Review of Palo Alto (2014) by Hieu N — 18 Apr 2015

There is much to enjoy from this film and much to take away from it. This is a movie Directed by and written by Gia Coppola and the Coppola style is definitely noticeably carried through in this piece. It follows a young woman named April going through High School in a suburban area and the dramas that come with it. It also follows a High School boy named Teddy who plays the rebel character. Luckily, the two of them are my favorite characters of this film. I also enjoyed the reality it gives its audience and its decently accurate interpretation of High School life. I can't tell if the other girls playing April's friends were supposed to be incredibly stuck up and spoiled, or if they just sounded dumb and were terribly acted roles. I laughed at some of their lines at times and I hope that was intentional. If it was then it was a hilarious addition to the movie.

James Franco did a good job playing the odd perverted soccer coach falling in love with his students. It was a bit strange but added that extra obstacle in April's life to represent the struggles she found socially.

My favorite quality of this film was the cinematography which seems as if it was held to such a high standard. Each shot possesses a simplistic undertone with a realistic factor while making most of the suburban backgrounds look beautiful. Definitely pleasant to look at even if some of the script work wasn't perfect. It seemed slightly too simple at times and unrealistic and the movie moved too slow overall anyways. I fear a major negative about this film is being able to keep the full attention of its audience from start to finish.

With that being said, this film was built with many layers and themes that are spread throughout the entire film and only a few really close once the credits begin to roll. This movie seems like an hour and a half show premier. Once it ends there are many features that are left hanging and ones that have only been set up a few moments before the movie is over. It seems as if there is plenty more to come and yet on its own, this adds an interesting angle to the film's ideas. In life there is always more to come, all loose ends are never tied up at once like in most films, this one is unique because it does not attempt to tie each loose end as it is aware that that is an almost impossible task. The lives of these characters are only beginning and that sense is felt clearly by the end of the movie.

There were a few things I might have done differently and others that seemed a bit too exaggerated however, for the most part, this movie is enjoyable and has plenty of messages to deliver.