Palo Alto

Don't come looking for plot - our teen years didn't have one either. Like Dazed and Confused before it, Palo Alto throws us into the joys, pains, and emotions of the life of American-suburban adolescence. Though unlike its defacto predecessor, Palo Alto takes a look at this world through a softer, more elegant, more personal lens. The film bounces us around from character to character, all high school students in the titled town. Reckless parties, desperate sexual encounters, jealousies, weed, breaking things, sexually aggressive teachers (James Franco) and, of course, homework. It's all part of the world of Palo Alto. There is no rhyme or reason. Or is there? James Franco (whose book of short stories the film is based on) plays Mr. B, the high school soccer coach, tells his favorite player April that everything has a reason. Maybe he's right. You be the judge. Director Gia Coppola, in her first feature-length effort, works wonders at keeping the characters and the world of Palo Alto authentic. "Glee" exists in a land far, far away from here. Instead, we get an unfiltered look at what it takes to navigate the turbulence of adolescence and find our path to adulthood. It's a painful but beautiful thing.