Boogie Nights - wikipedia Boogie Nights For the song, see Boogie Nights ( song ). For the musical, see Boogie Nights ( musical ). Boogie Nights Theatrical release poster Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson Produced by Lloyd Levin John Lyons Paul Thomas Anderson JoAnne Sellar Written by Paul Thomas Anderson Starring Mark Wahlberg Julianne Moore Burt Reynolds Don Cheadle John C. Reilly William H. Macy Heather Graham Music by Michael Penn Cinematography Robert Elswit Edited by Dylan Tichenor Production company Lawrence Gordon Productions Ghoulardi Film Company Distributed by New Line Cinema Release date September 11, 1997 ( 1997 - 09 - 11 ) ( TIFF ) October 10, 1997 ( 1997 - 10 - 10 ) ( United States ) Running time 155 minutes Country United States Language English Budget $15 million Box office $43.1 million Boogie Nights is a 1997 American drama film written, produced and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. It is set in Los Angeles ' San Fernando Valley and focuses on a young nightclub dishwasher who becomes a popular star of pornographic films, chronicling his rise in the Golden Age of Porn of the 1970s through to his fall during the excesses of the 1980s. The film is an expansion of Anderson 's mockumentary short film The Dirk Diggler Story ( 1988 ), and stars Mark Wahlberg, Julianne Moore, Burt Reynolds, Don Cheadle, John C. Reilly, William H. Macy, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Heather Graham. The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 11, 1997 and was released on October 10, 1997, garnering critical acclaim. It was also nominated for three Academy Awards, including Best Original Screenplay for Anderson, Best Supporting Actress for Moore and Best Supporting Actor for Reynolds. The film 's soundtrack has also received acclaim. Contents 1 Plot 2 Cast 3 Production 3.1 Development 4 Reception 4.1 Critical reception 4.2 Awards 5 Music 6 See also 7 References 8 External links Plot In 1977, Eddie Adams is a high - school dropout living with his stepfather and emotionally abusive mother in Torrance, California. He works at the Reseda nightclub owned by Maurice Rodriguez, where he meets porn filmmaker Jack Horner, who auditions him by watching him have sex with Rollergirl, a porn starlet who always wears skates. After having an argument with his mother about his girlfriend and sex life, Adams moves in with Horner at his San Fernando Valley home. Adams gives himself the screen name `` Dirk Diggler '', and becomes a star because of his good looks, youthful charisma, and unusually large penis. His success allows him to buy a new house, an extensive wardrobe, and a `` competition orange '' 1977 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray. With friend and fellow porn star Reed Rothchild, Dirk pitches a series of successful action - themed porn films. Dirk works and socializes with others from the porn industry, and they live carefree lifestyles in the late 1970s disco era. That changes at a New Year 's Eve party at Horner 's house marking the year 1980, when assistant director Little Bill Thompson discovers his porn - star wife having sex with another man, shoots them both and kills himself. Dirk and Reed begin using cocaine. Due to Dirk 's drug use, he finds it increasingly difficult to achieve an erection, falls into violent mood swings and becomes upset with Johnny Doe, a new leading man Jack has recruited. In 1983, after having an argument with Jack, Dirk is fired, and he and Reed leave to start a rock and roll career along with Scotty, a boom operator who loves Dirk. Jack rejects business overtures from Floyd Gondolli, a theater magnate in San Diego and San Francisco, who insists on cutting costs by shooting on videotape, because Jack believes that video will diminish the quality of his films. After his friend and financier Colonel James is imprisoned for possession of child pornography, Jack works with Gondoli, becoming disillusioned with the projects he expects him to churn out. One of these projects involves Jack and Rollergirl riding in a limousine, searching for random men for her to have sex with, while being taped by a crew. When one man recognizes Rollergirl as a former high - school student, he insults her and Jack, who attack the man, leaving him injured on the sidewalk as the crew drives off. Leading lady Amber Waves finds herself in a custody battle with her ex-husband. The court determines she is an unfit mother, due to her involvement in the porn industry, prior criminal record and cocaine addiction. Buck Swope marries fellow porn star Jessie St. Vincent, who becomes pregnant. Because of his past, Buck is disqualified from a bank loan and can not open his own stereo - equipment store. That night, he finds himself in the middle of a holdup in which the clerk, the robber and an armed customer are killed. Buck escapes with the money that the robber demanded. Having squandered their money on drugs, Dirk and Reed can not pay a recording studio for demonstration tapes they believe will enable them to become music stars. Desperate for money, Dirk resorts to prostitution, but is assaulted and robbed by three men. Dirk, Reed and their friend Todd attempt to scam local drug dealer Rahad Jackson, by selling him a half - kilo of baking soda as cocaine. Dirk and Reed decide to leave before Rahad 's bodyguard inspects it, but Todd fails to steal money from Rahad, who kills him in the ensuing gunfight. Dirk reconciles with Jack. In 1984, Buck and Jessie give birth to their son, Amber shoots the television commercial for Buck 's store opening, Reed practices a successful magic act at the strip club, Colonel James remains in prison, and Rollergirl returns to high school. Dirk and Amber prepare to start filming again. Cast Mark Wahlberg as Eddie Adams ( Dirk Diggler ) Julianne Moore as Maggie ( Amber Waves ) Burt Reynolds as Jack Horner Don Cheadle as Buck Swope John C. Reilly as Reed Rothchild William H. Macy as `` Little '' Bill Thompson Heather Graham as Brandy ( `` Rollergirl '' ) Nicole Ari Parker as Becky Barnett Philip Seymour Hoffman as Scotty J. Luis Guzmán as Maurice Rodriguez Philip Baker Hall as Floyd Gondolli Thomas Jane as Todd Parker Robert Ridgely as the Colonel James Nina Hartley as `` Little '' Bill 's wife Melora Walters as Jessie St. Vincent Alfred Molina as Rahad Jackson Ricky Jay as Kurt Longjohn Production Development Boogie Nights is based on a mockumentary short film that Anderson made while he was still in high school called The Dirk Diggler Story. The short was based on the 1981 documentary Exhausted : John C. Holmes, The Real Story, a documentary about the life of legendary porn actor John Holmes, the person on whom Dirk Diggler is based. He originally wanted the role of Eddie to be played by Leonardo DiCaprio, after seeing him in The Basketball Diaries. DiCaprio enjoyed the screenplay, but had to turn it down because he signed on to star in Titanic. He recommended Mark Wahlberg for the role. Joaquin Phoenix was also offered the role of Eddie, but turned it down due to concerns about playing a porn star. Phoenix later collaborated with Anderson in the films, The Master and Inherent Vice. Bill Murray, Harvey Keitel, Warren Beatty, Albert Brooks and Sydney Pollack declined or were passed up on the role of Jack Horner, which went to Burt Reynolds. After starring in Hard Eight, Samuel L. Jackson declined the role of Buck Swope, which went to Don Cheadle. Anderson initially did not consider Heather Graham for the role of Rollergirl, because he had never seen her do nudity in a film. However, Graham 's agent called Anderson asking if she could read for the part, which she won. Drew Barrymore and Tatum O'Neal were also up for the role. After having a very difficult time getting his previous film, Hard Eight, released, Anderson laid down a hard law when getting Boogie Nights made. He initially wanted the film to be over three hours long and be rated NC - 17. The film 's producers, particularly Michael De Luca, said that the film had to be either under three hours or rated R. Anderson fought with them, saying that the film would not have a mainstream appeal no matter what. They did not change their minds, and Anderson chose the R rating as a challenge. Despite this, the film was still 20 minutes shorter than promised. Boogie Nights helped establish Wahlberg as a film actor ; he was previously only known as the frontman of Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch Reynolds did not get along with Anderson while filming. After seeing a rough cut of the film, Reynolds fired his agent for recommending it. Despite this, Reynolds won a Golden Globe Award and was nominated for an Academy Award for his performance. Later, Anderson wanted Reynolds to star in his next film, Magnolia, but Reynolds declined it. Since then, Reynolds has stated that he is proud of the film, saying that his opinion of it has nothing to do with his relationship with Anderson. Reception Critical reception Reynolds received over ten accolades, including nominations for an Academy Award and Screen Actors Guild Award. In addition, he won the Golden Globe Award for his performance The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and was shown at the New York Film Festival, before opening on two screens in the U.S. on October 10, 1997. It grossed $50,168 on its opening weekend. Three weeks later, it expanded to 907 theaters and grossed $4,681,934, ranking number four for the week. It eventually earned $26,400,640 in the U.S. and $16,700,954 in foreign markets for a worldwide box office total of $43,101,594. The film currently has 93 % positive reviews on film review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes, with 61 of 66 counted reviews giving it a `` fresh '' rating and an average rating of 8.2 out of 10. The site 's consensus states : `` 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. '' On Metacritic, the film holds an average score of 85 out of 100, based on 28 reviews, indicating `` universal acclaim ''. Janet Maslin of The New York Times said, `` Everything about Boogie Nights is interestingly unexpected, '' although `` the film 's extravagant 2 - hour 32 - minute length amounts to a slight tactical mistake... ( it ) has no trouble holding interest... but the length promises larger ideas than the film finally delivers. '' She praised Burt Reynolds for `` his best and most suavely funny performance in many years '' and added, `` The movie 's special gift happens to be Mark Wahlberg, who gives a terrifically appealing performance. '' Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun - Times observed, `` Few films have been more matter - of - fact, even disenchanted, about sexuality. Adult films are a business here, not a dalliance or a pastime, and one of the charms of Boogie Nights is the way it shows the everyday backstage humdrum life of porno filmmaking... The sweep and variety of the characters have brought the movie comparisons to Robert Altman 's Nashville and The Player. There is also some of the same appeal as Pulp Fiction in scenes that balance precariously between comedy and violence... Through all the characters and all the action, Anderson 's screenplay centers on the human qualities of the players... Boogie Nights has the quality of many great films, in that it always seems alive. '' Mick LaSalle of the San Francisco Chronicle stated, `` Boogie Nights is the first great film about the 1970s to come out since the ' 70s... It gets all the details right, nailing down the styles and the music. More impressive, it captures the decade 's distinct, decadent glamour... ( It ) also succeeds at something very difficult : re-creating the ethos and mentality of an era... Paul Thomas Anderson... has pulled off a wonderful, sprawling, sophisticated film... With Boogie Nights, we know we 're not just watching episodes from disparate lives but a panorama of recent social history, rendered in bold, exuberant colors. '' Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times called it `` a startling film, but not for the obvious reasons. Yes, its decision to focus on the pornography business in the San Fernando Valley in the 1970s and 1980s is nerviness itself, but more impressive is the film 's sureness of touch, its ability to be empathetic, nonjudgmental and gently satirical, to understand what is going on beneath the surface of this raunchy Nashville-esque universe and to deftly relate it to our own... Perhaps the most exciting thing about Boogie Nights is the ease with which writer - director Anderson... spins out this complex web. A true storyteller, able to easily mix and match moods in a playful and audacious manner, he is a filmmaker definitely worth watching, both now and in the future. '' Peter Travers of Rolling Stone said, `` ( T ) his chunk of movie dynamite is detonated by Mark Wahlberg... who grabs a breakout role and runs with it... Even when Boogie Nights flies off course as it tracks its bizarrely idealistic characters into the ' 80s... you can sense the passionate commitment at the core of this hilarious and harrowing spectacle. For this, credit Paul Thomas Anderson... who... scores a personal triumph by finding glints of rude life in the ashes that remained after Watergate. For all the unbridled sex, what is significant, timely and, finally, hopeful about Boogie Nights is the way Anderson proves that a movie can be mercilessly honest and mercifully humane at the same time. '' Awards The film received box office success with Reynolds ' depiction of Jack Horner garnering him twelve awards and three nominations, and Moore 's depiction of Amber Waves garnering her six awards and nominations. Moore received nominations for an Academy Award, Golden Globe Award, and Screen Actors Guild Award for her performance Organization Nominee ( s ) Result 70th Academy Awards Best Supporting Actor Burt Reynolds Nominated Best Supporting Actress Julianne Moore Nominated Best Original Screenplay Paul Thomas Anderson Nominated 55th Golden Globe Awards Best Supporting Actor -- Motion Picture Burt Reynolds Won Best Supporting Actress -- Motion Picture Julianne Moore Nominated 51st British Academy Film Awards Best Actor in a Supporting Role Burt Reynolds Nominated Best Original Screenplay Paul Thomas Anderson Nominated 4th Screen Actors Guild Awards Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Don Cheadle, Heather Graham, Luis Guzmán, Philip Baker Hall, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Thomas Jane, Ricky Jay, William H. Macy, Alfred Molina, Julianne Moore, Nicole Ari Parker, John C. Reilly, Burt Reynolds, Robert Ridgely, Mark Wahlberg and Melora Walters Nominated Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role Burt Reynolds Nominated Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role Julianne Moore Nominated 2nd Golden Satellite Awards Outstanding Motion Picture Ensemble Won Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture -- Drama Burt Reynolds Won Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture -- Drama Julianne Moore Won Best Motion Picture -- Drama Nominated Best Director of a Motion Picture Paul Thomas Anderson Nominated Best Motion Picture Screenplay -- Original Nominated Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture -- Drama Mark Wahlberg Nominated Outstanding Film Editing Dylan Tichenor Nominated Boston Society of Film Critics Awards Best New Filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson Won British Independent Film Awards Best Foreign Independent Film -- English Language Won Chicago Film Critics Association Awards Best Supporting Actor Burt Reynolds Won Dallas -- Fort Worth Film Critics Association Awards Best Supporting Actor Won Florida Film Critics Circle Awards Best Cast Won Best Supporting Actress Julianne Moore Won Las Vegas Film Critics Society Awards Best Supporting Actor Burt Reynolds Won Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards Best Supporting Actor Won Best Supporting Actress Julianne Moore Won New Generation Award Paul Thomas Anderson Won National Society of Film Critics Awards Best Supporting Actor Burt Reynolds Won Best Supporting Actress Julianne Moore Won New York Film Critics Circle Awards Best Supporting Actor Burt Reynolds Won Writers Guild of America Awards Best Original Screenplay Paul Thomas Anderson Nominated Music Two Boogie Nights soundtracks were released, the first at the time of the film 's initial release and the second the following year. AllMusic rated the first soundtrack four and a half stars out of five and the second soundtrack four. Personnel Paul Thomas Anderson -- executive producer Karyn Rachtman -- executive producer, music supervisor Liz Heller -- executive producer Bobby Lavelle -- music supervisor Carol Dunn -- music coordinator Boogie Nights : Music from the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack album Released October 7, 1997 Genre Disco, pop, soul Label Capitol Boogie Nights 2 : More Music from the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack album Released January 13, 1998 Genre Disco, pop, soul Label Capitol See also Lovelace The Pornographer List of films featuring fictional films References Jump up ^ `` BOOGIE NIGHTS ( 18 ) ''. British Board of Film Classification. October 28, 1997. Retrieved July 5, 2013. ^ Jump up to : Box Office Mojo : Boogie Nights ^ Jump up to : McKenna, Kristine ( October 12, 1997 ). `` Knows It When He Sees It ''. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2012 - 06 - 25. Jump up ^ Waxman, Sharon R. ( 2005 ). Rebels on the backlot : six maverick directors and how they conquered the Hollywood studio system. HarperCollins. p. 115. ISBN 978 - 0 - 06 - 054017 - 3. Jump up ^ Hirshberg, Lynn ( December 19, 1999 ). `` His Way ''. The New York Times. The New York Times Company. Retrieved 2012 - 06 - 25. Jump up ^ Mottram, James ( 2006 ). The Sundance Kids : how the mavericks took back Hollywood. NY : Faber & Faber, Inc. p. 129. ISBN 9780865479678. ^ Jump up to : Kirk, Jeremy ( September 13, 2012 ). `` 37 Things We Learned From the ' Boogie Nights ' Commentary ''. Film School Rejects. Retrieved November 28, 2016. Jump up ^ Brooks, Xan ( January 25, 2013 ). `` Joaquin Phoenix set to star in Paul Thomas Anderson 's Inherent Vice ''. The Guardian. Retrieved November 28, 2016. ^ Jump up to : Zakarin, Jordan ( December 10, 2014 ). `` 5 Things We Just Learned About ' Boogie Nights ' ''. Yahoo ! Movies. Retrieved November 28, 2016. Jump up ^ Brew, Simon ( March 1, 2010 ). `` 10 actors who turned against their own films ''. Den of Geek. Retrieved November 28, 2016. Jump up ^ Jagernauth, Kevin ( December 3, 2015 ). `` '' He Was Young And Full Of Himself `` : Burt Reynolds On Why He `` Hated '' Paul Thomas Anderson During ' Boogie Nights ' ``. Indiewire. Penske Business Media, LLC. Retrieved November 29, 2016. Jump up ^ Mandatory ( 2012 - 07 - 11 ), Deliverance Interviews ( Ronny Cox, Jon Voight, Burt Reynolds & Ned Beatty ), retrieved 2018 - 03 - 01 Jump up ^ `` Box Office Mojo ''. IMDb. Retrieved 2011 - 06 - 25. Jump up ^ `` Boogie Nights ''. Rotten Tomatoes. Flixter. Retrieved 2012 - 05 - 16. Jump up ^ `` Boogie Nights ''. Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 2010 - 07 - 01. Jump up ^ `` New York Times review ''. NYTimes.com. 1997 - 10 - 08. Retrieved 2011 - 06 - 25. Jump up ^ `` Chicago Sun - Times review ''. RogerEbert.SunTimes.com. October 17, 1997. Retrieved 2011 - 06 - 25. Jump up ^ LaSalle, Mick ( 1997 - 10 - 17 ). `` San Francisco Chronicle review ''. SFGate.com. Retrieved 2011 - 06 - 25. Jump up ^ Boucher, Geoff. `` Los Angeles Times review ''. CalendarLive.com. Archived from the original on December 1, 2008. Retrieved June 25, 2011. Jump up ^ `` Rolling Stone review ''. Rolling Stone. Retrieved February 6, 2014. Jump up ^ Allmusic review for the first soundtrack Jump up ^ Allmusic review for the second soundtrack Jump up ^ Discogs - Liz Heller credit Boogie Nights # 2 1997 Capitol Records ( CDP 7243 4 93076 2 9 ) US External links Wikiquote has quotations related to : Boogie Nights Boogie Nights on IMDb Boogie Nights at Box Office Mojo Boogie Nights at Rotten Tomatoes Boogie Nights at Metacritic Boogie Nights script at the Internet Movie Script Database Paul Thomas Anderson radio interview `` Livin ' Thing : An Oral History of Boogie Nights '', Grantland, December 2014 Films directed by Paul Thomas Anderson Feature films Hard Eight ( 1996 ) Boogie Nights ( 1997 ) Magnolia ( 1999 ) Punch - Drunk Love ( 2002 ) There Will Be Blood ( 2007 ) The Master ( 2012 ) Inherent Vice ( 2014 ) Phantom Thread ( 2017 ) Short films The Dirk Diggler Story ( 1988 ) Cigarettes & Coffee ( 1993 ) Documentaries Junun ( 2015 ) Satellite Award for Outstanding Motion Picture Ensemble Boogie Nights The Thin Red Line 1998 Magnolia 1999 Traffic 2000 Gosford Park The Lord of the Rings : The Two Towers 2002 Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Boogie_Nights&oldid=854650367 '' Categories : 1997 films English - language films 1990s buddy films 1990s drama films 1990s independent films Adultery in films American films American drama films American independent films Features based on short films Films about actors Films about drugs Films about filmmaking Films about male prostitution Films about pornography Films about sexuality Films directed by Paul Thomas Anderson Films featuring a Best Supporting Actor Golden Globe winning performance Films set in 1977 Films set in 1978 Films set in 1979 Films set in 1980 Films set in 1982 Films set in 1983 Films set in 1984 Films set in the San Fernando Valley Films shot in California Films shot in Los Angeles Murder - suicide in films Hidden categories : Use mdy dates from January 2015 All articles with dead external links Articles with dead external links from September 2011 Articles with hAudio microformats Album infoboxes lacking a cover Talk Contents About Wikipedia Wikiquote বাংলা Català Dansk Deutsch Emiliàn e rumagnòl Español فارسی Français 한국어 Italiano עברית Lietuvių Македонски Bahasa Melayu Nederlands 日本 語 Norsk Polski Português Русский Simple English Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски Suomi Svenska 15 more Edit links This page was last edited on 12 August 2018, at 21 : 42 ( UTC ). Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: who are the characters in boogie nights based on
Answer: John Holmes