By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4 cats
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson
Starring: Alana Haim | Benny Safdie | Bradley Cooper | Cooper Hoffman | Jon Peters | Maya Rudolph | Sean Penn | Tom Waits
Country: united_states
Year: 2021
Running time: 133
IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11271038/reference
Chris says: “Not as shaggy or wacky as INHERENT VICE but pretty damn close at times. Magnificently directed, as usual. Could’ve done without the whole Penn/Waits sequence but only if it allowed time for more Hoffman/Haim sparring–at peak moments, their back-and-forth evokes classic screwball. 4 cats”
Michael says: “In his piece about young love in the San Fernado Valley in the early to mid-70’s, bravura director Paul Thomas Anderson lucked out with newcomer actors Curtis Hoffman and Alana Him. While Anderson’s ninth feature film is a bit erratic, bouncing around unexpectedly to set a mood more than tell a story, the performances by his two young leads are so fresh, natural, and delightful that much can be forgiven. It’s interesting that Anderson is so adept at bringing this time period to life as being born in 1970, he would have been mighty young in the mid-70’s. Perhaps that’s why part of the storyline of LICORICE PIZZA seemed like such a stretch for me, as often, the instigators and executors of some outlandish business endeavors seem to be coming from pre-teens. Still, the story is nearly irrelevant, and if the film had been fifteen or twenty minutes shorter, all would have been forgiven, and perhaps another half a cat would have been awarded. As Chris mentioned, the lengthy Sean Penn/Tom Waits seen could have been entirely excised and more time spent with the ups and downs of Gary and Alana’s developing relationship. Their chemistry and their sparring completely made the film, and both gave such open, engaging performances, I am so interested to see if that was a product of their individual talents, Anderson’s skill as a director, or some combination of both.
“Cooper Hoffman does his extraordinarily talented Dad, Philip Seymour Hoffman proud in his first film, carrying his everyman, relaxed performance in a similar fashion. Pop-rock star Alana Haim (who appears not only with her fellow Haim-member sisters [I loved Este’s presence particularly], but her parents too) seems so much like the girl next door that she is both instantly recognizable, and confounding, to our teen-aged protagonist. Anderson always knows how to make an interesting and entertaining film, and when given the proper ingredients, he sure knows how to lift even the sparsest plots to exciting heights. 4 cats“
Thom says: “Director Anderson has had a successful career with some notable directorial highs. It might be fun to run down his considerable output: HARD EIGHT (1996, 4 CATS), BOOGIE NIGHTS (1997, 1 CAT),
MAGNOLIA (1999, 4.5 CATS),
PUNCH-DRUNK LOVE (2002, 4 CATS),
THERE WILL BE BLOOD (2007, 5 CATS),
THE MASTER (2012, 4.5 CATS),
INHERENT VICE (2014, 1.5 CATS), &
PHANTOM THREAD (3.5 CATS). But certainly not worthy of an auteur label. Still, this is an undeniably charming effort, chock-full of memorable scenes and well-drawn, likable characters with depth and understanding. But it is immensely helpful if you can buy into the offbeat romance between a 15-year-old minor celebrity and his main crush, a 25-year-old L.A. photographer who still lives with her charming family. That the woman (Alana) is played by Alana Hiam, 1/3
rd of the fabulous modern rock group Haim, whose other 2 members are Alana’s actual sisters Este & Danielle, and they play Alana’s sisters in the film as well, help immeasurably in my appreciation of the film. The Haim’s mother & father also play themselves in the movie, an adorable touch. Haim is one of my current favourite musical acts and all three of their super albums (SOMETHING TO TELL YOU, DAYS ARE GONE, & WOMEN IN MUSIC PART III) went to #1 on my TOP 50 ALBUM CHART). I fell immediately in love with her character so I followed her every move with passionate intensity. Trying to decide if she was playing herself, or someone else, was half the fun as I had never seen her act before.
“Gary, the 15-year-old, is played by the son of revered award-winning star Philip Seymour Hoffman and he does a very credible job, but never for a minute did it seem like he was 15. In a scene where he plays a background character on a kiddie television show he towers over the other boys in the scene. Alana is to photograph him for a background project and he is immediately smitten with her rough charm and through a series of meetings, jobs, random connections, flirting, and getting to know themselves and each other Gary continually attempts to win her affection. But this was the entire purpose of the film, and while it had some charming asides, there wasn’t enough of a story for 133 minutes. But finally in the end I can never relate to this actual scenario. Many films have used this theme and I invariably can never connect. It isn’t that I always expect love-at-first-sight but persistence over time, no matter how delightful the consequences, I find a bit like stalking. And yet my sincere, almost absurd love for Ms. Haim advances my rating considerably. Tom Waits does some of his best work as a ditzy agent. 4 cats“
