Hard Eight

Hard Eight summary of box office results, charts and release information and related links.

Inertia. The dictionary defines it as "a property of matter by which it remains at rest or in uniform motion," and this is an apt descriptor for Paul Thomas Anderson's debut feature, Hard Eight. During the first half, virtually nothing happens -- the characters are stuck in a stasis from which escape seems impossible. Then, during the second half, momentum carries the story to its inescapable conclusion. The dualistic nature of Hard Eight makes it a difficult picture to size up. At times, it's engrossing, but, on other occasions, it's a lesson in frustration.

Hard Eight is a 1996 drama written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. It was his first feature film. It stars Philip Baker Hall, John C. Reilly, Gwyneth Paltrow and Samuel L. Jackson.

Read the Empire review of Hard Eight. Find out everything you need to know about the film from the world's biggest movie destination.

A sullen young roustabout slumped outside a diner off a desert highway near Las Vegas is approached by a well-dressed older man with bags under his eyes and a poker face who offers to buy him coffee. Suspicious but hungry, the young man, John (John C. Reilly) accepts, and over breakfast, Sydney (Philip Baker Hall), the grimly formal stranger who accosted him, poses a question, ''If I were to give you $50, what would you do with it?''

When good luck is a long shot, you have to hedge your bets.

Sydney (Hall) is a poker-faced professional gambler with a soft heart for a hard luck story. He plays guardian angel to unlucky John (Reilly) and a hooker, Clementine (Paltrow), whom he grows to love like family. When John's and Clementine's honeymoon night leads to a disastrous hostage situation, Sydney takes care of it, as usual. But when slick casino pro Jimmy (Jackson) threatens to reveal a secret from Sydney's past that could destroy his relationship with the newlyweds, Sydney decides to hedge his bets and not leave anything to chance.

HARD EIGHT is a 1996 American crime thriller film written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, starring Philip Baker Hall, John C. Reilly, Gwyneth Paltrow and Samuel L. Jackson. There are also brief appearances by Robert Ridgely, Philip Seymour Hoffman, and Melora Walters.

83% audience score!

The man's face is sad and lined, and he lights cigarettes as if he's been living in casinos for centuries. He has a deep, precise voice: We get a quick impression that he knows what he thinks and says what be believes. His name is Sydney, and he has found an unshaven young bum dozing against the wall of a coffee shop and offered him a cup of coffee and a cigarette.

Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. With Philip Baker Hall, John C. Reilly, Gwyneth Paltrow, Samuel L. Jackson. Professional gambler Sydney teaches John the tricks of the trade. John does well until he falls for cocktail waitress Clementine.

Hard Eight is a 1996 American neo-noir crime thriller film written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, and stars Philip Baker Hall, John C. Reilly, Gwyneth Paltrow and Samuel L. Jackson, with brief appearances by Robert Ridgely, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Melora Walters.[3]