Sean Penn appears in a cameo role. Alana Haim is ‘Alana,’ a lead character in the film. Photograph: Melinda Sue Gordon. Pictures Inc. © 2021 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures Inc. All Rights Reserved.
The eighth feature film from American auteur Paul Thomas Anderson, Licorice Pizza, is a breezy, light-hearted story of first love set in L.A. around the time of the first oil crisis.
The story follows Gary Valentine (Cooper Hoffman), a 15-year-old child actor turned entrepreneur, who falls in love with Alana (Alana Haim), a twenty-something girl stuck working as a photography assistant at his school’s yearbook photoshoot. Despite the notable age difference, Gary wastes no time in approaching Alana with all the confidence of a seasoned playboy, throwing his best cheesy pick-up lines her way, as well as earnest—if premature—declarations of affection.
Through various get-rich-quick schemes, run-ins with B-list celebs, other romantic entanglements, and an oil embargo, the pair’s relationship blossoms into a lovely friendship, albeit with fluctuating levels of mutual attraction. This evolution of their relationship is not just the central through-line of the film, but pretty much the only one; despite the very specific historical setting and the rich detail with which Anderson brings that time and place to life, the story never strays into socio-political commentary, or any kind of didacticism for that matter. It is essentially a teenage romcom; a highly enjoyable one.
Those familiar with the director’s famous works, most notably Magnolia (1999), There Will Be Blood (2007) and The Master (2012) may find his latest to be a departure from form, but that is not necessarily the case. Sure, the three films just mentioned all have a distinctly epic scope to them, which is what Anderson may be known for, but looking at the rest of his oeuvre, it’s clear that he is just as adept at creating subtle drama and telling stories without sweeping historical stakes and philosophical implications.
Licorice Pizza is a wonderful example of the latter, functioning as a mood piece that envelops the viewer in its quirky, light-hearted world. In a sense, it is the atmospheric counterpart to Anderson’s previous film, Phantom Thread (2017), which also told a contained, intimate story of an unlikely couple, but with a darker emotional palette.
As other reviewers have noted, the film also lends itself to comparisons with Quentin Tarantino’s recent ode to the L.A. of his childhood, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019). As both directors are roughly of the same generation, the two films are a nostalgic return to childhood. But while Tarantino’s vision is expansive, epic, and replete with meta-commentary, Anderson opts for the subtler approach of a show-don’t-tell cinematic historian. The final result is a film just as immersive as the eye-catching, heightened drama of Tarantino, which serves to show, if nothing else, that any kind of story can be compelling when told by a deft storyteller.
Licorice Pizza, which is nominated for three Oscars this year (Best Picture, Best Directing, Best Original Screenplay), stars Alana Haim and Cooper Hoffman (son of late Phillip Seymour Hoffman) in their first ever film roles, although you wouldn’t know it, as the pair is effortlessly charismatic onscreen. They are joined by several A-listers in cameo roles, including Sean Penn, Tom Waits, Benny Safdie, and a hilarious Bradley Cooper as Barbra Streisand’s boyfriend. Also, the whole Haim family—Alana’s sisters and parents—is featured in the film as the fictional Alana’s family; Anderson has previously collaborated with the Haim sisters by directing the music videos for their band, Haim. In general, the production is a kind of friends-and-family affair, with Anderson’s wife Maya Rudolph also appearing in the cast.
Finally, the score of the film, composed by Jonny Greenwood of Radiohead, deserves a shoutout since it is crucial to creating the all-important atmosphere, as is the eclectic soundtrack, which covers everything from crooner hits to folk ballads to prog-rock anthems.
Licorice Pizza opens in cinemas on March 11.
