Paul Thomas Anderson Premieres 'The Master' Teaser (Video)

Paul Thomas Anderson has kept a tight lid on his latest project, The Master, but audiences got their first glimpse at the drama Monday when the director released a teaser trailer. The clip runs just short of two minutes and features the film’s co-star, Joaquin Phoenix, making his first return to the screen since I’m Still Here.

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The Master is the story of a “charismatic intellectual” (played by Philip Seymour Hoffman) who begins a faith-based organization and enlists Phoenix’s character, a young drifter, to be his right-hand man. In the teaser, a military officer questions Phoenix’s character about his well-being, asking about his sleeping habits and how well he gets along with his fellow soldiers. As a montage of footage unspools documenting his experiences, which includes wrestling on the beach and (apparently) drinking gasoline, the officer asks him about “the episode he had on the way home.”

“Was there a fight?” Phoenix asks innocently.

“Let’s just see if we can’t help you remember,” the officer answers.

According to Cigarettes and Red Vines, “the definitive Paul Thomas Anderson resource,” Anderson edited the trailer himself, which follows suit with trailers for his previous releases. The news also indicates that the background music might be part of Radiohead member Jonny Greenwood’s score. Greenwood also composed the music for There Will Be Blood.

Watch the teaser trailer above for the first look at The Master, which is scheduled for release October 12, 2012.