This might be one of the best things I’ve come across on the internet in a while. And if you are a Paul Thomas Anderson fan you will agree. PTA does a commentary for the John C. Holmes documentary called Exhausted. In it, Anderson not only gives us his strangely astute knowledge of porn history but also points out specific portions that directly influenced Boogie Nights. The similarities are strikingly apparent. Anderson, like so many great filmmakers, isn’t shy about explaining the other films that he has ripped off for his work. Like Shakespeare said, “Good artists borrow, great artists steal.”  Apparently this commentary was originally recorded for the Criterion laser disc release of Boogie Nights, but was removed from the DVD version (and all subsequent versions).

This might be the all time low of my geekdom, but I really enjoyed listening to Paul Thomas Anderson’s passion on this.

NOTE: I didn’t find anything specifically crude or offensive in here, but this is about pornography, so proceed with caution if you are sensitive to this sort of thing.

More after the cut: