The MasterMovie Reviews

  • So-so Based on 6,607 reviews
    Breakdown:
  • No
    Written September 23, 2012

    waste of time

    by melonda

    I was so hopeful about this movie because of the outstanding cast and I was very disappointed. The movie made no sense, there was no great conclusion that pulled it all together, it was confusing and unsettling - all in all, a waste of time.

    • 4 out of 4 found this review helpful.
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  • Oh No!
    Written September 30, 2012

    The Master

    by Jphil1

    This movie is not good. The acting is ok but the storyline and content is bad. There were people that walked out 1/2 hour into the movie. After the movie a group formed outside the theater talking about how the movie was bad and a waste of 2 hours. I have never seen that before. I would wait til the DVD if you really want to see this movie.

    • 4 out of 4 found this review helpful.
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  • So-so
    Written September 18, 2012

    Disappointing

    by

    Glad I saw this (I've seen all of P.T. Anderson's other films), but I'm disappointed and surprised that I thought it didn't work overall, given all the positive press it's gotten. Phoenix and Hoffman are both excellent actors, and in many ways they're excellent in this movie, but too much of the time it feels like an "Act-Off", a beautifully shot two man show with a few amazing scenes, consistently great cinematography, but the two characters are really the whole movie, and the relationship between the two of them ultimately didn't mean anything to me. I can say that I was nearly mesmerized by the first 30 or 40 minutes, up through the two leads' first big scene together, but then the movie just seemed to ramble and, at best, repeat itself for another hour and a half. I'm not sorry I saw it, but I'm genuinely sorry I can't recommend it with any great enthusiasm.

    • 8 out of 12 found this review helpful.
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  • So-so
    Written September 24, 2012

    Not a Movie, But A Therapy Session

    by tng59

    I was disappointed by Paul Thomas Anderson's latest offering perhaps because his last film, "There Will Be Blood" was so good. It was one of the best films I had ever seen, so "The Master" had alot to live up to. It did not even come close. I can't put my finger on why, but I left the theatre feeling as though I had been psychologically abused. It's Freudian undercurrent made me uncomfortable. Perhaps it dreged up some unconcious muck that I would rather have left alone. Maybe that's what Mr. Anderson was trying to do, but I feel it would have been better left for the analyst's couch. The most disturbing scene was of a get together at "The Master's" home, when suddenly, in a straight cut, all the women are naked. The scene continues for quite a while and all the now naked females seem oblivious that they are nothing but sex objects to the men. And if they were aware, they did not seem to care. The scene made me acutely aware of my own sexist atitudes and it was an unpleasant feeling

    • 4 out of 4 found this review helpful.
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  • So-so
    Written September 22, 2012

    Interesting, if you can stay awake

    by iknowbest

    Has this person seen "Citizen Kane" one too many times? I think so. Beautifully filmed (is it film?) fantastic Phoenix. But why so obtuse and long. Except for the cult background story, it is too arcane. Is it about 'cinema' or about art and entertainment?

    • 4 out of 4 found this review helpful.
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  • Go
    Written September 23, 2012

    Joaquin Phoenix owns "The Master"

    by comixfreek

    This movie is a carefully constructed character piece; if you are going expecting a lot of action, this movie isn't for you. Joaquin Phoenix inhabits his character in a way that makes Freddie Quell compelling to watch, and the movie is thought provoking. The other actors are good, but this is really a star vehicle for Joaquin Phoenix. If he doesn't get nominated for an Oscar for Best Actor, that will be a shame and a tragedy. The movie will translate to the small screen well, but worth seeing on the big screen also. The score is phenomenal as well!

    • 9 out of 14 found this review helpful.
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  • Go
    Written September 23, 2012

    The Master

    by tellumtime

    the acting was sensational and Jaquine Phoenix should win an academy award. and very possibly Seymour Hoffman also.
    the story was interesting but the acting holds you throughout the movie.

    • 13 out of 22 found this review helpful.
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  • Oh No!
    Written September 22, 2012

    The Master

    by 5oharas

    Horrible, horrible, movie. Does not even deserve to be called a movie - more like an overly long video clip with no plot. PSH does a good job of making his face red. JP's character is like Johnny Cash on more alcohol and stronger drugs, without the singing. Stay away from this movie. Don't waste your time.

    • 4 out of 4 found this review helpful.
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  • Oh No!
    Written September 21, 2012

    incredible mish-mosh

    by SCAZ

    A big disappointment. There was essentially no point at all to this movie. None. Zip - nada. And I pride myself in always being able to get the subtle details of a movie. This was just a bunch of scenes with no real purpose. The acting was a disappointment as well - it could have been great if it had had a purpose - but there was none to be had. After all the hype - its just a no meaning artsie fartsie movie (and I usually like them).

    • 15 out of 26 found this review helpful.
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  • Oh No!
    Written October 11, 2012

    The Master

    by dgstephan

    Before the movie I read that it was a story about a WW II veteran who struggles to find himself after the war. The movie started out with masturbation and nudity. My wife and I looked at each other... we decided to see if the movie would get better. The acting is fantastic, but when the second masturbation and big nude scene with about a dozen naked women came on, we decided to leave. So, we did not see how it ended. We are not prudes, but this movie could have been told without the weird sex-oriented scenes portrayed so graphically. It is rated "R" and we have seen other "R" rated movies where brief nudity, or murder, or other violence is not so "in your face". I would not take kids to this movie!

    • 4 out of 4 found this review helpful.
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  • Oh No!
    Written September 23, 2012

    Really???

    by steady

    My wife and I saw it, wasted our money. I expect to be moved emotionally by a movie, either high or low. This really was a straight-liner... and I mean that in the most negative of ways!

    • 4 out of 4 found this review helpful.
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  • Oh No!
    Written September 23, 2012

    Pitiful

    by neitas

    This is one the worst movies I've seen, and the second one where I really wanted to leave the theater. Granted acting is superb, but overall this is a a pitiful voyeuristic view into the lives of people with mental health problems. It could have been a commentary on how this country has dealt with the treatment of veterans after the've served, but no. Director chose not to go this way.

    • 4 out of 4 found this review helpful.
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  • Oh No!
    Written September 21, 2012

    The Master of what?

    by adamsnyc

    Let me state that I love PTA. Have absolutely loved all his movies and was hoping to love this one too. It was nicely shot but so overacted it was hard to believe. I felt like I was watching a mockumentary of a method acting class. The music by Johnny Greenwood was also overwrought and distracting. Huge Disappoinment

    • 10 out of 16 found this review helpful.
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  • So-so
    Written September 23, 2012

    Hi-brow Wonder without a story line

    by MovieManof49

    The critics think this movie is "masterful," and I see their points -- the acting is astonishing, the recreation of 1950 perfect, and the atmosphere consistently strange and uneasy -- but there's no forward motion to the plot, and I was left very unsatisfied at the end. It's frustrating when you leave a movie wondering what it was about, and have to read the reviews even to understand what the director was trying to do. That said, the acting may be worth the price of admission, though I'm not sure it's worth 135 minutes....

    • 4 out of 4 found this review helpful.
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  • Oh No!
    Written October 12, 2012

    Walked out

    by rollercoastermama

    SOOOO very slow & waited for the plot. My friend & I walked out after 30 minutes. I don't ever remember walking out of a movie before. I have no idea what the director was even thinking.

    • 4 out of 4 found this review helpful.
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The Master Movie Reviews + Ratings

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So-so
6,607 fan reviews

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AllamaMurray The Master was a good movie. I recommend it. Unless like 27 Dresses is more of your thing.

20 hours ago.

Commander313 who was the killer in the friday the 13th movie? ms morgan believe was her name jason's mother who doesn't know that who is the master of

1 days ago.

magnott You thought the movie inception was crazy? Read your Bible, Jesus is the master at inception. #MindBlown #again #messagewithinamessage

1 days ago.

PratyushKhaitan The Master falls apart in the last 30 minutes. Philip Seymour Hoffman was brilliant as usual though.

1 days ago.

LGrima Philip Seymour Hoffman was still robbed of that Oscar. #TheMaster

1 days ago.

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