How excited are we over here about Paul Thomas Anderson’s “Licorice Pizza”? Well, to put things into perspective, there’s really only a handful of filmmakers working today who can emit this kind of excitement from cinephiles. A new PTA is like going back to cinematic church. It happens once every few years, and 2021 is one of those years.
PTA’s 10th movie, “Licorice Pizza,” is set to be screened this weekend. World of Reel has positioned spies in the West Coast to report back. The DGA, WGA and very select press will get to see it on Saturday. The New York premiere is on Tuesday.
Based on what we’ve seen so far, the film indicates sweet-natured vibes reminiscent of “Almost Famous” and “Lady Bird.” But to say that “Licorice Pizza” will be like those movies is foolish; PTA goes by his own freewheeling creative spirit — he might have influences here and there but he creates purely based on his own unique vision.
The only reaction I’ve heard so far is from a second-hand account, an MGM employee, a friend of a friend who called it “the spiritual successor of “Punch-Drunk Love.” A sweet movie with dark undertones.”
Amazon/MGM Studios has dated the live-action/CGI hybrid, starring Dwayne Johnson and directed by Benny Safdie, as a family-friendly holiday movie for December 25, 2027.