Listening Post

Word is this video took well over a year to make, mostly because director Paul Thomas Anderson had to stop halfway through it to go shoot The Master.

Admittedly, Fiona Apple has never looked better, but I'm going to violate critical conventional wisdom and say that as Apple's gotten more and more adventurous as an artist, I've enjoyed her music less and less. This isn't to say that some of it isn't very good, only that I still remember my reaction to hearing the languid loveliness of Tidal for the first time -- I put the headphones on at the former Virgin Megastore on Sunset here in L.A. and honestly felt my knees go weak -- and I miss that from Fiona.

Here's Hot Knife.

Master Piece

I'm a very big fan of Paul Thomas Anderson. I thought Boogie Nights was extraordinary, Magnolia is one of my all-time favorite films, and There Will Be Blood, in my opinion, was the best movie of the 2000s. (I still haven't gotten around to seeing The Master.)

Still, despite my fanboy appreciation, I can fully understand where Entertainment Weekly critic Owen Gleiberman is coming from in his respectful and very well-written explanation of how and why he "fell out of love" with Anderson's films.

Regardless of your opinion of Anderson and his work, it's an excellent read.

Entertainment Weekly: Why I Fell Out of Love with the Films of Paul Thomas Anderson/10.3.12