adonis98-743-186503
During the Great Depression, a con man finds himself saddled with a young girl who may or may not be his daughter, and the two forge an unlikely partnership. Paper Moon is another horrible and overrated mess of a film that doesn't belong into the Top 250 movies of all time, the acting was somewhat of boring, the characters were on the same exact path as well and the storyline very muddled and boring. Paper Moon is not a film that should have tried that much but is a film that at least should have a little bit of good drama but it lacks it. (0/10)
classicsoncall
By the time the movie's over, you're kind of hoping that Moses Pray and his young ward Addie are really a father and daughter team. The story keeps the relationship intentionally ambiguous and leaves it to the viewer's imagination, but if you're like me, you probably wind up rooting for it to be true. Addie (Tatum O'Neal) turns out to be a consummate hustler who one-ups 'Moze' more than once, from her off the cuff Bible pricing to breaking up his road romance with Miss Trixie Delight (Madeline Kahn). But the elder O'Neal is no slouch in the con game himself, as his whiskey scam and wrasslin' match maneuver clearly show. This is another of those Seventies flicks that I saw when it first came out, and not again until some forty plus years later, and it still holds up well as an entertaining picture. In my case, it helps that it was done in glorious black and white, just like director Peter Bogdanovich's masterpiece (in my opinion), "The Last Picture Show". If you consider the story in it's entirety, it's a nicely developed caper and heist movie which compares favorably with another 1973 film, "The Sting". Picture if you will Redford and Newman in a double team up with the two O'Neals and you've got the makings for a con with a sure fire blow-off. I'd even pay double to see that one.
chaudhariu
This movie is difficult to be described in words, at least the right choice of words. There is some eccentricity in the storyline, its very catchy and entertaining but at the same time absolutely unassuming and unpredictable. Normally you would always be amazed to see how many times you wanted certain things to happen during the movie but it is so practical that you realise that you are assuming too much of romanticism in the world which seldom exists and thats why the plot is near perfect! Still the movie continues to entertain you, its neither a happy romanticised dream nor a tragedy but its the slug fit between these two ends of the drama.
The acting and on screen chemistry of real life father daughter duo is phenomenal and certainly Tatum O'neal amazes as a child actor. The movie explores certain dimensions of those delicate and subtle human emotions of love which you long to express but cannot due to situations.
Its definitely impressive movie with a perfect acting, plot, settings and direction which made me revise its rating to a perfect 10 from 9 as I couldn't stop thinking about it for long time!
howyoodoon
It's difficult to watch this film with any impartiality, as it was one of the formative films of my childhood years. Seeing it now, over 40 years after it came out, I'm convinced it's one of the finest American films ever made. Many other viewers here have pointed out the main reasons for its greatness--so I'd like to shine a light on, perhaps, some of the less-credited components of the film's success. I'm calling them "Paper Moon's Unsung Heroes":Unsung hero #1: There's been little mention here of the actor who truly anchors this film--and gives the finest performance of his career-- Ryan O'Neal. He delivers a fully-realized, multi-faceted performance, more than worthy of an Oscar nomination (if not a "win"), in my opinion-- and he received neither. Try watching Paper Moon with your eye on O'Neal pere, rather than his adorable, scene- stealing daughter. Firstly, of course, he was one of the handsomest actors of his era, which makes such an undertaking a painless effort. But watch the subtlety of his expressions, and his nuanced comic turns. For example, in the hotel scene, where he's having his breakfast, when Imogene comes down to tell him that 'Miss Trixie' is having her "ladies' time," his reaction, turning from concerned to mortified, as he rapidly sits back down, while dropping his voice by an octave...now THAT'S comedy! His comic delivery in his first big scene with Addie (the "diner scene") is also brilliant. In fact, I can't think of a single scene where he is not completely "true-to- character". In the hands of another actor, this deceptively difficult role could have been played as 'malevolent'. O'Neal's performance shows 'Moze' to be a lovable rascal who does what he has to do in order to survive during the Great Depression. Imagine, say, Jack Nicholson in the role...It would certainly have been a different film altogether. (Sidebar comment: I realize one shouldn't judge a film actor's performance with how they are 'off-screen'--but if what Tatum says about him in her books and interviews is true, O'Neal is not quite-as-lovable a rogue, off-screen. She claims that when the Oscar nominations were announced, she did sort of a "Nahh- nah-nah-nah-nahh," to him, as bratty 10-year-olds are known to do-- and he fully punched her in the face! Gulp. All four of his children are either addicts, alcoholics or in major therapy. But I digress). The #2 "unsung hero(-ine) of this movie is the late, brilliant Polly Platt, Peter Bogdanovich's first wife (and soon-to-be-ex-wife, as he had already taken up with Cybill Shepard when this film was made). Ms. Platt designed the costumes and realized the whole "look" of the film, which Bogdanovich fully-credits her for. I can't think of any other American film of the last 50 years that so completely captures the 1930's in such a flawlessly realistic way. The attention to detail is staggering--look at any single "extra" in this film, and they are all absolutely spot-on correct to the look of that era (the hotel clerk in the 'bootlegger hotel,' with her perfect '30s "Marcelle wave" comes to mind. Unsung hero #3: Gary Chason, who PERFECTLY cast this film, including several first-time actors (Tatum O'Neal, of course...as well as Burton Gilliam, ("Floyd the Hotel Clerk"), P.J. Johnson (Imogene), among many others). I'm hard-pressed to think of another film--ever- -in which every single role is so perfectly-filled...and often by first-time actors! Unsung hero #4: László Kovács, the brilliant cinematographer. Every single shot is so perfectly thought-out and realized. In the hands of a lesser-visionary, "Paper Moon" would certainly have been a lesser film than it is (and imagine if it had been shot in COLOR!). FINALLY--he's certainly not "unsung"--but clearly, he's "under- sung": PETER BOGDANOVICH! This film is a work of sheer genius, and all roads lead back to him. I consider Paper Moon the crowning achievement of his career (with apologies to "Last Picture Show"). It's almost as if his career has followed the same "arc" as that of his great hero, mentor and friend, Orson Welles. Both of them had their greatest successes, straight out of the gate...and then were rather hung-out-to-dry by Hollywood, as if considered "passé". I keep waiting for the world to WAKE UP and realize Paper Moon is one of the absolute FINEST films in history--and should be lauded accordingly! Why is Peter Bogdanovich NOT still being given the opportunity to direct major Hollywood studio films?? The man is one of the true cinematic geniuses of our era. And yes, he is certainly a 'peer' of his hero, Mr. Welles. Could we please give him the reverence he deserves? ("Special Mention" to Tatum O'Neal, too! It seems to be "common wisdom" today, that she was simply some kind of "human puppet" for Bogdanovich to manipulate every word and movement of. I beg to differ, strongly. Some of her expressions and line deliveries are so singularly charming and individualistic--proving that she is clearly an innately-skilled and intuitive actress. This performance was no fluke. This girl/lady deserves more credit than she's given, and I say she absolutely deserved that Oscar...though it should have been for "Best Actress,"--with, of course, Madeline Kahn as "Best Supporting Actress"!).
