Paul Thomas Anderson is really just in a league of his own. His ninth feature film, “Licorice Pizza,” might be his breeziest and most playful film as a director. I can’t wait to see it again.
For such a freewheeling film, the 133 minute runtime is still very much needed to bring some much needed depth to what would have otherwise been a slight affair. PTA doesn’t do slight. His film is a love story, but one filled with masterful brush strokes. It’s like a madcap mix of Linklater, “Punch-Drunk Love” and Leo’s Carax’s “Holy Motors.”
Alana Haim is absolutely lovely. Ditto Cooper Hoffman who plays her “romantic” partner. The film’s first hour deals with their relationship and the ever-elusive dilemma of sex. She’s 25-years-old, and he’s 15. They’re both very well aware of that. And then, PTA pulls a 180 and starts fucking with his audience …
The last 40 or so minutes are what will likely be the make-it-or-break-it for viewers of the film. That’s when total disinterest for the plot comes into fruition. What started off as a fairly “straightforward” film, by PTA standards, at least, turns into a very strange and sometimes very dark assembly of episodic vignettes. I won’t say more, but Bradley Cooper absolutely steals the show with the kind of madcap energy that reminded me of Denis Lavant in “Holy Motors.” Runner-up MVP, Harriet Sansom Harris — she shows up in just a single scene, but it’s an unforgettable one.
Some of the shots here are stunning. You really do wonder how PTA and DP Michael Bauman pulled them off. There are beautifully rendered period details scattered throughout the film. You live and breathe ‘70s California. There’s also one of the most memorable Shabbat dinner scenes I’ve ever seen in a film.
“Licorice Pizza” is messy, passionate, flawed, brilliant, and, really, just all over the place. It’s going to polarize many. This isn’t going for Oscars, and all the better for it. I don’t consider this to be a review as much as a way for me to put down all the thoughts I have on the film. I’m honestly not quite sure where it ranks in the PTA oeuvre, it’s definitely not as hefty as his best films, but it’s a worthy addition.
Paul Greengrass’ "The Uprising," starring Andrew Garfield, opened to $3.2M from 2,068 theaters this weekend. Yikes. The budget hasn’t been disclosed, but is said to be in the $20-$30M range.