# The best Paul Thomas Anderson movies

All of PTA's films ranked, from Hard Eight to One Battle After Another (Variety, IndieWire, The Hollywood Reporter, Gold Derby).

- 33 votes · 10 items
- Aug 21, 2026 · Amanda Mitchell
- https://even.best/en/l/2035/the-best-paul-thomas-anderson-movies

## Top 10

1. **There Will Be Blood (2007)** (5 · ▲5 ▼0) — Daniel Day-Lewis as Daniel Plainview, oil and faith.
2. **Magnolia (1999)** (4 · ▲4 ▼0) — PTA's magnum opus, a day in the San Fernando Valley.
3. **One Battle After Another (2025)** (4 · ▲4 ▼0) — Leonardo DiCaprio's ex-revolutionary and a car chase on the hills.
4. **Licorice Pizza (2021)** (4 · ▲4 ▼0) — First love in the 70s San Fernando Valley.
5. **Boogie Nights (1997)** (3 · ▲3 ▼0) — The 70s adult film industry.
6. **Punch-Drunk Love (2002)** (3 · ▲3 ▼0) — Adam Sandler's strangest and sweetest romance.
7. **Phantom Thread (2017)** (2 · ▲2 ▼0) — His best dialogue, visually breathtaking.
8. **The Master (2012)** (1 · ▲2 ▼1) — Phoenix, Adams and Hoffman, all Oscar-nominated.
9. **Inherent Vice (2014)** (1 · ▲2 ▼1) — The Thomas Pynchon adaptation, infamous for its sprawl.
10. **Hard Eight (1996)** (0 · ▲1 ▼1) — A debut that announced a writer-director who had already arrived.

How is this ranking ordered? By people's votes: each ▲ adds a point and each ▼ takes one away. Anyone can vote and add what is missing.