Forget "Paranoid Park"

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"Forget Gus Van Sant's Paranoid Park, an unfocused, meandering and even dreary look at how a Portland skateboarding teenager (Gabe Nevins) doesn't deal with his complicity in an impulsive accidental homicide. It's another atmospheric exotic-youth-culture piece with a minimalist plot, but nowhere near as striking or stylistically distinguished as Van Sant's Elephant and Last Days.

"I'm calling it his first not-very-good film since Gerry. I'm sorry to say this given the respect I have for Gus, but you can't hit it out of the park every time." -- written from the Cannes Film Festival on 5.22.07. IFC is opening Paranoid Park on Friday, 3.7.

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Posted by Jeffrey Wells on March 4, 2008 at 7:40 PM

comment #1

hypeful says ...

Favorite blurb I've read about this film:

"Van Santâ€™s cinematic eye has always unabashedly been focused on slender, sexually ambiguous adolescents, and his adoration of uncommunicative kids with limited vocabularies and awesome hair is beginning to wear a little thin."

I'm a little shocked Van Sant didn't cast Zac Efron as Harvey Milk in his biopic...

Posted by hypeful at March 4, 2008 7:53 PM

comment #2

Noah says ...

I urge you to give a second look, Jeff. I found it to be one of the most powerful and hypnotic films I've seen in a long time.

Posted by Noah at March 4, 2008 8:00 PM

comment #3

JD says ...

It's truly baffling that anyone could dismiss this and revere Last Days, though I personally think both are inferior to Gerry and Elephant. Of course, Jeff's never had much of an eye (or tolerance) for art cinema...

Posted by JD at March 4, 2008 8:15 PM

comment #4

D.Z. says ...

Another shitty idea from Universal. I guess they've never seen "Boat Trip" or "Cabin Boy". http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117981812.html?categoryid=13&cs=1

Posted by D.Z. at March 4, 2008 8:15 PM

comment #5

BurmaShave says ...

"I'm calling it a major dissapointment"- Wells on EASTERN PROMISES, my number 6 film for the year.

Posted by BurmaShave at March 4, 2008 8:20 PM

comment #6

TheJeff says ...

Since Gerry is brilliant (and Van Sant's best film), I'll take this as a ringing endorsement. Best not to listen to reviews of art cinema from the insufficiently-educated over-40 crowd.

Posted by TheJeff at March 4, 2008 8:21 PM

comment #7

BurmaShave says ...

DZ, having read that synopsis, you are truly a breathtaking idiot. A pirated radio ship does not mean a pirate ship. I for one am very happy to have Branagh and Ifans back. But that's just the dumbest comparison I've ever heard. Idiot.

Posted by BurmaShave at March 4, 2008 8:23 PM

comment #8

Noah says ...

I can understand why some folks might not want to stick through this run of Van Sant films (I happened to have loved all of them), but it's strange that one could enjoy Last Days and Elephant and not love Paranoid Park just as much. Anyway, my take on it is up at MCN if anyone is interested; but I will say that I can see where Jeff is coming from, I just disagree. Although, strangely I think Paranoid Park is the most accessible of the four "death films."

Posted by Noah at March 4, 2008 8:27 PM

comment #9

actionman says ...

Really looking forward to Paranoid Park. Elephant was brilliant and Last Days was great as well. Gerry was a meandering mess but I enjoyed it quite a bit.

Posted by actionman at March 4, 2008 8:45 PM

comment #10

The Winchester says ...

Noah, I don't think it's strange that one could enjoy Van Sant's previous films in this cannon and not enjoy Paranoid Park. At this point, it's getting a little repetitive, and I would like to see Van Sant do something new. (We've already discussed my feelings on respecting this movie whilst not enjoying it)

Posted by The Winchester at March 4, 2008 9:03 PM

comment #11

Noah says ...

Fair enough, Winchester. Although I found there to be crucial difference between this one and the past few; namely the fact that this one has an identifiable plot rather that a collection of scenes. But, I get what you're saying and I respect that.

Posted by Noah at March 4, 2008 9:16 PM

comment #12

The Winchester says ...

The fact that it had an identifiable plot was one of the things I quite enjoyed about it. Made it easier for us low thread counters.

(If I believed in "emoticons" I would have put a smiley face after that Low Thread Counters in order to convey the takin a piss aspect about myself.)

Posted by The Winchester at March 4, 2008 9:45 PM

comment #13

ttjessie says ...

Elephant was brilliant and Last Days was great as well

Posted by ttjessie at March 4, 2008 11:40 PM

comment #14

ttjessie says ...

A cute black girl from blackcentury ..com

Posted by ttjessie at March 4, 2008 11:41 PM

comment #15

rgmax99 says ...

Gerry is a hypnotic film. Completely underappreciated.

Posted by rgmax99 at March 5, 2008 6:17 AM

comment #16

MikeSchaeferSF says ...

Well, it's at 94 on Metacritic (and they haven't even linked to Manohla Dargis' rave yet).

I run hot'n'cold on Van Sant; I loved Elephant and seriously disliked Last Days. But this weekend Park will play on IFC's "on Demand" channel and IFC's regular channel is showing Gerry so I'll have a nice double bill there.

Posted by MikeSchaeferSF at March 5, 2008 8:01 AM

comment #17

MickTravis says ...

Yeah, aside from involving watercraft, "Boat Trip" and "Cabin Boy" are completely different entities and neither would have any bearing on a current movie about pirate radio.

That's like saying that since "Beetlejuice" and "Things We Lost in the Fire" have been made, it's a bad idea to make a movie about people who live in houses and deal with a recent death.

Hey! Where are the ads for "Paranoid Park" that used to be up?

Posted by MickTravis at March 5, 2008 8:24 AM

comment #18

MickTravis says ...

Ah. The ad is still there. I do wish "Charlie Bartlett" and his smarmy grin would go away, though.

Posted by MickTravis at March 5, 2008 8:27 AM

comment #19

p.Vice says ...

Yet another instance in which Wells, closet philistine par excellence, beats down art cinema(the brilliant sound design alone is enough to give cineastes a heart attack) because it's just too damn dreary and not satisfying enough. If this and Gerry are "not-very-good" Van Sant on the Wells scale, hopefully Milk will fall into the "sucks ass" tier.

Posted by p.Vice at March 5, 2008 9:05 AM

comment #20

Gaydos says ...

Had it been released in 2007, "Paranoid Park" certainly would have been on my Top Ten films of the year list. Of his edgy kids gone minimalist tetralogy, "gerry," "elephant," "last days" and "paranoid," i'd rank "paranoid" as the most powerful and the most lyrical.

btw: did you notice that the parents of these lost kids in "paranoid" are all narcissistic and/or absent? do you get it? reapeth what you sow; it's an old, old story delivered wrenchingly real/now.

Posted by Gaydos at March 5, 2008 11:54 AM

comment #21