🍅 Fresh
Metacritic: 86/100
IMDB rating: 7.1/10 · 200,699 votes
MPAA: R

Awards

Nominated for 3 Oscars. 75 wins & 187 nominations total

Also by

Paul Thomas Anderson

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Selected frames

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Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

Pugwash2013-03-16
Modern self-indulgent rubbish. Too long. I gained nothing from watching this. It's nicely photographed, but that is a given in the 21st century. The acting is fine, but this is a review of the movie as a whole. Don't waste your time.
Filipe Manuel Neto2023-05-27
★ 5/10
It's a film for a fairly narrow audience and is very slow paced... too slow. Honestly, I expected more from this movie. A certain strong dramatic spark that really justified the time spent watching it. Unfortunately, it seems the only motivation for seeing the film is its criticism of the Church of Scientology, a criticism that, if you read a little about the church and pay attention, is not even implied. Paul Thomas Anderson is a respected director, especially after the films “Magnolia” and “There Will Be Blood”. I'm not going to discuss that, not least because he's not a director I'm comfortable with (I think, counting this one, I've only seen two of his films). What matters is this film, and here, the director did a good job. It probably not the best of his career, there are very debatable options especially in terms of editing and rhythm, but it's enough. The cast's work is even better. Joaquin Phoenix gives us an impeccable, intense and very dramatic work, even if it is totally surpassed by the charisma of Philip Seymour Hoffman, a totally accurate choice for the character, who required not only charisma but also leadership, affirmation and authority. The actor, who left us suddenly and quite prematurely, was rightly nominated for an Oscar here. Laura Dern and Amy Adams ensure the main presences in the feminine, and they do it safely, even if in a more discreet way. On a technical level, the film has some very good points and others not so well developed: if on the one hand we have an excellent collection of sets and costumes, a good recreation of historical periods and places, an excellent cinematography and an enviable filming work, we also have a badly done edition, incapable of giving the film greater drama and some rhythm. I don't know if that was on purpose or not, what I do know is that the movie is disgustingly slow, dull and boring, with tons of lamely written dialogue and a lot of wasted time in between. I was left with the feeling that it would have been perfectly possible, in editing, to cut about half an hour of film without rigorously altering the meaning or running the risk of ruining the story. And talking about editing invariably leads us to talking about the script. I am not and have never been a member of the Church of Scientology, so I feel free to see a film that openly criticizes it, and also a film that criticizes it more covertly, as is the case. What the film makes clear is the weight of a great leader's charisma for the growth of a cult, but that was something that seemed clear enough to me. There are also some passages in which the film suggests that Scientology (like the “Cause”) is a great hoax, but this is also apparently consensual among the common public, and is based to some extent on testimonies from former members of the church. Regardless, it is not a film that is capable of attracting the masses to cinema, it is a topic for a niche of people already interested in it and not for the general public. And that doomed the film to a tremendous financial failure, considering the capital the production spent on it.

Production companies