Review of Hard Eight (1997) by Jarret W — 26 May 2007

Sydney (which is a much more appropriate title than Hard Eight) is a beautifully done character study, directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. It revolves around a professional gambler named Sydney (a superb Philip Baker Hall) and how he tries to help two people down on their luck: John (John C. Reilly) and waitress/hooker Clementine (Gwyneth Paltrow).

The acting is top-notch, all around. Philip Baker Hall gives the performance of his life as Sydney in this movie. His portrayal of the lead is nuanced, subtle, and expressive, even with little dialogue. (What he doesn't say is just as important as he does say.) Before this role, he was one of those guys who looks familiar but whose name you never know. This movie really gives him a chance to shine. John C. Reilly, likewise, gives an excellent performance in a naive and diffident role. Gwyneth Paltrow is quite memorable playing a tough, gritty role for all its worth. I like Paltrow the most in the smaller supporting roles she had (like in Se7en) before she hit it big and got the real glamorous parts. Samuel L. Jackson also has a supporting role, which he executes with his usual skill and talent (though his character could be a brother to the ones he played in Pulp Fiction and Jackie Brown).

This was Anderson's first feature-length picture. A lot of people have cited big differences between it and his two later films, Boogie Nights and Magnolia. On the surface they are very different. Sydney is a small, unassuming film-noir character study. Boogie Nights and Magnolia are, by contrast, almost epic in scope, covering many characters at once. Magnolia was also a bit pretentious (I still love it though) and used tons of camera and editing tricks, whereas Sydney used photography that was quite direct and narrative. All three movies have two important things in common: they are all character-driven films, motivated by a desire to understand these people. The second was the genuine affection that Paul Thomas Anderson has for his characters. Anderson shows us his characters at their worst moments and forces us to love them. It takes a true artist to do that.

In some ways, I think Sydney is a better film than Magnolia. While Magnolia was a much grander picture, it was almost too grand to actually pull off. Sydney, on the other hand, is a little gem that was made perfectly. Also, in Magnolia, Anderson gets a little more hung up on dialogue than Sydney, where silence can be as communicative as sound.

I also like the lounge-music/easy listening music soundtrack. It sets atmosphere and tone beautifully (though I'd hate to have to hear outside of the movie). Sydney is also a good movie for people who like movies about gambling or casinos, especially because it provides an interesting counterpoint to the glamor of professional gamblers in other movies. Here, Sydney might as well have had any monotonous paper-pushing job.

Anyway, see this movie. Remember, the video is called Hard Eight.