David Ehrenstein wrote:Wow that's quite a reaction, Antoine. I never would expect the film to produce such a response. It's very subtle and intense. Did you get, for example, that the father is living with another man (who is played by Chris Doyle?)
Certainly I don't want to suggest the film is all on the surface, and you are right, it is very subtle and intense, but what surprised me most is how accessible the film was. There is an odd magnetism in this film, that I think is owed in large part to the editing and pacing, that keeps the audience right in the palm of Van Sant's hands.
But for me, everything about
Paranoid Park, struck me so insistently, so directly that I honestly can't wait for the DVD arrive so I can watch it again. Van Sant's lovely shot/sequence repetition; the collection of overlapping sounds and white noise; the slow motion skateboarders; the walking tracking shots -- everything Van Sant puts up on the screen not only serves a visual purpose but resonates immensely with Alex's inner struggles and defense mechanisms. Also, as you had previously mentioned David, I love how - literally - the parents are out of the picture for the most part. There is a wonderful scene with Alex speaking with his mom while trying leaving the house to go to the mall that is so perfectly acted and shot - his hestitation and awkwardness as he keeps stepping in and out of the frame trying to get out the door - that it's unbearable. I actually kinda wished we never saw his father at all. I kept hoping that scene would keep him out of focus and in the background rather than giving us a full reveal (if I had one quibble with the film, that would be it). But, I can't stop gushing about this how perfectly Van Sant executes this film. While I admired
Elephant as an exercise, I think
Paranoid Park is the far more mature and assured work.
As to your question, I missed Chris Doyle, but I agree with foggy eyes that the father's orientation is open to interpretation.