From the acclaimed director of My Own Private Idaho Elephant and Last Days. When Alex a 16-year-old skater plucks up the courage to go to Paranoid Park - Portland's most challenging and infamous urban skateboard destination - he didn't expect his night to end with the death of a railway security guard. Deciding to say nothing about the incident Alex does all he can to lead a normal life but is troubled by a crushing burden of guilt which impacts on his relationship with one of his school's most sought after girls and his relationship with his parents. Soon ... he finds he needs to tell somebody his secret but with the police closing in his choice of confidant could mean the difference between being caught and staying free. [show more]
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Award-winning drama based on Blake Nelson's novel. The film follows 16-year-old skateboarder Alex (Gabe Nevins), who accidentally kills a security guard outside Paranoid Park, Portland's most infamous skateboarding park. When he decides to say nothing, he takes on a crushing burden of guilt with huge ramifications.
While Gus Van Sant's PARANOID PARK is in keeping with the atmospheric work of the films in his previous 'death trilogy' (GERRY, ELEPHANT, LAST DAYS), this time around he's working from a more conventional narrative to capture the awkwardness and pressures of adolescence. The result is a work of breathtakingly personal cinema--intimate, beautiful, and moving. Based on the novel by Blake Nelson, PARANOID PARK tells the troubled story of Alex (Gabe Nevins), a Portland high school student who loves to skateboard. But after accidentally causing the death of a security guard, Alex must come to terms with the guilty feelings that are threatening to overwhelm him. Unable to tell anyone what has happened, including his best friend, Jared (Jake Miller) and his nagging girlfriend, Jennifer (Tayler Momsen), he keeps it all inside at the risk of imploding with guilt.Van Sant is an impressionistic and deeply sensitive director. His decision to work with acclaimed cinematographer Christopher Doyle (FALLEN ANGELS, IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE) pays off immeasurably, as Doyle combines naturalistic full-frame 35mm with grainy super-8 to create a lush, moody atmosphere. As usual, Van Sant's sonic tastes are impeccable. He once again employs the music of Elliott Smith to great effect, contrasting Smith's heartbreaking songs with slow-motion imagery, further establishing a sense of confusion and loss. The cast, all recruited from the social networking website MySpace, are more than serviceable, yet it is Nevins who steals the show. His Alex is a likeable figure to whom the audience can relate, further personaliSing an already intimate tale. PARANOID PARK is a gorgeous, unforgettable tone poem that captures the myriad complexities of teenage life.
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