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Paul Thomas Anderson

Director Paul Thomas Anderson holds two Berlinale bears and smilesBorn on June 26, 1970 in Los Angeles, California, Paul Thomas Anderson is a director, writer, and producer. He has made several indie gems, but his movies also include many acclaimed hits.

Paul Thomas Anderson – or PTA – has a fascinating upbringing: his father – host of a late night horror show in Cleveland – was the first owner of a V.C.R. on his block. This means that PTA started watching movies from a very early age, and eventually began to experiment with V.C.R. editing.

Anderson made his first amateur movie, The Dirk Diggler Story, in 1988, which would later lead to the making of Boogie Nights (1997), one of PTA’s most successful movies. In 1993 came a short film, Cigarettes & Coffee (1993); eventually, Paul Thomas Anderson shot his first feature film in 1996: Hard Eight.

Many movies came after that, most of which are beloved, iconic gems. After Boogie Nights and many music videos, PTA made the universally acclaimed Magnolia (1999). Then Came Punch-Drunk Love (2002), featuring Adam Sandler as a Superman-like figure, followed by There Will Be Blood (2007), which earned star Daniel Day-Lewis and cinematographer Robert Elswit Acadamy Awards.

PTA’s other films include the Venice-premiering The Master (2012), stoner epic Inherent Vice (2014), the thematically rich Phantom Thread (2017), and the nostalgic Licorice Pizza (2021). On this page you’ll find all our articles and reviews of Paul Thomas Anderson’s movies.