Paul Thomas Anderson's 1997 "Boogie Nights" is an unflinching look at the heyday -- and swift decline -- of the cinematic porn industry. It begins in the late 1970s when adult films were on the upswing, and the cocaine parties came with no consequences. It seemed, for a brief window, that sex films would be continued to be accepted into the mainstream, and porn would shake off the sleaze and shame ordinarily associated with it. "Boogie Nights" ends in the early 1980s, however, when porn moved to VHS, users couldn't kick their cocaine habits, and the money ran out. Several of the characters will end up dead or in prison. 

To highlight the era's high point, however, Anderson included a scene wherein Dirk Diggler (Mark Wahlberg) was given multiple prestigious awards for his porn work. Indeed, each of the film's main characters is given an award, and they all get...