Paranoid Park, Gus Van Sant’s meditation on murder and its after-shocks, proves his best work yet, while Asia Argento takes flight in Olivier Assayas's new thriller.
Edmund Eugene Mullins
February 28, 2008
Michael Madsen and Asia Argento in Boarding Gate.
Paranoid Park is strange fruit, a blend of thriller and coming-of-age story where, of all things, a homicide proves the unusual rite of passage between adolescence and adulthood. It’s also director Gus Van Sant’s masterpiece.
Teenage Alex (Gabe Nevins) does not plan on committing a crime; he’s a feckless suburban cipher faithful to the usual diversions of music, girls, and skateboarding. But one night a train-hopping stunt turns tragic when he accidentally knocks a security guard in front of an oncoming locomotive. Panicked, but not especially guilt-ridden, Alex decides to keep it to himself.
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Naomi Watts in Funny Games.
