Boogie Nights ending explained: Boogie Nights ending explained: Mark Wahlberg's Dirk is back into dirt

Paul Thomas Anderson's second film, Boogie Nights (1997), still gets a lot of attention when it comes to its ending. There's nothing happy about it, and he himself has said this on one occasion when a critic called the ending upbeat. He told Indiewire that,

"I’m very happy with the way the movie ends, and I was sad about that person’s perception of the ending. It made me feel like I hadn’t done my job, but then I stopped and thought no, I did do my job, and maybe that person just misinterpreted it. You know, usually what you see in a movie is that (the characters) become smarter at the end of the movie, somehow. That doesn’t really happen here. Everybody is the same."

A couple of scenes, which are almost the same, clear this out. One is where Mark Wahlberg's Dirk is giving himself a pep talk, and another one is where Julianne Moore's Amber just sits in front of a mirror.

What does Dirk's speech mean at the end of Boogie Nights?

Mark Wahlberg is Dirk in Boogie Nights. (Image via Lawrence Gordon Productions)

Every single character we meet in the film appears to be changed and is now leading a good life at the end of the film. The shot where Jack Dormer (Burt Reynolds) meets with them all, going through them one by one, shows that he has taken care of them all.

However, that is everyone just pretending to be happy. This becomes clear in one of the final moments where Dirk is sitting in front of a mirror and giving himself the much-needed motivation he needs.

Dirk is the main character in Boogie Nights, who becomes a famous adult film star for his looks and s*xual prowess. However, we see that he eventually falls, and there also comes a time when he has to enter prostitution for survival. But thanks to Dormer, who thinks of him as a son and gives him another chance, he survives.

Dirk sitting in front of a mirror at the end of Boogie Nights is him preparing for his return to the very industry that led to his downfall. The speech he gives is him giving himself a shoulder and telling himself that everything is going to be fine. He is a star.

Maybe he looks cool doing that, but if we really see through that, maybe there will be a part of us that will cry seeing him like that. He is destroyed. He is going to be an adult star. But what if he ages?

Amber's silent gaze says a lot

Julianne Moore plays Amber in the film. (Image via Lawrence Gordon Productions)

In another Boogie Nights scene, another character watching herself in the mirror is just chilling. This is the same scene where Jack is looking after everyone like they are family, and he approaches Amber last, who is sitting in front of a mirror.

He motivates her, kisses her, and leaves. For a moment, it seems like it all worked, but then her gaze while she holds the lipstick is just extremely sad and disturbing for some reason; it will just strike right through the heart. But at least she isn't pretending to be happy after losing custody of her child.