Licorice Pizza
2021
****
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson
Cast: Alana Haim, Cooper Hoffman, Sean Penn, Tom Waits, Bradley Cooper, Benny Safdie, Maya Rudolph, John C. Reilly, Skyler Gisondo, Mary Elizabeth Ellis
Gary, a 15-year-old child actor and endlessly resourceful entrepreneur, meets Alana, a 25-year-old who is still trying to find herself. They form an unusual personal and professional relationship, and find themselves increasingly drawn to one another. Paul Thomas Anderson's sprawling and entertaining coming-of-age story is set in the San Fernando Valley of 1973. This comedy drama is built around two terrifically drawn characters, wonderfully played by Cooper Hoffman and Alana Haim. Despite the notable age difference, Anderson never judges his characters, and the film remains free of any distasteful or uncomfortable moments.
