Cigarettes & Coffee is a short film that takes place in a diner in the middle of the desert. All of the character's lives revolve around a twenty dollar bill. There is gambling, life-changing mistakes, coffee, and cigarettes. This film starts off confusing, but unravels the truth throughout the half and hour it plays.
Cigarettes & Coffee was the short film that helped Paul Thomas Anderson take off. It later inspired his movie, Hard Eight. The film came about after Anderson introduced the script to actor, Philip Baker Hall. The film has elements of gambling, and ironically Anderson paid for the film ($20,000) with money he won gambling. Other forms of the budget came from his college fund, donations, and his girlfriend's credit card. The camera he used was borrowed from Panavision. He rented the diner where the movie takes place. The actors in the film were casted using his connection as a production assistant on a PBS movie. This worked to his advantage since he didn't have to search for talented individuals. It took Anderson 6 weeks to film Cigarettes & Coffee.
Paul Thomas Anderson was known as a kid always on the edge of trouble. He was also very popular with women. Also, not many know about Anderson's childhood. In an Esquire article, John H. Richardson analyzes Anderson's movies and connects them to Paul Thomas Anderson's personal life. In all of his movies, there is a character who would be considered "bad" in society, but he shows them in a different light.
I personally love Paul Thomas Anderson's take on society's bad people. In Cigarettes & Coffee, his characters are in serious trouble and make consequential mistakes; however, they are all calm and act as if everything is fine and dandy. Most of his stories have this feel to their plot. I didn't really have anything to say about the casting. I wasn't familiar with any of the actors, but I kind of liked to see new people on screen. The idea of the twenty dollar bill being the main character is very interesting. All of the characters are established from this one piece of paper. There wasn't a large script, but I like the fact the a little bit is revealed as the story progresses. Each character gives you more information on who the other characters are. The shots were very simple, but the transitions between the scenes are interesting. They usually pan from one booth to the other in the diner. It makes you feel as if you're walking back and forth eavesdropping.
Overall the entire feel of the story is a giant mystery. The calmness of the characters is actually humorous. Even though it's a short film, there is so much story before and during the film. After it's over, you wonder how the whole thing pans out, but on the other hand the story you are given is satisfactory. I didn't need to watch anymore. The short story and the cliffhanger was enough for me.
Cigarettes & Coffee was the short film that helped Paul Thomas Anderson take off. It later inspired his movie, Hard Eight. The film came about after Anderson introduced the script to actor, Philip Baker Hall. The film has elements of gambling, and ironically Anderson paid for the film ($20,000) with money he won gambling. Other forms of the budget came from his college fund, donations, and his girlfriend's credit card. The camera he used was borrowed from Panavision. He rented the diner where the movie takes place. The actors in the film were casted using his connection as a production assistant on a PBS movie. This worked to his advantage since he didn't have to search for talented individuals. It took Anderson 6 weeks to film Cigarettes & Coffee.
Paul Thomas Anderson was known as a kid always on the edge of trouble. He was also very popular with women. Also, not many know about Anderson's childhood. In an Esquire article, John H. Richardson analyzes Anderson's movies and connects them to Paul Thomas Anderson's personal life. In all of his movies, there is a character who would be considered "bad" in society, but he shows them in a different light.
I personally love Paul Thomas Anderson's take on society's bad people. In Cigarettes & Coffee, his characters are in serious trouble and make consequential mistakes; however, they are all calm and act as if everything is fine and dandy. Most of his stories have this feel to their plot. I didn't really have anything to say about the casting. I wasn't familiar with any of the actors, but I kind of liked to see new people on screen. The idea of the twenty dollar bill being the main character is very interesting. All of the characters are established from this one piece of paper. There wasn't a large script, but I like the fact the a little bit is revealed as the story progresses. Each character gives you more information on who the other characters are. The shots were very simple, but the transitions between the scenes are interesting. They usually pan from one booth to the other in the diner. It makes you feel as if you're walking back and forth eavesdropping.
Overall the entire feel of the story is a giant mystery. The calmness of the characters is actually humorous. Even though it's a short film, there is so much story before and during the film. After it's over, you wonder how the whole thing pans out, but on the other hand the story you are given is satisfactory. I didn't need to watch anymore. The short story and the cliffhanger was enough for me.