Magnolia

"Magnolia" is one big, sprawling, three-hour cinematic jigsaw puzzle.

What that means is that once viewers have put the pieces of this mosaic together, they may not have everything that is revealed. Or in some cases, they may not be able to piece it together at all.

However, there are handsome rewards for those who try — this is one of the oddest, yet emotionally richest and most exhilarating motion-picture experiences to come our way in quite some time.

That's not to say that "Magnolia" doesn't have its share of infuriating, self-indulgent moments. At times it seems downright leaden and rambling — with one particularly lengthy sequence that could be trimmed back drastically or snipped out altogether. And the film's reliance on foul language and crudities will surely offend some.

But that shouldn't come as too much of a surprise, considering that "Magnolia" comes from the sometimes-too-ambitious filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson, who brought us the similarly loved and hated "Boogie Nights."

For this film, he's actually going under the monicker P.T. Anderson, which reflects how much of a three-ring circus is going on. The film keeps as many as nine different story lines going at one time, though they all eventually tie into one another at the end.

Probably the film's most talked about subplot involves Frank T.J. Mackey (Tom Cruise), a sexual seduction guru who sells "how-to" tapes to lonely males. Unbeknownst to Frank, his estranged father, television producer Earl Partridge (Jason Robards) is suffering from terminal cancer.

Meanwhile Earl's young trophy wife, Linda (Julianne Moore), is trying to cope with the guilt of numerous affairs, and his nurse is busy trying to get Frank on the phone to talk with his dying father.

Then there's Jim Kurren (John C. Reilly), an L.A. cop who becomes smitten with Claudia Wilson Gator (Melora Walters), a drug-addicted young woman who is also estranged from her father, a famous game-show host named Jimmy Gator (Philip Baker Hall).

If that's not enough, the film also features a young game-show contestant, Stanley Spector (Jeremy Blackman), with an on-air crisis, and a former game-show whiz kid, Donnie Smith (William H. Macy), who's fallen on hard times.

The comparisons to Robert Altman's disconnected "Short Cuts" are too obvious, and don't do this much more satisfying movie justice.

Admittedly, some of the odd coincidences that link the tales are incredible, particularly the truly off-kilter ending. Yet it's completely in keeping with the tone of the piece. And besides, what the film has to say about family relationships, abuse and regrets will stick with you.

In addition to his breathtaking story weaving, Anderson has put together one of the best ensemble casts in recent movie history. The performances here are at least as good as those in "American Beauty."

Cruise is the obvious standout for his on-fire portrayal of the not-really-secure Frank (he's a sure Oscar nominee), but there are other performances equally deserving of nominations, including Reilly's dead-on cop routine and Robards' turn as a regretful family patriarch.

And Walters, Moore and the always-steady Philip Seymour Hoffman provide the drama with its true emotional center.

The film also offers one of the best uses of music in quite some time, as dialogue intertwines with lyrics of Aimee Mann's winning original songs (including a surprisingly emotional sequence in which the characters sing "Wise Up").

"Magnolia" is rated R for considerable profanity and use of crude sexual slang, as well as some vulgar gestures, simulated drug use (cocaine), violence (mostly gunplay), simulated sex, female nudity and use of racial epithets.