Paul Thomas Andersonis something of a wunderkind: at the age of 24, he wrote and directed his debut feature, thecritically acclaimed but little-seenHard Eight, a noir-tinged crime thriller starring John C. Reilly, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Philip Baker Hall. As far as debuts go, it was just as impressive asReservoir DogsandAmerican Beautybut didn’t receive nearly the same amount of fanfare. Anderson set the record straight, however, with his follow-upBoogie Nights, which cemented his status as a talented filmmaker with a vision to spare and maturity beyond his years - all at the age of 27.
In the years since, Anderson has developed quite an impassioned fanbase. So when an early draft of one of his unproduced scripts leaked online, it caused quite a stir among cinephiles. TitledKnuckle Sandwich, Anderson penned this 140-page epic when he was only 23, taking heavy inspiration from the fast-talking, darkly comic action films of the 90s likeTrue RomanceandPulp Fiction. (In other words, “Tarantino-esque.”)
A pulpy gangster movie from PTA sounds incredible, so why is the script still collecting dust in his desk drawer? Let’s crack the (digital) bindings on this thirty-year-old screenplay and find out why Paul Thomas Anderson’s only action movie remains unmade.
Setting the Scene
Set in Los Angelescirca 1967,Knuckle Sandwichcenters around Barry Wurlitzer, a self-proclaimed “non-violent” crook with some anger issues (to put it lightly). In the script’s opening pages, Barry is sitting at a hot dog stand when he becomes stricken by the sight of Lena Leonard, whom he instantly falls in love with. Lena feels the same, and less than a week later, the two are tying the knot.
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The script jumps ahead six months, and suddenly Lena has packed up and left; her goodbye note to Barry simply reads: “I don’t love you anymore. You’ll never see me again.” Utterly devastated by the news, Barry embarks on a twisting, violent odyssey through sun-soaked Los Angeles, desperate to find Lena so that he may secure one last kiss before they part ways forever.
However, over the course of his love-lorn quest, Barry comes to realize that Lena may be involved with some dangerous people, including a nasty local mob boss - and Barry’s employer - Babaloo. No longer interested in just a kiss, Barry will do whatever it takes to rescue Lena from the clutches of the brutal mobster and his goons, culminating in a blood-soaked climax that would make Tarantino proud.
First Draft Problems
The most interesting aspect ofKnuckle Sandwichis just how different it feels from Anderson’s other works; if it weren’t for his name on the title page, you would never suspect that the same man who wroteThere Will Be BloodandPhantom Threadwas responsible for something as comically-broad and gratuitously violent as this.
Seeing as though Anderson has never directedan action film,Knuckle Sandwichprovides some interesting insight into what one might look like from him. (Well, at least one directed by a 23-year-old version of him.) But despite some inspired moments - like a late second-act twist that gives the story some much-needed dimension -Knuckle Sandwichreads like a lot of amateur scripts that flooded the industry afterPulp Fiction: violent, full of colorful dialogue and characters, and not nearly as clever as it aspires to be.
The script has its fair share of problems. For starters, Barry’s character feels rather one-dimensional: we don’t know anything about him other than he’s a violent crook with a heart of gold. Lena is even worse off: she hardly appears on-screen and feels more like a plot device than an actual character for most of the movie. She gets some time to shine toward the end, but it doesn’t take away from the fact that one of the film’s central characters is hardly even in it.
The film’s central bad guy - the mononymous Babaloo - feels like a mix of Marcellus Wallace andKingpin, but not nearly as memorable. He’s a copy-paste of the crime boss archetype: an excessively brutal man with a contradictorily calm presence.
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As far as the story goes, it’s pretty standard: the good guy has to rescue the love of his life from the bad guy. It isn’t very original, but it does have style to spare. The violence, while not egregious, is far more graphic than anything Anderson has ever done. This is an action movie through and through. The first act alone has more bloodshed than every PTA filmcombined. There are car chases, shoot-outs, sliced Achilles tendons, and the threat of penile amputation. It’s loud and in your face, lacking the subtlety that came to define Anderson’s later works.
The film’s biggest issue, however, is its length: at 140 pages,Knuckle Sandwichfeels bloated yet paper-thin. It’s a simple story unnecessarily inflated by Anderson’s reliance on loquacious dialogue, with characters regularly devolving into half-page monologues about the power of love and, in the case of Babaloo, sandwich theft. (It makes sense in the script.) But unlike Tarantino or Aaron Sorkin, who write dialogue as if they were lyrics in an expertly composed symphony, Anderson’s dialogue feels repetitive, flat, and, worst of all, disingenuous.
But listen: this is a first draft, which isnevergood. This is when the writer gets all their ideas out, and there’s bound to be more bad than good. In reality, judging this script in its current form would be akin to appraising the value of an artist’s work based on their rough sketches. A fully realized script - one ready to go into production - is in and of itself only a small (but still essential) part of a much bigger process that requires the talent and hard work of hundreds of collaborators to pull off.Knuckle Sandwichmay not be all that special in its current form, but that isn’t to say it couldn’t be made into a good movie.
But this does beg the question: willKnuckle Sandwichever see the light of day?
Will PTA Ever MakeKnuckle Sandwich?
The short answer is no. But the more complicated answer is…he kind of already did.
It isn’t uncommon for filmmakers to revisit old scripts in search of inspiration; sometimes, their best ideas can be hidden in an otherwise mediocre story, just waiting to be unearthed and given their proper due. Such as the case withKnuckle Sandwich, which Anderson revisited and later adapted into his acerbic romantic dramedyPunch-Drunk Love(originally titledPunch-Drunk Knuckle Love).
Punch-Drunk Lovemay not be an action movie, but it does capture the nerve-rattling energy ofKnuckle Sandwich, thanks to the expert editing and sound design, as well as Jon Brion’s anxiety-inducing score. Barry Wurlitzer reads like a more unhinged version of Barry Egan,Adam Sandler’s mild-mannered salesmanwith anger issues. Lena Leonard is also the name of Emily Watson’s character inPunch Drunk Love, but that’s about as far as their commonalities go. Babaloo makes an appearance in the form of Dean Trumbell (Phillip Seymour Hoffman), the mattress store owner and phone sex blackmailer who threatens to ruin Barry’s blooming romance with Lena.
At first glance, these two moviescouldn’t be more different, but if you squint, you’ll see that they’re really about the same thing: the power of love and its ability to heal the most wounded people.
An Interesting Look into the Evolution of an Artist
AlthoughKnuckle Sandwichisn’t nearly as strong as Anderson’s other films, it’s still a fascinating look into the artistic process and the evolution of an artist’s craft. Is it particularly good? Not really. Yet it is a reminder of both a young artist just starting out and also what types of movies were popular in the early to mid 90’s when Anderson was starting out. It is an interesting “what if?” to imagine how the directors could have gone.
If you’re a fan of Anderson or the art of filmmaking - especially screenwriting - thenKnuckle Sandwichis worth a read (if only to show that even the greats weren’talwaysgreat). For everyone else, rewatchPunch-Drunk Loveinstead.
