Oscars 2022: Will Licorice Pizza get Paul Thomas Anderson the long-evasive Best Director honour?

His films have netted 25 Oscar nominations in all. His actors have won the top prize thrice. Yet Paul Thomas Anderson has never won an Oscar for directing. Perhaps, this has something to do with the familiarity breeding prejudice, or perhaps there are other factors at play. But with Licorice Pizza, a heartwarming, breezy, and optimistic film from the man that has mastered paranoia and obsession, the filmmaker has displayed that his range goes beyond awards-driven recognition.   Anderson is best known for making There Will Be Blood [2007], the film that won Daniel Day Lewis an Oscar for Best Actor; and the Best Cinematography award for Rober Elswit. It had multiple nominations, including one for him in direction. The tale of an ego maniacal oil prospector who surpasses limits of humanity and sanity in seeking wealth, this film is as dark as it gets. It is also held up as a reflection to the hunger that drove the building of America. Anderson centered it in Southern California, the setting of most of his films. His stories are commentaries on human behaviour and the state of society in a specific period of time. They tell us about America like it was or is; and often, stay rooted to a region where Anderson grew up. Be it Boogie Nights [1997], his breakthrough second film, and the pornography industry that thrives on the fringes of Hollywood; or Magnolia [1999], that is a social commentary at the end of 20th century, when disillusion and irrational behaviour have become common; his films have an understated, introspective quality.

With Licorice Pizza, he revises the mind space of his films, if not his style sheet, which uses less dialogue, and a lot more interaction between characters.  

Anderson has found respect and recognition from peers, something that he downplays. But it is his actors that hold him in a special place, crediting his work for getting them to do their best. Anderson has worked twice with Day-Lewis, the infamously selective, introverted master performer. There Will Be Blood and Phantom Thread  [2017] feature him in very divergent characters, but they converge in their obsessive, ego centric core. With Joaquin Phoenix, another super selective star, he has worked in The Master [2012] and Inherent Vice [2014]. Both films have stories that depend heavily on the performance of its protagonist to translate complex, difficult emotions on screen. Anderson has also worked with Johnny Greenwood, music composer, in five films now, his longest collaboration with an individual aside from him repeating the late Phillip Seymour Hoffman in five films. Over the course of almost 25 years, he has made just nine films. But his relationships with actors and technicians remain consistent, and hold up over time. For a filmmaker that manages to pull out an actor’s deepest, sometimes uncomfortable emotions and reactions, his ability to retain them as friends is unique. When Alfred Hitchcock would push his heroines to extremities, few would return to work with him again because he would treat them so poorly. Anderson manages to navigate actors without making them adversaries.   [caption id=“attachment_10429751” align=“alignnone” width=“640”]  Still from Phantom Thread[/caption] Anderson has adapted his experiences of growing up and finding his feet to make stories about regular people that make the most irregular choices. Except for the fresh and positive protagonists of Licorice Pizza, one is hard pressed to find lead characters that he created who are not flawed and unlikeable. It is the challenge that he presents to actors that brings out the best in them. Tom Cruise, America’s biggest mainstream hero, held his crotch and shouted out expletives to play the repulsive, super confident relationship guru Frank TJ Mackey, who makes misogny his calling card [Magnolia]. He features in an ensemble cast, leaving aside star status and focusing on delivering a most unlikeable person. With Seymour Hoffman, he created supporting characters that are hard to forget, like the head of a complex, wealthy cult in The Master  [Lancaster Dodd].  When he did soften his touch for a love story Punch Drunk Love, he got Adam Sandler to deliver one of his best performances. Sandler is shy, somewhat awkward, and prone to react violently in this unusual film. [caption id=“attachment_10400721” align=“alignnone” width=“640”]  Cooper Hoffman and Alana Haim in Licorice Pizza[/caption] In Licorice Pizza, Anderson has worked with younger actors, Alana Haim and Cooper Hoffman [son of Seymour Hoffman], having chosen them above trained actors so that he could retain the innocence and rough edges of youth. His gamble pays off. At a time when politics, economic realities, and social situations were confusing, two young people set out to find their place in the world and make mistakes along the way. Their untrained personas bring a touch of amateur authenticity to both characters, making them likeable and easy to relate to.   Anderson has not been known to lobby for award or recognition. Keeping his stories in and around Los Angeles often makes his films look and feel familiar, like a popular TV show or web series. Dig deeper and you find social commentary as well as human behaviour that makes you ponder. His attempt to make a feel-good, happy film works beautifully with Licorice Pizza. It might even bring him a win in the Best Director category, having gotten so many wins for his actors and technicians. Oscars 2022 will take place on 28 March. [caption id=“attachment_10418721” align=“alignnone” width=“640”]  Oscars 2022. Illustration by Poorti Purohit[/caption] Archita Kashyap is an experienced journalist and writer on film, music, and pop culture. She has handled entertainment content for broadcast news and digital platforms over 15 years.  Read all the  Latest News ,  Trending News ,  Cricket News ,  Bollywood News , India News  and  Entertainment News  here. Follow us on  Facebook,  Twitter and  Instagram.