Joaquin Phoenix Asks the Same Question We've Been Wondering About Him in a New Clip from "The Master"

In the trailer for writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson's latest psychological drama, The Master, he gets Joaquin Phoenix to ask the very question we've been wondering about the actor ever since he so poetically lost his mind a few years back and fled Tinseltown--What happened?

Well, Phoenix doesn't exactly answer that question in this clip, but we can kinda forgive him for his random absence after watching him captivate us in less than two minutes with what looks like a wonderfully bleak portrayal. Admittedly, the trailer doesn't really give us much about what the movie is about--except for the fact that Phoenix's character is obviously dazed and confused--but it still mesmerizes us until the very end.

According to IMDB, the1950s period drama is "centered on the relationship between a charismatic intellectual known as "the Master," whose faith-based organization begins to catch on in America, and a young drifter who becomes his right-hand man."

Even the synopsis is dry yet vaguely intriguing. But that is definitely Anderson's style (his previous work includes Boogie Nights and Magnolia). There are random beach shots in the trailer (I suppose they mean something, but I can think what), but Phoenix looks like he may be back with this movie. But one can never be too sure.


The Master, which also stars Amy Adams and Phillip Seymour Hoffman, hits theaters October 12.