The Master

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The Master

R

Released Sep 14, 2012

2h 16m

Drama

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Popcornmeter

85%

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257 Reviews

62%

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50,000+ Ratings

Freddie Quell (Joaquin Phoenix) is a troubled, boozy drifter struggling with the trauma of World War II and whatever inner demons ruled his life before that. On a fateful night in 1950, Freddie boards a passing boat and meets Lancaster Dodd (Philip Seymour Hoffman), the charismatic leader of a religious movement called the Cause. Freddie tries hard to adhere to Dodd's weird teachings and forms a close bond with his mentor, even as other members of Dodd's inner circle see him as a threat.

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Critics Consensus

Smart and solidly engrossing, The Master extends Paul Thomas Anderson's winning streak of challenging films for serious audiences.

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J. Hoberman

ARTINFO.com

The main thing is that The Master is so unlike anything else in its seriousness and so admirable in its vitality that one has to support it.

Feb 25, 2019

Full Review

Deborah Ross

The Spectator

It is all so enigmatic and underwritten I felt rather shut out. A 'challenging' film is one thing, but one that actually slams the door in your face is quite another, as well as rude.

Sep 1, 2018

Full Review

Nick Pinkerton

Sight & Sound

Towering standalone moments all, they are certainly impressive when first encountered, though they wobble perilously the longer one looks at them...It isn't a great film - but it has a great film rattling around inside it.

Apr 9, 2018

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Ezequiel Obregón

EscribiendoCine

With its sordid humor and lack of heroics, The Master is likely to be viewed as a bitter tale about faith in American society, oscillating between pragmatism and profit. [Full review in Spanish]

Rated: 10/10

May 26, 2025

Full Review

Fico Cangiano

CineXpress Podcast

The electricity between actors Joaquin Phoenix and Philip Seymour Hoffman is off the charts in this complex study of power, loyalty and contradictions. [Full review in Spanish]

Rated: 4.5/5

Mar 28, 2025

Full Review

Gianmarco Farfán

Cinencuentro

An intense, thoughtful and harsh film that shows the contradictions between people with a certain degree of power and those who have no power at all. [Full review in Spanish]

Jul 17, 2024

Full Review

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will t

when you watch the master, it feels like watching high art. every frame and scene feels like something you would find in a royal palace, every emotion and act. it makes you believe in scientology, then brings you back to reality, then shows you the true absurdness and horror of it. how paul thomas anderson arranges every little detail and gets every actor in the movie, no matter how big or important the role, to feel so insanely realistic is beyond me. obviously, there's the famous scenes that everybody knows, and while their famous for a reason it's the little bits of emotion in everything that drive the master for me. it makes me feel so many things. truly high art, and one of philip seymour hoffman's last and greatest performances.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

08/03/25

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Patrick G.

7.8/10 So slow but Hoffman and phoenix are incredible actors, it’s like a battle of geniuses

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

07/22/25

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john h

The Master is a spectacular look into the formation of cults and the relationship between men who are dependent on each other, but use different ways, sometimes crueler, to fulfill their dependency on others.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

06/03/25

Full Review

Radford W

It acting is very good. Just felt like it was confusing slow paced and a very strange main character that I didn’t care for at all

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

04/25/25

Full Review

thiago s

Filme mais ou menos, o roteiro é fraco, o filme tem uma história desinteressante, mas as atuações do Joaquim phoenix e do Philip seymour Hoffman dão um salvada no filme, as cenas do filme são meio fracas e o elenco em si tenta ajudar mas não consegue.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

02/10/25

Full Review

Steve S

Favorite movie of All Time

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

12/24/24

Full Review

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Paul Thomas Anderson

Director

Joaquin Phoenix

Freddie Quell

Philip Seymour Hoffman

Lancaster Dodd

Amy Adams

Peggy Dodd

Laura Dern

Helen Sullivan

Jesse Plemons

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Synopsis

Freddie Quell (Joaquin Phoenix) is a troubled, boozy drifter struggling with the trauma of World War II and whatever inner demons ruled his life before that. On a fateful night in 1950, Freddie boards a passing boat and meets Lancaster Dodd (Philip Seymour Hoffman), the charismatic leader of a religious movement called the Cause. Freddie tries hard to adhere to Dodd's weird teachings and forms a close bond with his mentor, even as other members of Dodd's inner circle see him as a threat.

Director: Paul Thomas Anderson
Producer: JoAnne Sellar, Daniel Lupi, Paul Thomas Anderson, Megan Ellison
Screenwriter: Paul Thomas Anderson
Distributor: Weinstein Co.
Production Co: Ghoulardi Film Company, Joanne Sellar, Annapurna Pictures
Rating: R (Language|Graphic Nudity|Sexual Content)
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Sep 14, 2012, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Jul 12, 2014
Box Office (Gross USA): $16.2M
Runtime: 2h 16m
Sound Mix: Datasat, Dolby Digital

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