Paranoid Park (Dir: Gus Van Sant)

Alex (Gabe Nevins) in the span of about a week is going to mature exponentially. As the film opens, Alex presents as an indifferent, callow teen guy. He is a skateboarder and in the way of teens, he has fully inhabited this role, let it define him. He hangs out with skaters, wear skater clothing, and hangs with the skating tribe. He appears to be passing through life trying not to get in anyone's way, content to just be.

But after a trip to Paranoid Park--a local skating hangout--Alex's life becomes more complicated. Paranoid Park is a work of folk art. Adjacent to a railroad track, it has been designed by drifters and the under-employed as a skating refuge. Skaters aren't welcome often beyond their own driveways and Paranoid Park is a haven full of half-pipes, ramps, and swooping curves. Many of its regulars are also dangerous.

Told in a non-linear fashion, Paranoid Park is about being haunted by secret knowledge that eats away at you. Alex is forced out of callowness into deep reflection and maturity. Park is not a plot-driven film. Director Van Sant spends much of the film meditating on the faces of his characters. He also cultivates a steadily deepening dread that we begin to experience alongside Alex. Anyone who has ever lived with guilt will ultimately find the film both personal and cathartic. This is a film that rewards your patience and willingness to wait and observe.