Review: Paper Towns

Paper Towns Review (M)

2015, dir. Jake Schreier

John Green’s young-adult novels turned film adaptations are gradually becoming a genre in itself. A combination of teenage experiences, young love and gripping narratives has led to a dedicated fan base for Green’s alluring tales. Since viewers everywhere ugly cried over the tragic romance that was “The Fault in Our Stars” (2014), I was eager to see what the newest adaptation of his hugely successful novel “Paper Towns” had to offer.

In this coming-of-age road movie, our eyebrow goals role model Cara Delevingne stars as the enigmatic Margo, who loved mysteries so much she became one. The over- achieving Quentin (Nat Wolff) plays her love struck neighbour, focusing all his affection on Margo since their first encounter as children. The “unrequited love for the girl next door” archetype of most rom-coms is however driven off course as not all goes as expected. After a spontaneous, reckless driven night out for Quentin (and a perfectly planned one for Margo), the film embarks on a mystery driven plot as Margo vanishes from the place she refers to as a paper town (it’s the name of the movie!). Clearly unsatisfied with the cardboard cut -out suburban life, her disappearance results in an epic trace of clues for Quentin to crack.

The quest to find Margo ignites a time for firsts for somewhat nerdy trio of friends, who in their senior year of high school still shutter themselves in their beloved band room. Their nestled life is uprooted in traditional road movie style. When watching a movie with a strong road genre, the actual road trip itself is usually the most memorable part of the film. Unfortunately the plot fell flat when they hit the road to upstate New York. The dialogue fell into clichéd banter that failed to stand out with the chemistry between the boys and the girls simply being lacklustre.

Nat Wolff continues his voyage of teen flicks, following a successful stream of performances in James Franco’s “Palo Alto” and the adorable Isaac in TFIOS. His performance as Quentin, the socially inept, bumbling high achiever was the highlight of the film. He brings an honest, raw portrayal of unrequited love and even more so to the complexity of being a teen. Delevinge’s performance was also truly captivating. Her quick witted nature naturally translated smoothly to her character without seeming forced. I was actually surprised that what majority of the film lacked was more Cara, why did she have to be the gone girl? Both scenes with her cunning plans gave a mischievous and playful ambiance to the bleak town. However the casting of his two best friends, Radar and Ben, were an adequate source for comic relief and their clichéd boyish jokes written for them came off as trying too hard to create an anti-chick flick vibe. Crammed with cringe worthy antics, the importance of their friendship was at times buried.

In this movie everything is a metaphor. It seems John Green loves them dearly. After the infamous “it’s a metaphor” metaphor from TFIOS, it’s hard not to pick on the numerous signifiers in Paper Towns. The road, Margo and the paper towns all combine for one mega metaphor. What Schreier tries so hard to communicate is the unknowing future that lies ahead after high school, no matter how hard you try and plan for it. The soundtrack features artists HAIM plus a nostalgic performance of the Pokémon theme song, beautifully sung by the boys, brought a youthful and lively tone to the film. With some laughs along the way, the rocky road that is growing up makes for a light and enjoyable viewing.

“Paper Towns” is showing in theatres now across Australia.

Paper Towns gets 3 out of 5 stars

#film #review #papertowns #johngreen #caradelevingne #natwolff