Review of Inherent Vice (2014) by Moore S — 15 Nov 2015

Fascinating film-noir set in 1970 Los Angeles, with, effectively, a script by Thomas Pynchon. Perhaps the best thing about this film is that Paul Thomas Anderson stayed true to not just the spirit of the book, but liberally quotes passages from Pynchon verbatim, and makes the visuals match as well. The photography and direction well captures the dark paranoid feeling of LA shortly after the Manson murders, but also the lighter end of first hippy era stoner sex and drugs as well.

Especially good on a 2nd viewing, I found. Plenty of good acting, with son of real hippies Joaquin Phoenix especially good in the lead role, with terrific supporting acting by Josh Brolin, Katherine Waterston, Reese Witherspoon, Owen Wilson and other notables.Yes, it's a complex plot with an array of characters, as must be the case when its based on a novel by one of the more challenging, but also funniest, writers of our time.