Review of Paranoid Park (2007) by Mitchell W — 08 Jan 2009

Conceptually more inchoate than "Elephant," Van Sant continues his experimental explorations of youth by narrowing it down to one individual. Like his other recent efforts, the narrative is fractured, but this time around, it feels more jagged and rough.

In "Elephant" and (less effectively) in "Last Days," time bled together in cyclical fashion, a well-orchestrated technique that granted the viewer a larger perspective. This time, the perspective is strictly Alex's, and we're told point blank that the scattered discontinuity is his way of retracing his latest memories.

To my understanding, the source material drew consciously from Dostoyevsky, but as interpreted by Van Sant, it seems closer to "Taxi Driver." The direction and some of the visuals recall that film, and they paint a portrait of an inverted Travis Bickle.

Alex is not hampered by social awkwardness, and people tend to approach him than the other way around, but he's emotionally disconnected from those around him. It's a state he's comfortable with, and much of the film deals with his dissolution back into that strange bliss after a horrendous accident jars him from it.

The picture doesn't come up with many new revelations, but it's very accomplished and still fascinating in its own right.