Film Review: Licorice Pizza (2021)

Since Paul Thomas Anderson first stepped onto the filmmaking scene in the 90s, he has quickly grown a reputation of being one of the strongest and most crafted filmmakers working today. Coming off of a 4-year break after Phantom Thread, Paul Thomas Anderson is back with his new film: Licorice Pizza.

Striking back to the soul Anderson found in his breakthrough 1997 feature Boogie Nights, Licorice Pizza transports audiences back to 1973 San Fernando Valley where teenager Gary Valentine (Cooper Hoffman) meets and falls in love with the older Alana Kane (Alana Haim). Valentine and Kane go on various adventures and try to figure out, both individually and together, their place in this world.

Being a decade apart from each other in age at 15 and 25, the age gap between Gary and Alana is unavoidable in conversation as it provides the film with both its highest and lowest moments. Before one analyzes the morals of the story and specifically how it treats the connection between these two, it is important to look at what the film is trying to say in general.

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Above anything else, Licorice Pizza is an exploration of maturity and the complications one can have in growing up. Gary and Alana have a gap not just in age but also maturity and what they want out of life. Gary is far ahead of other kids his age when it comes to goals and desires, and is consistently working on a plan to build a business and make money, to be seen as more than just a kid. While his plans don’t regularly work out often due to his own mistakes, Gary clearly wishes to be or at least appear older than he is.

Alana is quite the opposite and while she is older, she enjoys the carefree attitude of youth and finds herself a sense of belonging with Gary and his other underaged friends. This embarasses Alana as she feels like she should be more mature for her age and while she does forcibly try to get herself to grow up, she never can shake where she feels like she belongs.

On paper, this exploration is fine and in reality, creates a compelling story and compelling characters. Alana especially is given so much emotionally to chew on which is undeniably elevated even further by the truly wonderful breakout performance from Alana Haim. One can feel her confusion and desperation for belonging which plays nicely off the similar emotions coming from Gary. While Cooper Hoffman might not be quite as flawless as Haim, his emotions still come across well and the chemistry between the two of them is undeniable.

There are many scenes where the couple’s nonverbal communication will tell a complete story on its own; the tension is so palpable, which truly speaks to two performers giving authentic and meaningful performances.

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As the film continues however, the problems with the concept of this relationship grow more and more apparent. The film walks a fine line of using this relationship as a catalyst for these deeper character explorations and making the film itself a celebration of this relationship. Especially in the final moments of the film, the emotions clearly lean towards the latter with the film’s thesis seemingly being that it is morally ok to fully give into ones desires even if the desire is to date a child as a literal adult.

Clearly this is a gross morality that is uncomfortable and hurts the overall feature in hindsight. It also feels narritavitly disappointing as it shows a lack of progression for the characters involved. Neither truly evolve or push themselves to grow as people, they revert back to what they are comfortable with making the entire film strangely hollow.

Outside of the narrative, it is hard to find much of fault with Licorice Pizza. The period piece aesthetic is flawless with the world itself feeling alive and real. Things like war and politics feel like they have a real effect on everyday life as they do in the real world and every piece of production design is perfect.

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Paul Thomas Anderson is a true master at direction and pacing which clearly helps this more casual hangout movie have a craft and energy which is needed for the film’s 133-minute runtime to be as engaging as it is. In a time in which every movie seems to drag and hit over 2-hours in length, Licorice Pizza is one of the few to not feel hurt by its runtime.

The supporting cast is also rather strong. While no one is given a ton of time or depth to where they would be considered the best supporting performance of the year, there is a strong blend of entertainment and heart found within the characters of Licorice Pizza. Sean Penn and Tom Waits work well in bringing the grit of this time period to live while Bradley Cooper nearly steals the show with his interpretation of Jon Peters. While the casting of Benny Safdie is somewhat questionable considering the context of his character, Safdie does give one of the more emotional segments of the film with his performance as Joel Wachs.

Licorice Pizza is a complex film that comes so close to greatness only to drop the ball in its final few moments. The questionable morals are impossible to ignore despite the rich thematic weight the film also carries leading to a film that is hard to fully digest. Much of the film impresses while the rest feels incredibly offputting. While Paul Thomas Anderson overall continues to prove his worth as a filmmaker, it is clear that Licorice Pizza is a step below his regular output.