Writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson (Hard Eight, Boogie Nights, Magnolia, Punch-Drunk Love, There Will Be Blood, The Master, Inherent Vice, Phantom Thread) directs this first love story between Alana (Alana Haim) and Gary ( Cooper Hoffman), takes place in the San Fernando Valley around 1973. (133 min.)
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Glen Paul Thomas Anderson is such a unique filmmaker. This is his ninth film and he hasn’t made a bad one yet. He grew up and still lives in the San Fernando Valley and this film is his love letter to his home, the 1970’s, his youth and first loves. Gary is an ambitious, confident hustler. At 15, he’s already a seasoned child star at a PR firm. His mother Anita (Mary Elizabeth Ellis) is his sole employee. When Gary meets Alana at school on photo day, he is immediately blown away. She works there with Tiny Toes Photography. At 25, she is 10 years older than Gary, but Gary’s unbridled swagger disarms her. Directionless, navigating her 20s on autopilot, she’s about to be inspired in ways she never dreamed of. It’s such an odd, unconventional story, and it would be easy to judge it as disturbing, but their bumpy romance is chaste, and in almost every way Gary is more mature than the feisty, slightly angry Alana, who she’s still at home with lives her parents and two sisters (Haim’s actual siblings and parents, sisters Danielle and Este, father Moti and mother Donna Haim). We watch as Gary and Alana race through the valley from one exciting moment to the next, starting a waterbed and beanbag company, encountering a wild cast of eccentric characters and taking turns making each other angry, jealous or inspirational. The plot is secondary – this is about possibilities and living in the moment.
Anna Both characters have a lot of growing up to do, and while the idea of a 25-year-old leading a 15-year-old definitely makes me uncomfortable, these two characters are magnets that you just can’t tell apart. Gary is well past his age and still a teenager with all the typical issues like acne and gypsy issues. He is lovable and loves his mother – a woman who seems a bit lost herself – and his younger brother Kirk (Will Angarola). Here comes Alana, pretty in a humble way, smart and funny, who wants more than her simple life but is totally lost on what to change. Anderson is definitely a favorite. He’s so good at making everyday moments worth watching and trusting his cast to tell a story, even if that story isn’t about much. He’s brought together a whole range of casts here too, from Bradley Cooper as the creepy and high-spirited Jon Peters, to Sean Penn as movie star Jack Holden and Tom Waits as director Rex Blau. It didn’t go down as well with the public as it did with the critics. From what I’ve seen, some people found it a bit too much about nothing. For me, a nothingness story is fine when told well with a solid cast – and Licorice Pizza absolutely fits that bill.
Glen Gary’s character is based on Gary Goetzman, a child actor-turned-producer who now works with Tom Hanks. Penn as Holden is clearly meant as an allusion to William Holden. Coopers Jon Peters is also a real person, now a film producer, who, at the time this story takes place, was a hairdresser and was dating Barbra Streisand. There is also a cameo appearance by John C. Reilly playing Herman Munster actor Fred Gwynne. You see him during this amazing tracking shot of Gary making his way through the Hollywood Palladium to set up a booth with waterbeds during a Teen Expo, leading to the film’s weirdest tangent, which I won’t spoil for you. My favorite little moment is when Gary helps Alana break into show business by getting her an interview with his talent agent, Mary Grady (Harriet Sansom Harris), another real-life character. Harris’ performance is so incredibly terrifying. Waits Rex Blue is based on director Mark Robson, known for The Harder They Fall (1956), Peyton Place (1957) and Valley of the Dolls (1967). The sets, locations, costumes – everything screams 1970s. I really loved this film and it will absolutely make stars out of its two leads as they both make their feature film debuts. This is a brilliant, deeply entertaining film.
Anna This film is certainly a homage to nostalgia and a declaration of love to Hollywood. It’s cleverly shot too – that tracking shot was great, as was watching Alana reverse navigate a runaway truck down the winding hills of Southern California to avoid Jon Peters. It’s hilarious and poignant, and the characters are keenly aware of how delicate life, relationships, and friendships can be. At one point, Alana is smoking with her sister and she asks, “Is it weird that I hang out with Gary and his 15-year-old friends? Because I find it hilarious as hell.” It’s a character who sees the absurdity of her own situation, but there’s just something she can’t steer clear of. The cameos in it were so much fun; you can tell stars want to work with Anderson. I will watch this again and again. It hits a perfect sweet spot of nostalgia, friendship, and learning how to trust the people we become during those turbulent early years of adulthood, love, and finding our way. Δ
Senior Staff Writer Glen Starkey and Freelancer Anna Starkey write Split Screen. Glen compiles streaming lists. Comment at [email protected].
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