Paranoid Park review by MissMovieFan

Rated: R
Written & Directed by: Gus Van Sant
Cast: Gabe Nevins, Dan Liu, Jake Miller, Taylor Momsen, Lauren McKinney

Running Time: 78 mintutes




Gus Van Sant’s most recent film, Paranoid Park, is a story about a teenage boy who is responsible for the gruesome death of a security guard. The tragic accident occurs while he and an acquaintance from the skateboarding plaza under the bridge were riding carelessly along a slow-moving train. He blocks the event out of his memory until a police detective investigating the case brings in photos of the deceased during interrogations with all of the "Sk8ers" at the local high school.

Despite this idiosyncratic director’s mainstream success with films like Good Will Hunting and To Die For, he always seems to return to his experimental Indie roots. Paranoid Park is another in Van Sant’s series of artsy elongated film shorts like Elephant, his 2003 Columbine-like story. Once again, he features non-actors recruited via MySpace and his hometown paper to gain a more authentic look at high school life in Portland, Oregon, but authenticity alone can't carry a movie.

The film takes the viewer into the mind of 16-year-old Alex (Gabe Nevins). The plot (if you can call it that) is all about Alex’s inner-self… wrestling with his own conscience and journaling his thoughts about his girlfriends while we hear some mundane narration. Alex's turmoil only comes to life in brief flashbacks of the horror by the train tracks. The pace is relatively slow and a bit choppy in an effort to mimic Alex’s mindset. There were far too many shots of Alex walking around moping. However, the diverse soundtrack ranging from the Revolts to Elliott Smith to Beethoven and Robert Normandeau was very enjoyable. The camera work was interesting and original. Cinematographer Christopher Doyle (Rabbit Proof Fence) utilizes these hypnotically long and gliding camera moves combined with cool Super 8 clips of skaters surfing pipes and soaring through air.


Paranoid Park will be way too artsy for the average movie-goer, but those willing to take a chance may enjoy this minimalist and understated film. I give it 2.5 stars.