Licorice Pizza

Licorice Pizza (2021)

Every few years Hollywood offers up these charming coming-of-age tales about young love that frankly I eat up like my second helping of McTucky’s Chicken at Manchester Pride.

Believe me I’m always first in line for dark humour and cleverly observed cynical barbs but give me a fresh nuanced love story and I’m putty in your hands Mr Paul Thomas Anderson.

Long time Nine Thumbs Up enthusiasts (Mum) will know by now my love (obsession) for Dawson’s Creek and other fledgling love stories. And this strikes the same chord. But add to it 1970s garb and you’ve got yourself an instant classic. Like a mix between Almost Famous and a Californian Annie Hall with a better soundtrack.

Cooper Hoffman (of Philip Seymour lineage) plays a teenage student juggling an acting career whilst steamrolling his way into the heart of 26 year old portrait photographer Alana Haim (of Haim fame).

What follows is two-plus hours of charming yet gut-punching storytelling of that all too familiar time when you couldn’t work out what your crush was thinking and when a concise conversation would’ve stumped many an angst ridden tree. Their relationship is so fractious I actually couldn’t keep up as to who was offended or why. Appreciatively there are plenty of genuinely good laugh out loud moments along the way.

For all the film nerds we are gifted continuous one-off vignettes of delightful performances; like the one with the Cooper’s agent (hello Frasier) or (you know his face but what’s his name?) John Micheal Higgins as the Japanese restauranteur. All brilliant. Furthermore, the aforementioned nerds should look into the trivia on IMDb if you fancy a light read during a toilet break; be impressed at a cameo from Leonard DiCaprio’s dad or consider the scene which Bradley Cooper shot without the younger cast members knowing he was involved.

As is the 2022 through-line; shave off 30 minutes and you’ve got yourself a perfect film. But this is quite close.

8 Nepotistic Thumbs Up! 👍🏻