"Inherent Vice" charts a wild and wooly, hallucinogenic path

Anyone familiar with novelist Thomas Pynchon will not expect a conventional film in “Inherent Vice,” adapted from Pynchon’s 2009 novel. Moreover, with screenwriter/director Paul Thomas Anderson guiding this cinematic adaptation through its illogical paces, linear progression is abandoned. As in “There Will Be Blood,” “The Master” and “Punch Drunk Love,” Anderson presents his stories from a distinctive, idiosyncratic perspective.

It’s 1970 L.A. as the meandering, hallucinogenic story begins with ex-girlfriend Shasta Fay Hepworth unexpectedly dropping in on Larry “Doc” Sportello, a private investigator who shares an office with a dentist. Shasta sets the circuitous plot in motion, voicing her fears about a kidnapping she’s roped into and imploring Doc to pursue the nefarious scheme. Doc’s current girlfriend Bambi interjects voiceover observations helping interpret the obscure connections among disparate threads and cases. Unexpected jolts and bizarre events follow as Doc tries to solve the puzzle of the Golden Fang.

As Doc, Joaquin Phoenix delivers his customary offbeat, quirky performance. He’s inimitable and confident of his presentation, which fits the subject matter. In supporting roles, standout actors sustain the offbeat mood. In particular, Josh Brolin as Lt. Detective Christian F. “Bigfoot” Bjornsen steals the show, described by Bambi as “SAG member, John Wayne walk, a flattop of Flintstone proportions.” Owen Wilson, Benicio Del Toro, Maya Rudolph, Reese Witherspoon, Eric Roberts, Martin Short, and many more lend their inspired interpretations of eccentric, loopy characters. They know they must to play their roles as if nothing is strange, amiss, or the least bit unusual.

Robert Elswit’s striking (often asymmetrical) compositions, atmospheric lighting, and compelling camera movement animate scenes that occasionally carry on too long. Terrific music reinforces or playfully comments on dialogue exchanges while some clever writing alternates with more than a few lame, sexist jokes. “Inherent Vice” works best as a “go with the flow” experience. To enjoy, it calls for surrender to its irreverent mockery and its illogical juxtapositions. In 35 mm, “Inherent Vice” screens one night only, Thursday, May 23, at Webster University’s Winifred Moore auditorium at 7:30. For more information, you may visit the film series website.