Inherent Vice

Theaters:  4 October 2014 (NYFF)

Streaming:  17 February 2015

Runtime:  149 minutes

Genre:  Comedy–Neo-Noire Crime–Drama–Mystery

els:  6.0/10

IMDB:  6.6/10

Rotten Tomatoes Critics:  74/100

Rotten Tomatoes Audience:  53/100

Metacritic Metascore:  81/100

Metacritic User Score:  7.3/10

Awards: Nominated Best Adapted Screenplay–Nominated Best Custume Design: Academy Awards

Directed by: Paul Thomas Anderson

Screenplay by:  Paul Thomas Anderson

Written by: Thomas Pynchon

Music by:  Jonny Greenwood

Cast: Joaquin Phoenix–Josh Brolin–Katherine Waterston

Film Locations:  USA

Budget:  $20 million

Worldwide Box Office:  $14.7 million

While waiting for Dune Part 2 I’ve been catching up on Josh Brolin movies. This is a don’t blink movie. There are enough jigsaw pieces to the plot that it takes almost till the end of the movie to put all the pieces back together and it is likely that a few pieces will remain hidden under the table, because well, you blinked.

Plot synopsis: Chinatown meets Big Lebowski. Inherent Vice comes in third.

Definition of Inherent Vice for the curious:

Inherent vice, aka a latent defect, refers to a natural characteristic of goods or property that can cause them to deteriorate, become damaged, or spoil. Insurance companies typically exclude coverage for losses resulting from this inherent quality or defect. Here are some examples where an inherent vice exclusion would apply:

  1. Books: If books deteriorate due to acid in the paper from the manufacturing process.
  2. Film: When film deteriorates over time due to instability of the chemicals it contains.
  3. Food: If food deteriorates due to improper storage temperatures.
  4. Grain: Spontaneous fermentation or combustion of improperly dried grain.

In essence, inherent vice is a hidden flaw or characteristic that makes the item an unacceptable risk for carriers or insurers. It is usually an insurance exclusion for marine policies.

Source: http://www.insuranceopedia.com