Licorice Pizza (2021) Dir: Paul Thomas Anderson
- Ridley Coote
- Aug 8, 2023
- 1 min read
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Paul Thomas Anderson's romantic comedy should be one of my favourite films - it has a compelling and emotional story, a pair of actors with infectious chemistry and plenty of joyous filmmaking choices.
But it is not, and will never be. Why? Because Anderson decided to make one of the most frustrating and unnecessary writing decisions in a film I've seen for quite some time.
The age gap is something I could not get past. There are ten years between the two protagonists, the younger of which is only fifteen. Honestly, that ruined the film for me.
It made the film immensely uncomfortable to watch, particularly due to the nature of the character's relationship, and the way in which it grows. I can't stress how irritating it was that PTA made that choice, it makes a truly wholesome and heartwarming story feel dirty.
Credit where credit is due, both Alana Haim and Cooper Hoffman give phenomenal acting performances in what could've been challenging roles for both, due to the character-driven nature of the story.
The film also features a wide array of talented actors in supporting roles, many of whom gave some very strong performances.
Of the cast, these were the other noteworthy names; Bradley Cooper, Tom Waits, Maya Rudolph, Isabelle Kusman, Mary Elizabeth Ellis, Sean Penn, Emma Dumont, John Michael Higgins, Joseph Cross, Benny Safdie and Nate Mann.
Overall, this film could have been so much more, if they had simply changed the age difference. Something that ultimately felt creepy could have felt wholesome. I simply cannot understand the thought behind that decision. It ruined the film.
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