ShareThisGus Van Sant rose from the ranks of the independents ("My Own Private Idaho," "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues") to the commercial realm ("Good Will Hunting," "Finding Forrester") only to garner enough money and security to make understated, confounding experimental gems.With the otherworldly yet intimately familiar drama "Paranoid Park," the director continues his low-budget sojourn into dreary mindscapes. His (non)story is about a teen skater from a broken home who accidentally kills a security guard, then tries to cover it up.Van Sant's last four films, including "Gerry," "Elephant" and "Last Days," have all been dry, minimalist tone poems. In the current run, Van Sant has focused on characters unable to express themselves with words. They languish in depression and anxiety. His imagery is heavy on strained, confounded close-ups of blank stares; his dialogue disjointed, muttered. Working from a Blake Nelson novel, Van Sant descends into the realm of teen angst and confusion he probed in "Elephant."Alex (Gabe Nevins) is the willowy-headed blank slate at the center of the narrative, which slopes, skids and stops just like the kids at the skate park he frequents. He shrugs off his parents' pending divorce, seems numb to his clingy cheerleader girlfriend and is put off by his best friend's raging libido. And forget about school, which to Alex is less interesting than Charlie Brown found his "wah-wah" instructors.About the only activity Alex is content with is chilling out at Paranoid Park, watching the hard-knock skater crowd twist jump tricks off half pipes. One night at the park, he goes for a beer with an older guy and winds up participating in a murder. He deflects an investigation at school, led by persistent detective Lu (Daniel Liu), who questions the school's outcast skater population. Alex is guilt-ridden, yet engaged by his secret. If he'd bothered to have done his Dostoevsky essay, he might better understand his plight.We view the story from Alex's perspective, his dodgy narration halfheartedly explaining the mishmash of jumbled events. At the behest of a confidant, he later explains, he's written an open letter. The plot unfolds in rearranged bits and spurts, moving on the wavelength of a troubled teen mind."Paranoid Park" is often as impenetrable as Alex. You drift along with the film, unable to put your thumb on what it all means, or whether it means anything at all. That there's nothing definitive to wrap your arms around is frustrating. And intriguing.3 stars out of 4Rated: R for disturbing images, language and sexual content.Writer/director: Gus Van Sant.Family call: Not for kids.Running time: 85 minutes.(Phil Villarreal is the author of the novel "Stormin' Mormon" (Publish America, $19.95). Contact him at pvillarreal(at)azstarnet.com.)(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)
In 'Paranoid,' Van Sant continues sojourn into dreary mindscapes
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