Freddie Quell, is a troubled Navy veteran who arrives home to post-WWII America shaken, disillusioned and fearful of the future. A raging alcoholic, Quell cannot begin to make sense of his deeply-rooted inner torment, let alone surmount it. When he meets Lancaster Dodd, the 'master' of a cult called The Cause, an intense and ambiguous relationship develops between the two men. But do Dodd's teachings hold the power to turn Quell's life around? Paul Thomas Anderson (‘There Will Be Blood’, Boogie Nights’) writes and directs this contemplative and cerabal drama which was adored by the critics but largely ignored by the public.