Yes No Maybe So: P.T. Anderson's "Licorice Pizza"
Tuesday, September 28, 2021 at 1:16PM by Nathaniel R
Paul Thomas Anderson's ninth feature film is almost upon us. As one of America's most singular auteurs that's reason to celebrate whether or not this turns out to be top tier Anderson or his nadir. Licorice Pizza (which went by the equally odd title Soggy Bottom previously) is due to open on November 26th in select cities followed by a nationwide bow around Christmas. The trailer uses "Life on Mars" by David Bowie from 1971 as its primary soundtrack. The presence of hairdresser turned movie producer Jon Peters (Bradley Cooper) in his Barbra Streisand phase places us even more specifically in the mid 1970s during the peak of Bab's movie stardom when practically every film was a smash hit (Peters and Streisand started dating in '73 and he helped produce A Star is Born in 1976) so on the timeline we're sandwiched directly inbetween Anderson's Inherent Vice and Boogie Nights if you want to rewatch his movies chronologically as they take place for kicks.
Let's break down the trailer with our Yes No Maybe So system after the jump...
YES
• Paul Thomas Anderson in the director's chair means we're there period. Even if we haven't loved his recent work as much as his earlier work.
• Bradley Cooper as Jon Peters is ripe with seriocomic or just comic possibility. We suspect it's a small role given his billing (fifth) but Cooper could surely walk away with the movie regardless since Peters was quite a character in Hollywood.
• The cast in general. Maya Rudolph cameo! Or larger part? We keep hoping P.T. will give his brilliant wife a great role one of these films but at least she's in it. Anderson is great with actors so we're especially curious to see what he gives to the always welcome Tom Waits. And since we loved Skyler Gisondo in Booksmart we're hoping he's given good stuff to work with as well though he's only listed as "Actor" in the credits.
• The great Mark Bridges (The Artist, Phantom Thread, News of the World, Joker) on costumes!
• The aspect ratio looks pleasantly very wide screen which is a nice contrast from the Academy ratio which is suddenly in vogue again.
NO
• P.T. Anderson is definitely serving as his own cinematographer now and maybe his own editor here (there's no listing of an editor yet on IMDb) and, generally speaking, it's pretty rare that that's a good idea for a writer/director -- no matter how singular their voice is -- to only have themselves to work with.
• This trailer is giving major Almost Famous vibes -- especially around its slight age difference hetero fantasy romance between a teenage straight boy and a slightly older female free spirit -- and as one of the rare Almost Famous detractors that isn't a compliment.
MAYBE SO
• On the other hand it surely has more than just nostalgic coming-of-age drama on its mind since there's also showbiz stuff as well as a politician running for office (Benny Safdie) within the plot. Will all of this be interesting?
• The few shots of Sean Penn feel like the broadest in the film. Is it from movie sets or...?
• Alana Haim of the band Haim is the female lead. It's her first acting gig. She appears to have good comic timing in the trailer but can she modulate a character arc and so on?
• We always wish Anderson would return to some of his early repertory players but at least John C Reilly is in this one.
• We'll admit we're curious if Cooper Hoffman is gifted like his late father Philip Seymour Hoffman but that seems like an awfully big weight to place on young shoulders and to expect to have an answer from in just one movie.
So are you a Yes No Maybe So?
And if you're a diehard fan of this auteur (as many rightfully are) did this trailer move your personal needle? I am surprised to feel more like a Maybe So on this than I expected to but then I haven't been totally gaga for a P.T. Anderson film since There Will Be Blood (2007). How about you? Care to list? I'd rank his work like so...
- Boogie Nights (1997)
- There Will Be Blood (2007)
-- - Magnolia (1999)
-- - Phantom Thread (2017)
- Punch-Drunk Love (2002)
-- - Hard Eight (1996)
- The Master (2012)
- Inherent Vice (2014)
Reader Comments (30)
Also a Maybe So despite being a fan of PTA. And I agree with your overall ranking, except I'd place Phantom Thread in the same tier as Magnolia (right after it).
I'm laughing at your disdain for his Phoenix Phase. Also, curious about the editor of this movie. He used to alternate between two. And the possibility this might have a three hour run time will definitely concern you if a pro isn't at the bay constructing the whole thing with proper forward momentum.
It's nice he has returned to a 2.35 aspect ratio. The Phoenix Phase and Phantom Thread felt particularly like channeling Cronenberg and Kubrick. One thing I suspect the trailer has going for it is that it isn't spelling out the movie necessarily. The central romance or infatuation will come into focus once we're watching.
Isn't Sean Penn due a comeback,his career has been in limbo now since his 2nd Oscar win,maybe this is it.
I get Almost Famous vibes from this trailer too and I hope the name makes sense in the context of the film,looks like Cooper is in with a shout in both acting categories,loved that shot of Rudolph,so often underused in movies that lady.
As to Hoffman sometimes the acting gene isn't passed down and sometimes it is,time will tell,he has huge shoes to occupy though.
For me personally Phantom Thread is his masterpiece,I liked The Master a lot too.
Maybe so, for me... while I admire PTA as a filmmaker, and he has signed several masterpieces (or almost masterpieces), I still, don't get the praise for The Master or Inherent Vice (which I own, yet never managed to finish zzzzzz).
Also Almost Famous and Dazed and Confused vibes coming to me. So I am uncertain, this might be good, or very good, but I can't really connect with it, from the trailer. Cooper might win Supporting, though, if the movie is well received?
It is a YES for me... although I cannot stand Maya Rudolph.
I agree with the disdain for the Phoenix phase. (I really do not care for Phoenix, periodt.)
That said, PTA is always a yes for me (I think Boogie Nights, Magnolia, Punch-Drunk Love, and Phantom Thread are basically masterpieces), and Bradley Cooper looks hilarious here.
I absolutely cannot wait to see this (Boogie Nights, Magnolia, and especially There Will Be Blood are among my favorite films of all time). But the title sucks bad.. might prevent people from seeing it.
Imagine Maya Rudolph playing her mother and singing Les Fleurs!
In my opinion, his masterpiece is There Will Be Blood, followed by Boogie Nights and Phantom Thread.
I am also a maybe so in this one.
Maybe so for me as well, although I like that he's returning to the setting (well, minus the porn, presumably) of BOOGIE NIGHTS.
I haven't seen HARD EIGHT or PUNCH DRUNK LOVE, but I would rank the rest thusly:
1. THERE WILL BE BLOOD
2. BOOGIE NIGHTS (although I'd probably rewatch BN over TWBB)
3. PHANTOM THREAD
4. THE MASTER
5. MAGNOLIA (I know I'm in the minority on this one)
6. INHERENT VICE (Didn't hate it but honestly it left almost no impression, which is in some ways worse)
Lots of young folks here. Licorice Pizza was a record store chain back in 1970s. The moniker reflected how a record album resembled a pizza in size and licorice in color. The chain was predominantly in Southern California. For me, the title evokes a time and place with exacting precision.
I am not a huge fan at all, but I do like three of his movies. My ranking of those Top 3 is the same as Pedro's.
I really dislike The Master, Inherent Vice and Magnolia.
I'm a definite Yes with Paul Thomas Anderson.
1. There Will Be Blood
2. Phantom Thread
3. Punch-Drunk Love
4. Boogie Nights
5. Magnolia
6. The Master
7. Hard Eight
8. Inherent Vice
OH HELL YEAH!!! Using "Life on Mars?" definitely made me cry as I love David Bowie and I will not allow any slander of the Thin White Duke here.
PTA so far...
1. Boogie Nights
2. There Will Be Blood
3. Magnolia
4. The Master
5. Punch-Drunk Love
6. Inherent Vice
7. Phantom Thread
8. Sydney
9. Junun
10. Blossoms & Blood
11. Cigarettes & Coffee
12. The Dirk Diggler Story
13. Couch
1. There Will Be Blood, by far my favorite
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2. Boogie Nights (like more than love)
3. Magnolia
4. Phantom Thread
5. Punch Drunk Love
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6. The Master
7. Inherent Vice
big fat YES to this
and i'm very intrigued to see Cooper Hoffman as actor
and my PTA ranking:
There will be blood
Boogie nights
Phantom thread
The Master
Punch-drunk love
Magnolia
Inherent vice
Finbar: That's fascinating about the name, I had no idea (and I'm not that young!) - thanks for sharing!
It does sound kind of like someone was high and hungry and thought "hey, you know what a record looks like?"
wow very imazing
ارسال بار به آنتالیا با باربری فردین تجارت
wow very imazing
ارسال بار به آنتالیا با باربری فردین تجارت
Yes. Yes. Yes.
I am a HUGE fan of Philip Seymour Hoffman and James Gandolfini, so I am so excited for both of their sons' collaborations with their former directors this year, PTA and David Chase respectively.
More Maya please! They are the TRUE power couple.
The title is horrible.
Ranked:
The masterpieces
1. There will be blood
2. Magnolia
3. Boogie Nights
The Great Ones
4. Punch Drunk Love
5. Phantom Thread
The Great One even if all that homosexual subtext isn't cool, it looks like a movie in the Haynes era
6. The Master
The Good Debut
7. Hard 8
WTF was that??
8. Inherent Vice
100 x YES!
I’m always front and centre for PTA. Phantom Thread was masterful, so no reason to think he’s lost his mojo. The trailer gave me goosebumps (although ‘Life on Mars’ alone will do that). Even if it’s a soft-centred PTA I’m still here for it - auteurs experimenting with tone - he’s earned that. His work hasn’t dipped into sentimentality before. As a HAIM fan I’m so intrigued by Alana Haim’s acting debut and am rooting for her to be good - the trailer looks promising in that regard. Ditto for Cooper Hoffman. As has been noted, PTA is great with actors and I can’t imagine him offering central roles to performers he doesn’t believe in. Bradley Cooper looks like he’s having a blast.
This has shot into my top 10 most-anticipated movies. Give it to me!!
I'm a yes because, as you say, PTA will always be a yes.
But I'm hesitant. The trailer certainly didn't give me anything of any real interest beyond PTA and Cooper. I don't care too much for the '70s as a period to be perfectly honest and the casting of Hoffman and Haim feels a bit self-conscious but maybe they will be naturals.
Excited for this, but the visual look and style of it seems at odds with the genre that it seems to be. I assume I'm not seeing the big picture just yet, but it looks serious and heavy in a way that the content doesn't seem to warrant.
I should try "Inherent Vice" again but couldn't finish it on first effort. And hard pass on "The Master" and its "Joaquin Phoenix is Popeye" performance.
PTA isn't really my cup of tea so to speak. I'm seen half of his films and I haven't been overly impressed. He is capable but nothing I've seen is at a genius level. That being said, he does get good performances out of actors- Graham and Wahlberg hit career highs they most likely will never come near to hitting again. So perhaps Bradley Cooper will get his supporting actor nom. Maybe even a win if he gets an overdue narrative.
Maybe. I always think that "this new film" by PTA will change my mind about him as a filmmaker, and then, nope. Realize I'm an outlier here, but I really HATED Inherent Vice and The Master. The one I like best is Boogie Nights, though that's not saying much,
I am very intrigued by the 70s innocence, but I can't no longer take anymore of Bradley Cooper and his scene chewing antics...
Sight unseen, this strikes me as something that could prove a Screenplay nominee and nothing else.
I'm a YES, but definitely was closer to a Maybe So than expected. I trust PTA to give me something that will be interesting at the very least, but am not 100% sure how all the frames/pieces will come together. Still, love when trailers sell mood more than plot.
My PTA Ranking:
1. Boogie Nights
2. Phantom Thread
3. Punch Drunk Love
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4. The Master
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5. There Will Be Blood
6. Magnolia (though I know I should do a rewatch)
----
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7. Inherent Vice
Still haven't seen Hard Eight
Two of my favorite things: PTA and ranking stuff!
1. (With a bullet and on roller skates and with cocaine binge-induced indoor fireworks) Boogie Nights, my all-time favorite movie. I was 15 when it came out and it blew my mind. Still has never been topped. This movie made me decide to move to LA, and I dressed like a '70s porn star all through high school. I got in my first fender bender wearing bellbottoms and platform buckle shoes while distracted by singing along to the soundtrack ("Spill the wine, dig that girl!"). Both Reynolds and Moore should have won in their categories.
2. Magnolia. When it all gets so depressing (that Aimee Mann singalong) and then the tension is smashed by absurdity and little whiz-kid Stanley smiling at the shadows of falling frogs... unforgettable. By far Tom Cruise's best work.
3. Punch-Drunk Love. The piano in the street, pudding lids, pitch-perfect Adam Sandler, and the swirling romance with Emily Watson. Love it.
4. The Master. I'll freely admit there is so much of this movie I don't have figured out yet, but I am captivated by the mystery. The camera work is breathtaking, and Phoenix and Hoffman are both so explosive and frightening. I would have given them both the Oscar.
5. There Will Be Blood. DDL gives the performance of the decade. Loved Paul Dano too. The movie itself is a lot of being long. I need to rewatch, but it just never calls to me.
6. Phantom Thread. It was lovely, the costumes were gorgeous, and the lead actress was quite good. I found the ending weird and haven't been motivated to go back to it.
7. Inherent Vice. I'm so puzzled by this. The cast is awesome. The setting is right up PTA's alley. There are moments that are really funny, but what is the point of this movie? It seems like a lot of work went into not saying anything at all.
Still haven't seen Hard Eight. I've been looking forward to the new movie all year, but this trailer is kind of a buzz kill. Lots of familiar "straight boy coming of age" vibes. And while I love Haim, I feel like Danielle Haim is the sister with far more cinematic appeal. I'll see it for sure, but my excitement has dampened.
Also, still waiting with bated breath for updated Oscar charts!!