Partly cloudy, 82% chance of rain. On one day, a dying father, a young wife, a male caretaker, a famous lost son, a police officer in love, a boy genius, an ex-boy genius, a game show host and an estranged daughter will become a part of one larger story. These nine lives will weave in and out of each other to create the most realistic story ever. Strange things like this happen every day.

Plot: Only writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson (Boogie Nights) could bring such a vividly realistic story to film. The movie's backbone is that strange things happen all the time (A theme which is reinforced by the films prologue) and that people's lives affect each other in ways the individual can't possibly comprehend. Although it is hard to explain in words this film IS reality. Every word uttered by every character is freakishly real. The audience buys the picture almost like a documentary. Plus, the story of how people's lives intertwine keeps the audience compelled through it's marathon 3 hours. P.T. Anderson is a writer who understands every little nuance of the human subconsciousness. The script is worthy of study in film schools across the planet. *****(out of five)

Acting: Fans of Anderson's last picture, Boogie Nights, will quickly notice the return of that film's main cast (excluding Mark Wahlberg and Burt Reynolds). Luis Guzman, Phillip Baker Hall, Phillip Seymour Hoffman, William H. Macy, Alfred Molina, Julianne Moore, John C. Reilly, Ricky Jay, and Thomas Jane all return for another round. This film completely focuses on the characters and their reactions to problems they've caused themselves. There are no explosions to distract the audience, there are no space ships flying around, and there are no empty characters. This film has brought out some of the best acting I've ever seen. The script to this film is real and the acting is real. At no point in this film will an audience member be removed from the world this film creates (unless fatigue from sitting in the same spot for three hours sets in). Because of the way this film is written there isn't really any particular actor or actress who stands high above the rest, but there are a few performances that are very memorable. Melora Walters (Boogie Nights, Sydney, Ed Wood) as Claudia Wilson, the drug crazed daughter of the game show host. Walters plays it so realistically the audience will believe she is on cocaine. Jeremy Blackman as Stanley Spector, the new quiz kid. This is the first feature film for young Jeremy Blackman it is made quite clear that this kid is going places. By the end of this film the audience feels sorry for this kid and how he lives his life as an item to be gawked at. Last, but not least, Tom Cruise as Frank T.J. Mackey, the famous lost son. Tom has proven many times in the past he can actually act, but in this film he completely engulfs himself in to the character. Frank T.J. Mackey is a man who sells his advice about getting women in the form of books, videos, and expensive seminars. Frank refuses to confront his past and the truth about a father who left him as a child... and Tom Cruise plays the role perfectly. *****(out of five)

Directing: Paul Thomas Anderson (Boogie Nights and Sydney (aka: Hard Eight)) is making movies like no one else. In a normal film, shots are framed around the environment and characters walk through them. In a normal film, there are exterior shots of houses and locations. In a normal film, hand-held camera shots are a rarity. In a Paul Thomas Anderson film, none of those rules are followed. Anderson frames his shots with the characters in the middle and follows the character around the environment. This technique gives the film a more personal feel and makes the audience feel more like a participant than an observer. Anderson only shows as much exterior as needed for the character to move around. For example when Stanley Spector goes to the TV studio, Anderson only shows the doorway and a little bit of the parking lot. The Audience has no idea what the whole building looks like. Every Anderson film contains some extended sequence in which several characters are followed around by one camera in one continuous shot, called a tracking shot. In Boogie Nights it was in the beginning of the film, used mainly as an introduction to all the characters. In Magnolia it is used in the set for the game show. The purpose of the shot seems to illustrate the frantic fast-paced life of a misunderstood child. Anderson does not stop there with his hand-held work, in fact the majority of the film contains hand-held camera movements. Presumably to keep the central idea of realism ringing throughout the film. Unfortunately because of the lack of wide shots, exteriors, etc. the film sometimes becomes confusing to follow. Also, when the movie cuts from one event from person A to another event from person B for about ten minutes then returns to person A no time has passed for person A, although not a big problem it does take some time to recover from the abrupt changes. ****1/2(out of five)

Music: Jon Brion (Sydney (aka: Hard Eight)) re-teams with Anderson to write the music for this latest outing. Interestingly enough Anderson chose Aimee Mann to write the songs for this film. Why is that interesting? Because Aimee Mann is the wife of Michael Penn, the composers for Anderson's last film Boogie Nights. Jon Brion does a great job at creating a consistent theme throughout the movie and unlike Boogie Nights this movie doesn't rely on the constant onslaught of 70s and 80s hits. Aimee Mann has some great songs in this picture that really set the tone for the whole film. Most notably "Save Me" which really expresses the thoughts of every character in the entire film. *****(out of five)

Special Effects: Believe it or not this film has special effects in it. But, not only does it have special effects in it, it has the best special effects house working on the effects... Industrial Light and Magic (ILM). Followers of my reviews by now have gotten used to seeing this name because they do just about any big special effects movie one can think of. Even though there are a few same invisible effects scattered through the film there is one big effect at the end of the movie that is truly spectacular and because it's at the end I can't tell you about it. I'll just say keep your eye on the sky. *****(out of five)

Bottom Line: This film is NOT as entertaining as Boogie Nights, but this film is definitely more thought-provoking. If this film is brought up in a conversation be prepared for it to go on for hours. Although it is not as entertaining as Boogie Nights it is still a better film. Expect this movie to grab a few academy award nominations. If you have a three hour slot of time that you have no idea how you are going to fill, go see Magnolia. ***** (out of five)