Tag: May December

Throwback Thursday: Licorice Pizza (2021)

When the one you love does not respond in the same way, it may take some effort on your part to get them to reciprocate your feelings.

Licorice Pizza was originally released in 2021. In 1973, in the San Fernando Valley, Gary (Cooper Hoffman, the son of the late Philip Seymour Hoffman) is a teenage child star who is surprisingly mature for his age. Somehow, he can convince Alana (Alana Haim), a 25-year-old bored photographer’s assistant, to go out with him. They try to keep their relationship platonic, but it becomes more.

What I liked about this film was the positive depiction of Jewish women. Although it is entertaining, I don’t know if I would see it again anytime soon. Though it is nice to see a May/December heterosexual relationship where the woman is older than her male partner.

Do I recommend it? Maybe.

Licorice Pizza is available for streaming on Netflix.

May December Movie Review

A May-December romance is one in which the partner is significantly older or younger than their other half. In some cases, the couple walks into the sunset together. In others, the age gap may result in going their separate ways.

The new Netflix film, May December is based on the “relationship” between the late Mary Kay Letourneau and Vili Fualaau. Elizabeth (Natalie Portman) is about to make a film about the “romance” between Gracie (Julianne Moore) and her much younger husband/former student Joe (Charles Melton). As she digs into their past, Elizabeth discovers the cracks and the secrets in Joe and Gracie’s marriage.

There is a quiet but powerful tension between the lead characters. Like Elizabeth, the audience wants to believe that Joe and Gracie found their HEA (happily ever after) despite their beginning.

Though Portman and Moore are fantastic, Melton is the one that I hope will be awarded for his role. Joe is stuck in arrested development. As both a father and a husband, he is doing his best to provide for his family. But because he had to grow up quickly, Joe is in a sense still the preteen boy he was when he was thrust into the national spotlight.

Do I recommend it? Absolutely.

May December is currently streaming on Netflix.

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