JASON EVANS' 100-WORD REVIEWS: Licorice Pizza

 Humor and humanity tied together by two riveting newcomers

Film and TV Critic Jason Evans has made it his mission to tell you everything you need to know about movies in less time than it takes to recall a cherished memory from your youth. Jason’s reviews are exactly 100 words (not 99, not 101). This is his 100 word review of Licorice Pizza.

The Premise – Writer/Director Paul Thomas Anderson (Boogie Nights, The Master, There Will Be Blood) takes us back to the San Fernando valley of his youth. It is the early 1970s. High school student and aspiring actor Gary Valentine (Phillip Seymour Hoffman’s son, Cooper) meets and falls for Alana Kane (singer turned actress Alana Haim), who is helping out on school photo day. Gary is mature beyond his years and has numerous entrepreneurial ambitions that he brings Alana in on. As they navigate their way through the fads and crazes that come and go, they grow closer and closer together. The film also features Bradley Cooper, Sean Penn, Tom Waits, Benny Safdie, and John Michael Higgins in scene-stealing cameo roles, none of which lasts for more than about 10 minutes.

The 100 Words – A funny and revealing film that will hit your heart and your head. My face hurt from smiling so much. More a series of vignettes than a straightforward plot, it moves along nicely and is always tied together by the endearing relationship between newcomers Hoffman and Haim. You can’t help but be drawn to Haim’s energy and Hoffman’s confidence. Everything about the production is first rate as it takes you back to the 70s. I didn’t think Anderson would ever match the heights he reached with Boogie Nights, but this film surpasses that. My pick as the best of 2021.

Reach out to Jason Evans on Twitter @JasonDukeEvans

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