Press Release USHE Press Release: Licorice Pizza (Blu-ray) (1 Viewer)

[Ronald Epstein]

NOMINATED FOR THREE ACADEMY AWARDS® INCLUDING BEST PICTURE, PAUL THOMAS ANDERSON’S COMING-OF-AGE LOVE STORY IS AVAILABLE TO OWN ON BLU-RAY™ & DVD FOR THE FIRST TIME WITH NEVER-BEFORE-SEEN BONUS CONTENT AND LIMITED-EDITION POSTER!

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​ OWN IT ON BLU-RAY™ AND DVD MAY 17, 2022 FROM METRO GOLDWYN MAYER (MGM) AND UNIVERSAL PICTURES HOME ENTERTAINMENT

​ "PAUL THOMAS ANDERSON'S MOST ENDEARING FILM YET" - VARIETY

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​ Universal City, California, April 5, 2022 – Alana Haim, from the Grammy® nominated musical group HAIM, and Cooper Hoffman deliver incredible star-making performances in LICORICE PIZZA, available to own for the first time on Digital now and on Blu-ray™ and DVD May 17, 2022 from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment. From multi-Oscar® nominated director, writer, producer and cinematographer Paul Thomas Anderson (Boogie Nights, Phantom Thread), the Rotten TomatoesCertified Fresh film received an impressive score of 90% and is hailed by critics as “unforgettable,” “laugh out loud hilarious” (Deadline) and “magical” (Indiewire). A delightful depiction of one of life’s most treasured feelings, MGM’s LICORICE PIZZA on Blu-ray™ and DVD includes a special limited-edition poster and double-sided cover art. Additionally, viewers can go behind-the-scenes with all-new bonus features such as camera tests, a deleted scene and in-universe commercials featuring cast and crew exclusively on the Blu-ray™ and DVD. Showcasing an all-star, Critics Choice Award® nominated ensemble cast, LICORICE PIZZA stars Alana Haim, Cooper Hoffman, Academy Award® winner Sean Penn (Mystic River, Milk), Academy Award®nominee Tom Waits (Seven Psychopaths, The Dead Don’t Die), Academy Award® nominee Bradley Cooper (A Star is Born, Silver Linings Playbook) and Benny Safdie (Pieces of a Woman, upcoming Obi-Wan Kenobi). LICORICE PIZZA is a timeless story of Alana Kane (Haim) and Gary Valentine (Hoffman) growing up, running around and falling in love in the San Fernando Valley in 1973. Nominated for over 180 awards to-date including three Academy Awards®, eight Critics Choice Awards, and a total of 22 Best Picture nominations, the film is “an exhilarating reminder of what joy is like” (The New Yorker) and “reminds us why we love movies so much” (Slashfilm). With the purchase of LICORICE PIZZA on disc, fans are eligible to earn points towards special rewards via the Universal All-Access Rewards program. Members can redeem their points for digital movies, signed collectables, box sets, win exclusive prizes and more! For FREE registration and details please visit www.MyUniversalRewards.com. BONUS FEATURES EXCLUSIVE TO BLU-RAY™ & DVD: Camera Tests – Pre-production camera tests and unused takes The Handman Scene – A deleted scene from the film Fat Bernie’s Commercial – An in-universe commercial for Fat Bernie’s as shot by Gary Valentine Behind the Scenes – A glimpse behind the scenes of Licorice Pizza through a collection on-set photos and videos LICORICE PIZZA will be available on Blu-ray™, DVD and Digital. Blu-ray™ unleashes the power of your HDTV and is the best way to watch movies at home, featuring 6X the picture resolution of DVD, exclusive extras and theater-quality surround sound. Digital lets fans watch movies anywhere on their favorite devices. Users can instantly buy or rent.

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​ FILMMAKERS: Cast: Alana Haim, Cooper Hoffman, Sean Penn, Tom Waits, Bradley Cooper, Benny Safdie Casting By: Cassandra Kulukundis Score By: Jonny Greenwood Costume Designer: Mark Bridges Editor: Andy Jurgensen Production Designer: Florencia Martin Director of Photography: Michael Bauman, Paul Thomas Anderson Produced By: Sara Murphy, Paul Thomas Anderson, Adam Somner Written and Directed By: Paul Thomas Anderson TECHNICAL INFORMATION BLU-RAY™: Street Date: May 17, 2022 Selection Number: 1000809909 (US) / 1000809911 (CDN) Layers: BD-50 Aspect Ratio: 16:9 2.39:1 Widescreen Rating: R for language, sexual material and some drug use Languages/Subtitles: English SDH, French-Canadian and Latin American Spanish Sound: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and Dolby Digital 2.0, French Canadian DTS Digital Surround 5.1 Run Time: 02:13:16 TECHNICAL INFORMATION DVD: Street Date: May 17, 2022 Selection Number: 1000809910 (US) / 1000809912 (CDN) Layers: DVD 9 Aspect Ratio: 16:9 2.39:1 Anamorphic Widescreen Rating: R for language, sexual material and some drug use Languages/Subtitles: English SDH, French Canadian and Latin American Spanish Sound: English and French Canadian Dolby Digital 5.1, English Dolby Digital 2.0 Run Time: 02:13:24

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[Jeffrey D]

. Will blind buy it.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

. Will blind buy it.

I am thinking of a blind purchase as well. Reviews were very mixed on this. Critics seemed to love it. Audiences not as much. Still, would like to see this.

 

[TravisR]

Phantom Thread got a UHD but this doesn't?

 

[Thomas T]

I thought for sure it might have turned up as a Criterion title. Paul Thomas Anderson is my favorite living director but I felt an element of discomfort in watching it. A romance between a 25 year old woman and a 15 year old boy is creepy anyway you look at it. Would the critics have been so enthusiastic if it was a 25 year old man and a 15 year old girl? I think not. Still, Anderson breathes new life into the tired "coming of age" scenario. In Anderson's filmography, I'd rate it:

1. Magnolia (1999)
2. Boogie Nights (1997)
3. There Will Be Blood (2007)
4. Phantom Thread (2017)
5. Hard Eight (1996)
6. The Master (2012)
7. Punch Drunk Love (2002)
8. Licorice Pizza (2021)
9. Inherent Vice (2014).

 

[Malcolm R]

I thought for sure it might have turned up as a Criterion title. Paul Thomas Anderson is my favorite living director but I felt an element of discomfort in watching it. A romance between a 25 year old woman and a 15 year old boy is creepy anyway you look at it. Would the critics have been so enthusiastic if it was a 25 year old man and a 15 year old girl? I think not.

Many others say there is no "romance" here, that it's just a friendship (I haven't seen the film, just followed discussions in the movie thread).

 

[Thomas T]

Many others say there is no "romance" here, that it's just a friendship (I haven't seen the film, just followed discussions in the movie thread).

It's definitely a romance (though it might be described as puppy love) and that is made clear several times during the movie. I won't discuss details because of spoilers but anyway, even as a "friendship", it's inappropriate. What kind of 25 year old woman hangs out with a 15 year old kid? Would you like your 15 year old son out partying with a 25 year old woman? Don't get me wrong, I really liked the movie but it still made me queasy.

 

[darkrock17]

It's definitely a romance (though it might be described as puppy love) and that is made clear several times during the movie. I won't discuss details because of spoilers but anyway, even as a "friendship", it's inappropriate. What kind of 25 year old woman hangs out with a 15 year old kid? Would you like your 15 year old son out partying with a 25 year old woman? Don't get me wrong, I really liked the movie but it still made me queasy.

Harold and Maude has a even wider age gap.

I thought for sure it might have turned up as a Criterion title.

It might later on, not everything goes straight to them for first release.

 

[Thomas T]

Harold and Maude has a even wider age gap.

True but Harold was a young adult. Once both participants are over the age of 18, I have no objections to age disparity in relationships. Go for it! The story would have worked just as well if Anderson had made the girl 18 instead of 25.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Preorder added to original post

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

1. Magnolia (1999)
2. Boogie Nights (1997)
3. There Will Be Blood (2007)
4. Phantom Thread (2017)
5. Hard Eight (1996)
6. The Master (2012)
7. Punch Drunk Love (2002)
8. Licorice Pizza (2021)
9. Inherent Vice (2014).

I see Inherent Vice at the bottom of many PTA fan lists. I loved it. Not exactly sure how I would rank them but Vice would be near the top and I probably have Licorice Pizza at the bottom. Not because I thought it was a bad film, it just kind of is the least interesting of his films. Depending on my mood, Inherent Vice could be my favorite. Lately my favorite probably has been The Master.

Maybe:

The Master
Magnolia
Inherent Vice
There Will Be Blood
Boogie Nights
Phantom Thread
Punch Drunk Love
Hard Eight
Licorice Pizza

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

It's definitely a romance (though it might be described as puppy love) and that is made clear several times during the movie. I won't discuss details because of spoilers but anyway, even as a "friendship", it's inappropriate. What kind of 25 year old woman hangs out with a 15 year old kid? Would you like your 15 year old son out partying with a 25 year old woman? Don't get me wrong, I really liked the movie but it still made me queasy.

Well, Gary is immediately smitten with Alana but she does not seem to be with him. Throughout the story she seems to have an interest in various other men and is not in any way pursuing anything romantic with Gary.

 

[Thomas T]

I see Inherent Vice at the bottom of many PTA fan lists. I loved it. Not exactly sure how I would rank them but Vice would be near the top and I probably have Licorice Pizza at the bottom. Not because I thought it was a bad film, it just kind of is the least interesting of his films. Depending on my mood, Inherent Vice could be my favorite. Lately my favorite probably has been The Master.

I haven't seen a PTA that I haven't liked. It's just that (for me), Inherent Vice is the least interesting of his movies. Unlike many major directors, he hasn't made a dud ..... yet

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

I haven't seen a PTA that I haven't liked. It's just that (for me), Inherent Vice is the least interesting of his movies. Unlike many major directors, he hasn't made a dud ..... yet

He's like Kubrick to me in that my favorite film at any given moment changes. I agree all of his work has been excellent. It's hard to put them in a ranked order because different things jump out about each picture.

For me Licorice Pizza was a fun hangout picture but it is not about a lot really. It is pretty straightforward in being about young love and what that feels like. Beyond that, not a lot more to it.

 

[Thomas T]

Well, Gary is immediately smitten with Alana but she does not seem to be with him. Throughout the story she seems to have an interest in various other men and is not in any way pursuing anything romantic with Gary.

I'd really rather not dwell on this much further because if I do, it will eventually reveal too much for those who haven't seen the movie. All I'll say is that she seems to encourage his flirtation and by the movie's end, it's pretty clear what happens next.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

I'd really rather not dwell on this much further because if I do, it will eventually reveal too much for those who haven't seen the movie. All I'll say is that she seems to encourage his flirtation and by the movie's end, it's pretty clear what happens next.

Yeah, I mean, at the very end…

Spoiler

She runs up to him, embraces him and tells him “I love you.” I wound up rewinding that last beat to make sure that I hadn’t missed anything, that the film hasn’t segued into a dream or fantasy sequence or anything obvious like that that I could have missed. If the movie is a boy’s fantasy rather than reality, the context changes.

She spends a lot of time in the movie being interested in men where the age gap works in the opposite direction, and they’re not particularly nice to her. At our first introduction to her, we see her being groped/slapped in the rear by her handsy photography boss. What Wachs does to her is cruel. It’s understandable why Gary, for all of his youthful immaturity, seems like a better choice in the context of all of her other options.

But there’s a difference between a movie featuring a chaste flirtation between two characters of incompatible ages and a movie where the older character crosses the line with the underage one, and this film spends a good amount of the being the former before crossing into the latter in its final moments. It is difficult to reconcile the two or understand how one is supposed to feel.

It may very well be that what she’s actually meaning to say is, “Gary, I love you for seeing me as a person and for teaching me that I deserve more and never taking advantage of me, and I have learned something from you that I will carry with me for the rest of my life,” but that’s not what she says.

But I would agree with you, Thomas - the film’s final moments take things to a very unambiguous place that potentially recontextualizes everything we’ve seen prior.

Do I think Paul Thomas Anderson set out or intended to make an icky film about pedophelia? No, I do not. Does the film nonetheless present some content in contexts that is difficult to wave away? I believe it may.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

Yeah, I mean, at the very end…

Spoiler

She runs up to him, embraces him and tells him “I love you.” I wound up rewinding that last beat to make sure that I hadn’t missed anything, that the film hasn’t segued into a dream or fantasy sequence or anything obvious like that that I could have missed. If the movie is a boy’s fantasy rather than reality, the context changes.

She spends a lot of time in the movie being interested in men where the age gap works in the opposite direction, and they’re not particularly nice to her. At our first introduction to her, we see her being groped/slapped in the rear by her handsy photography boss. What Wachs does to her is cruel. It’s understandable why Gary, for all of his youthful immaturity, seems like a better choice in the context of all of her other options.

But there’s a difference between a movie featuring a chaste flirtation between two characters of incompatible ages and a movie where the older character crosses the line with the underage one, and this film spends a good amount of the being the former before crossing into the latter in its final moments. It is difficult to reconcile the two or understand how one is supposed to feel.

It may very well be that what she’s actually meaning to say is, “Gary, I love you for seeing me as a person and for teaching me that I deserve more and never taking advantage of me, and I have learned something from you that I will carry with me for the rest of my life,” but that’s not what she says.

But I would agree with you, Thomas - the film’s final moments take things to a very unambiguous place that potentially recontextualizes everything we’ve seen prior.

Do I think Paul Thomas Anderson set out or intended to make an icky film about pedophelia? No, I do not. Does the film nonetheless present some content in contexts that is difficult to wave away? I believe it may.

So, I am guessing that you guys both...

Spoiler: SPOILER

...believe at the end Gary and Alana are running off somewhere to have sex. Is this what you mean? I did take her "I love you." as sort of an emotional response to her restaurant encounter with Wachs and his boyfriend. I did not see it as a "Now let's have sex." thing. I agree with what you are saying Josh in that she does not need to say the rest of that. Gary is the only guy that basically treats her as an equal. As someone capable and important. The other guys all kind of appear not to care about her that much. Gary, basically other than insisting on seeing her boobs, remains a gentleman. He does not make sexual advances at her either. He does basically worship her a bit, which from an ego standpoint she likes, but he seems respectful of her.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

Spoiler

That’s putting words in my mouth.

In fact, I said the opposite of what you seem to think I said. I think it would have been of vital important for the “I love you” to have had that additional context. Had Alana said all of the things I suggested she may have meant, the ending would play differently than it does. But she doesn’t say those things.

I have no idea if they go and have sex. Doesn’t matter if they do or don’t. The film ends with a 25 year old expressing feelings of romantic love to a minor, and that for me creates a great deal of uncertainty for how to contextualize the content of the film. A line that shouldn’t be crossed is crossed and then the film abruptly ends.

 

[Kyle_D]

The ending is the only false note in the film, but even with it, I wouldn't describe the film as a romance. It's more about Alana's struggle with arrested adolescence, as manifested and observed through her relationship with Gary. Whatever she says in the final scene, it's well-established by that point that she's capricious, and her "epiphanies" are short-lived.

The Worst Person in the World explored similar territory, without the adult-minor relationship.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

The ending is the only false note in the film

I agree wholeheartedly. Until that point I was pretty much onboard with the whole movie.