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Licorice Pizza
(MGM/Focus Features)
By Lucas Allen
The title itself might be a turnoff, but “Licorice Pizza” is the coming-of-age story of young love in the 1970s in which you might’ve heard nothing but good things about in your circle of film fans. It’s the latest film from highly acclaimed director Paul Thomas Anderson, who wrote the film based on his childhood experiences growing up in southern California. If you’ve ever dealt with first loves during your early years, you could possibly relate to the main characters in this film.
Living in 1973 Encino, 15-year-old Gary Valentine (Cooper Hoffman, son of the late Phillip Seymour Hoffman) works part time as an actor while working with his mother (Mary Elizabeth Ellis) at their struggling waterbed business. During picture day at his school, he becomes instantly smitten with a 25-year-old named Alana (Alana Haim), though the young woman doesn’t show much interest. She’s also disillusioned about the world around her, especially growing up in a strict Jewish household. But Gary’s determined to start a relationship with Alana, including going out on dates across town.
During their on-and-off again relationship, the two of them help turn the waterbed business into a booming success. Along the way, they end up in a series of misadventures including delivering a waterbed to hairstylist Jon Peters (Bradley Cooper), seeing actor Jack Holden (Sean Penn) do a motorcycle jump, and Alana working for a mayoral candidate (Benny Safdie). Ultimately, she and Gary will have to decide if their relationship is worth fighting for.
For much of the movie, the story is certainly a slice-of-life, you-have-to-be-there experience for anyone who grew up in a free-spirit era. There’s a sense of fun and excitement watching the main characters going through the changing times, how they handle them, and dealing with certain hardships. At the same time, the love story is pretty interesting, seeing two different people with different ages and lifestyles collide into a friendship and then a relationship going through such peaks. Though not everybody outside of southern California could connect with it, the film does have an audience in mind for the nostalgic treat.
However, some viewers may not connect to this film because of the director’s desire to create one crazy adventure after another without much proper structure. It’s pretty clear he wants to show what life was like when he was growing up, but there’s not much of a focus to go with. There are some humorous highlights, but you need to connect the dots more to help keep the audiences invested.
The film does use real southern California locations very well to convey the genuine feeling of nostalgia. There’s also an eclectic mix of late-60s and early-70s tunes by artists like David Bowie, Wings and Gordon Lightfoot to add to the sunny upside of growing up. These elements alone are what makes the film worth watching.
Both Haim and Hoffman have never acted on screen before this film, so it’s a surprise to see them give genuinely good performances in their first roles. The appearances by Penn, Cooper, and Safdie are basically extended cameos though each of them do add flavor to the film. Cooper, in particular, chews it all up playing Peters as a psychopath who will drop you to the ground at a moment’s notice.
“Licorice Pizza” certainly has an audience in mind though general viewers will find it too cumbersome. For what it’s worth, despite some shortcomings, it has some likable leads and enough good vibes to make it a worthwhile experience. If it’s still the kind of movie that appeals to you, it’s downright entertaining.
THE MOVIE’S RATING: R (for language, sexual material, and some drug use)
THE CRITIC’S RATING: 3.25 Stars (Out of Four)
