Review of Licorice Pizza (2021) by Moviemitch96 — 24 Dec 2021

The latest from writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson ('Boogie Nights', 'There Will be Blood') sees a young teen actor (Cooper Hoffman, son of the late great Philip Seymour Hoffman) meeting and falling for a rebellious older girl (Alana Haim) and getting into all sorts of trouble and misadventures with her in 70s San Fernando Valley.

Anderson happens to be one of my favorite filmmakers of all time. While his aforementioned films 'Boogie Nights' and 'There Will be Blood' are considered some of his greatest films (and rightfully so), not enough people talk about his 3-hr epic 'Magnolia', which I not only consider his best and most underrated film, but it also happens to be my favorite film of all time, but I digress.

So whenever he comes out with a new film, it's always a treat for me. Going into this film based off the previews and ads I had been seeing for it, I knew this film was going to be something really special, and I couldn't have been more right, because this is truly the most I've enjoyed myself watching a film all year! I was all smiles from start to finish watching this exuberant and joyful film! Filled with all-too-relatable characters (at least for me it was), hilarious and heartfelt moments throughout, and a "will they or won't they" love story that you just can't help but root for.

As for the performances, the real stars here are Haim and Hoffman, who's chemistry with one another is simply irresistible, and both give what I'd easily consider star-making performances! Other familiar supporting faces pop in throughout as well, such as Sean Penn and Bradley Cooper, who both notably give scene-stealing performances of their own.