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I think there is a real mental divide in people’s minds about what is acceptable behavior for a 15 year old vs a 16 year old. If he started the movie out at 16, then was 17 when they had their kiss, I think people would have been less put off. 16 is a more common age for sexual activity, and is closely associated with being an adult (legal to drive, is age of consent in some states). 15 is still seen as being a kid.
BUT, PTA needed Gary to be under 16 so that Alana would be have to drive him around on all his adventures. Otherwise, he would just drive himself and his posse. She would not have a purpose and miss out on all those vignettes.
At no point is Jerry (Higgins) speaking actual Japanese to either wife. He only uses the exaggerated pidgin-English, mimicking the stereotype of how a Japanese might struggle with English. That is what upsets the critics with PTA and this movie.
On Reddit, someone posted a translation of what the wives say. Jerry seems to understand them as his subsequent statements address his wives comments. He is also very good about listening to his wives and supporting their positions, and the wives seem satisfied with his actions in their meetings.
If PTA had just had one Japanese restaurant scene with just one wife and did not talk in that mocking voice, it probably would have been fine. I think PTA wanted to show that Gary really did run the PR company he talked about to Alana, and his mom really did work for him.
LP is a movie that definitely requires multiple viewings to fully appreciate it. I had a similar experience with Once Upon… Hollywood. First time I was confused and underwhelmed. But rewatched a few months later and started at really get into it.
With LP, I rented it and rewatched it almost immediately. I then waited until the 4k streaming version was in my price range and pulled the trigger.
I like her warts-and-all look in LP. Makes her seem real and relatable. Movie star looks are a dime a dozen. I WILL say that I do not like the cartoon poster portrayal of her. It looks more like she does in real life, with wavy hair and rosy cheeks. In the movie her hair is straight with a somewhat pockmarked complexion. The poster with her wearing the “You’ve a long way baby” shirt is reflective of how she looks in the movie.
One of the frequent criticisms PTA gets about LP is that it is insufficiently condemning of the relationship given the age gap between the characters and how giving them a happy ending is an endorsement of their morally-questionable relationship.
Clearly Gary is not bothered in the least and is indifferent to consent laws. He never addresses the issue. He’s annoyed they are not making out and feels entitled to see her boobs before the rest of the world does.
Alana addresses it a couple of times, at the beginning with her “I can be your friend but not your girlfriend , that’s illegal” as well as encouraging him to look at the boobs of girls his own age. She also references her age as a reason she and Gary are not together to Jon Peters. But overall there is no other characters questioning their being together. Gary’s friends and brother, Alana’s sisters, Jon Peters, all express acceptance and encouragement that they seek each other out romantically.
So those critics are correct in that movie does not condemn their romance. But if no one is expressing disapproval of their relationship in the movie, maybe it is because none is warranted.
It is right after Alana falls off Jack Holden's motorcycle(Holden doesn't even notice) and Gary "runs to her rescue." HIS face is handsome; HER face says "I want you right now."
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I would add that the look on Alana’s face and the way she responds with “Hi” to Gary after their kiss at the end, more than indicates she is all in with Gary and will literally go wherever he takes her.
I suspect that one reason for Alana’s recurring rages towards Gary is that she feels the constant anger of being so drawn to a person that she cannot openly have a relationship with. She is probably annoyed that he is still in high school. If he were just a few years older, it was be so much easier for her.
They’ll be doing something for sure. Both boobs and handjobs were prominent in the movie, so maybe there was some foreshadowing going on.
I don’t get a sense that Brian’s “homework” line was a reference to some previous tryst between them while studying. I think it was more that his watching her solving problems and getting things done (homework) indicated to him that she would be a boon to the campaign he was helping run.
I DO get that he digs her (and probably always has) and sees her volunteering as an opportunity to make a romantic move. But she seems much more focused on her growing role in the campaign and her attraction to Joel. She ditches Brian almost mid-kiss to run to what she things is a mini-date with Joel. And when that goes awry and she seeks Gary out, that is it for Brian and the campaign.
I don’t get a sense that Brian’s “homework” line was a reference to some previous tryst between them while studying. I think it was more that his watching her solving problems and getting things done (homework) indicated to him that she would be a boon to the campaign he was helping run.
I DO get that he digs her (and probably always has) and sees her volunteering as an opportunity to make a romantic move. But she seems much more focused on her growing role in the campaign and her attraction to Joel. She ditches Brian almost mid-kiss to run to what she things is a mini-date with Joel. And when that goes awry and she seeks Gary out, that is it for Brian and the campaign.
I’m not sure how hard Gary is trying to honor a relationship that has to be “friends” only. He has pined after her from the moment he saw her approaching in the school picture line to when he announced her as “Mrs. Alana Valentine.” He pushed her to show him her boobs and lamented she won’t make out with him. This is more frustration on his part than a decision to keep things as purely friends.
BUT, he is not going to stop living his life regardless of his success with her, be it reconnecting with a former love or soliciting handjobs from other (equally older) women. And he is not shy letting her know that.
He probably realizes that a sexual or romantic encounter with a stoned or drunken Alana is not going to count towards winning her over for real, so he does not try to take advantage of her weakened state. Only when she clear-headedly seeks him out does he finally “go there.”
I have noticed several instances of female reviewers and even Alanna Haim herself trying to convince themselves and others that the ending is not leading to the obvious: that Gary and Alanna are going to have a fully-realized romantic relationship, if only for that night.
I think this desire to rewrite the ending is because they closely identify with Alanna, but at the same time view Gary as a bit of a dork (as well as a 15-year old kid) and are resistant to the idea that those two are off to explore their romantic love. So they are trying to convince themselves the ending means something else, such as they are just really good platonic friends. But I think the kiss and “I love you Gary” speak for themselves as they run off together into the night. PTA certainly has not supported these alternate interpretations.
I liked the whole Teenage Fair vignette right up to where they run off together (back to the Teen Fair presumably). But the timeline of their relationship is unclear. It seems that they had no contact since the silent phone call scene. They are both surprised to see each other at the Fair, and Gary did not know that Alanna dumped Lance. But when Gary gets hauled away by the cops and subsequently released in the police station, she acts like Gary is her closest friend. So her behavior seems out of proportion to what had been shown up to that point. But it is a great sequence!
As was noted by others, Alanna’s immaturity and Gary’s over-maturity are what makes their pairing plausible. It probably also explains why his friends are so willing to help him out, and even his mom’s behavior around him.
A lot of movies require some suspension of disbelief to work. The unusualness of this story is what makes it interesting.
A lot of the criticism and moral outrage over the film assumes Gary is 15 the whole time. But by any timeline he is well past 16 when their first kiss (and what ever comes next) occurs at the end.
16 is the age of consent in many states, and you can get married in CA at that age with parental permission. So the idea that he was an innocent groomed and corrupted by an older woman is silly. Pretty Baby this is not!
PTA should have made it clearer he turned 16, maybe a birthday party scene.
I feel like Lance gets unfairly lumped with those other guys who are portrayed as negative examples of men for Alana. All he did is express his religious philosophy in a very polite and respectful manner. He obviously maintains his Jewish cultural identity if he is attending a Shabbat dinner. And there is nothing to suggest Gary is Jewish or religious at all.
If Alana’s sisters are in on it, their mother probably knows as well. The only thing her father could do about it is report his own daughter, highly unlikely. As a minor, Gary is not culpable.
The age of consent in Nevada is 16. Problem solved! But realistically, no one cares and no one is paying attention, including Gary’s mom and Alana’s sisters. They seem to accept things as is, and are content to let the couple sort it out. No one is asking any probing questions.
My earlier point was that by the end of the movie they are a couple as they see it, and will act accordingly. It probably won’t last, but any ambiguity over how they feel about each other is behind them and there is no turning back.
Film timeline probably starts near beginning of school year, maybe September or October 1972. They are getting pictures for their school ID.
No idea about chaperoning to Under One Roof. Maybe after winter holidays are over.
Teenage Fair was early April, the radio said so. The waterbed stuff would have happened in the following weeks and months.
Gary turns 16 in May, since he told the cops he turns 16 next month.
Jack Holden storyline was probably Sep or Oct as it builds toward Yom Kippur war and subsequent oil embargo into 1974.
Jon Peters is early 1974 as oil shortage is in full gear and Joel Wachs campaign is in progress (hence the campaign signs).
Alana volunteers for Joel Wachs campaign and Gary’s subsequent pinball venture is during summer when kids can run around all night like that. Movie ends on opening night of Fat Bernie’s Pinball Palace.
No idea how Gary or his 15 year-old friends get away with what they do. They might all be latchkey kids.