This film, in typical Gus Van Sant fashion, is set in Portland, particularly at the skatepark under the Burnside bridge, called Paranoid Park in the film. It is about a 16 year old kid Alex, who is an average but avid skater. He lives with his oblivious mom after his parents split up long ago and his new skater friend may be causing a rift in his relationship with his girlfriend, but other than that, life is pretty normal. Oh wait, he accidentally murdered a guy.The film is basically about this kid dealing with the guilt. There's not much evidence to tie Alex to the scene, but for some reason the police are still talking to kids at his school. This causes him to deal with his guilt, which puts a strain on his relationships with girlfriend, friends, mother, and his own mind.
The film is not about the actual crime itself as the story is only briefly told. It's really about a smart and goodhearted kid who has to deal with overwhelming guilt of causing an accident he can't fix. It felt like half the movie was slow motion montages of kids skating under the bridge. It may have represented something deeper but it was so excessive it kind of felt like filler and made the movie seem longer than it actually was. But if you like Gus Van Sant, you might as well see it. If not, you might not be missing much.
I completely disagree, I think this movie has a lot to offer and takes a unique approach to telling a story by creating drama and meaning without using the key point of conflict in the story to do so. Also, the scenes of skateboarding are not nearly 'half the movie.' I think this movie is definitely worth checking out. It definitely delivers more in under ninety minutes than a lot of movies do in over two hours.
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