Anderson creates an intense, intricate film with his masterpiece, Magnolia. He uses symbolism to create a type of consistency throughout the film. Although all the stories seem to be completely separate at the beginning of the film, by the end the characters have come out of their isolation and have bonded with others.

One of Anderson's greatest uses of symbolism in the film is the constant references to the numbers 8 and 2. Exodus 8:2 says, "And if thou refuse to let them go, behold, I will smite all thy borders with frogs." Throughout the film, he refers to these chapter and verse numbers. For example, in the bar scene there is a chalkboard listing two teams, the Frogs and the Clouds; the score of their game is eight to two. Also note that the kids on What Do Kids Know? were two days away from entering...