Boogie Nights

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Boogie Nights

R

Released Oct 10, 1997

2h 32m

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

91%

Tomatometer

155 Reviews

89%

Popcornmeter

100,000+ Ratings

In the San Fernando Valley in 1977, teenage busboy Eddie Adams (Mark Wahlberg) gets discovered by porn director Jack Horner (Burt Reynolds), who transforms him into adult-film sensation Dirk Diggler. Brought into a supportive circle of friends, including fellow actors Amber Waves (Julianne Moore), Rollergirl (Heather Graham) and Reed Rothchild (John C. Reilly), Dirk fulfills all his ambitions, but a toxic combination of drugs and egotism threatens to take him back down.

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Critics Consensus

Grounded in strong characters, bold themes, and subtle storytelling, Boogie Nights is a groundbreaking film both for director P.T. Anderson and star Mark Wahlberg.

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Terry Lawson

Detroit Free Press

Boogie Nights is the bomb, that jolt of energy that keeps you going to last call, then sends you prowling for something to sustain the rush. Don't bother. Nearly any other movie after this is certain to seem limply soft-core.

Rated: 4/4

Sep 24, 2025

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David Ansen

Newsweek

One of those breakthrough movies that leaves no doubt you are in the presence of a natural-born filmmaker. Like Spielberg's Sugarland Express or Scorsese's Mean Streets, Anderson's mesmerizing movie announces the arrival of a major career.

Sep 24, 2025

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Richard Williams

Guardian

Hugely entertaining, full of surprises, critical of its subject but never lacking in humanity, this is a real epic of small lives.

Sep 24, 2025

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Steve Persall

Tampa Bay Times

It's a blessing blessing all its own: bold and uncompromising in the way it treats pornography as a profession and a smutty joke, yet so genial and thrilling in its execution that you're transfixed by the genius of a new member of the filmmaking elite.

Rated: A

Sep 24, 2025

Full Review

Jeff Simon

Buffalo News

Boogie Nights is the film, I think, that will define 1997. It's not only that good but it's that audacious and that brilliant about the most difficult and most commanding subject that we know these days -- sex.

Rated: 4.5/5

Sep 24, 2025

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Christopher Borrelli

Toledo Blade

It's a sprawling, grand mess of energy, pathos, storytelling, and chutzpah, the celluloid equivalent of a 16-year-old boy with roller skates on his feet and a jet pack strapped to his back.

Rated: 4/4

Sep 24, 2025

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trevor a

35mm at the Paris theater! Spectacular showing

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

11/30/24

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Bryan C

Unlike other filmmakers his age, he's not hiding behind genres, narrative gimmicks or slacker postures. He has epic ambitions, he wants to work on a large canvas, and he's apparently fearless.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

09/26/25

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Sam S

This strikes me as less of a great movie than it does a young man’s idea of one. The influences are obvious and typical. Needle drops and flashy camera movements come thick and fast. Still, most filmmakers would envy both the opportunity and skill PTA had to make this grand, especially this early in his career.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

09/26/25

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Michari N.

A dark story of a pornographic actor with great performances from the cast feels very Pt Andersony.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

09/25/25

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Jack T

One of the all time great films about the porn industry, with real people not just cardboard stock characters. Not just a cult classic but a classic that still holds up to this day

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

09/11/25

Full Review

Monty J

Boogie Nights unspools like a double LP of ambition, excess, and heartbreak. Paul Thomas Anderson sets the stage in the San Fernando Valley, where young Eddie Adams (Mark Wahlberg) is discovered by adult film maestro Jack Horner (Burt Reynolds). Rechristened Dirk Diggler, he rides a meteoric rise, basking in fame, money, and the heady groove of the late ’70s. But as the tempo shifts into the harsher textures of the ’80s, Dirk’s tune falters, addiction, ego, and betrayal muddy the once-bright melody. Anderson conducts his ensemble with the precision of a seasoned bandleader: Julianne Moore brings a plaintive saxophone wail as maternal star Amber Waves, while John C. Reilly and Don Cheadle provide steady rhythm in a world losing its beat. The film swings between euphoria and despair, ultimately charting a blues of reinvention. Like jazz, Boogie Nights reminds us that glory can be fleeting, but the music...messy, raw, and human, always plays on.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

09/22/25

Full Review

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Paul Thomas Anderson

Director

Mark Wahlberg

Eddie Adams

Burt Reynolds

Jack Horner

Julianne Moore

Amber Waves

John C. Reilly

Reed Rothchild

Don Cheadle

Buck Swope

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Synopsis

In the San Fernando Valley in 1977, teenage busboy Eddie Adams (Mark Wahlberg) gets discovered by porn director Jack Horner (Burt Reynolds), who transforms him into adult-film sensation Dirk Diggler. Brought into a supportive circle of friends, including fellow actors Amber Waves (Julianne Moore), Rollergirl (Heather Graham) and Reed Rothchild (John C. Reilly), Dirk fulfills all his ambitions, but a toxic combination of drugs and egotism threatens to take him back down.

Director: Paul Thomas Anderson
Producer: Lloyd Levin, John S. Lyons, JoAnne Sellar, Paul Thomas Anderson
Screenwriter: Paul Thomas Anderson
Distributor: Criterion Collection, New Line Cinema
Production Co: New Line Cinema, Lawrence Gordon Productions
Rating: R (Explicit Dialogue|Drug Use|Violence|Language|Nudity|Strong Sex Scenes)
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 10, 1997, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): May 19, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $26.4M
Runtime: 2h 32m
Sound Mix: Surround, Dolby Digital, SDDS
Aspect Ratio: 35mm, Scope (2.35:1)

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