I’m impressed.
You had me going film, you had me going. For the first half Paper Towns is nothing more than a cheesy trope-filled high school romance; then its second half comes along and BAM Paper Towns tears its clichés apart, reconstructing them into a refreshing coming-of-age story about a teen discovering what truly matters to him through an obsession he knows little about.
Quentin “Q” (Nat Wolff) has always been enamored with his next door neighbor Margo (Cara Delevingne) since the moment they met. While good friends during childhood, Margo and Q have grown distant from each other—Margo is a popular student known for her crazy adventures and mysterious nature; Q on the other hand is your average high school nobody. One night Margo appears at Q’s window, asking him to take part in a revenge scheme—Q agrees and the two partake in a chaotic adventure, which Q considers the most exciting time of his life. The next day Margo doesn’t appear at school, and after a week is reported missing from home…again (she leaves home a lot). Soon Q discovers clues left by Margo, and believes she’s encouraging him to come find her. Recruiting his two friends Ben (Austin Abrams) and Radar (Justice Smith), alongside Margo’s estranged best friend Lacey (Halston Sage), Q sets out on a journey to find the love of his life…sounds cheesy right? Well appearances can be deceiving.
Paper Towns’ first half practically uses every high school romance cliché in the book. Q views Margo as “a miracle”, his inner-monologue gushing over her intelligence, beauty, charisma, daring and mysterious nature. Whenever he looks at her time slows down; “Margo was different…Margo was Special” he thinks while staring longingly as if a magic spell had been cast. During their adventure Margo mentions how everything is uglier up close, to which Q replies “not you”—a line even sappy romance novelists would hesitate to use. I was ready to give up—to throw in the towel, sit back and wait for the nauseating love-fest to finish with the big mushy kiss. I was foolish to doubt John Green’s work, after all he created The Fault in Our Stars, which film adaptation became my favorite high school romance of 2014—which was exactly my problem however, going into Paper Towns expecting a love story. Rather Paper Towns is a film about friendship and maturity, which becomes apparent by its second half.
The film uses its excessively sentimental beginning as a misdirection, playing up the sappy romance elements to leave a greater impact by its conclusion. The film’s first half is seen through Q’s eyes, blindly obsessed with a girl he believes is perfect; the romance clichés and cheesiness are his way of viewing the world and Margo. His views are likewise influenced by Margo, who sees her suburban home as a prison and a fake “paper town”. His obsessiveness with finding Margo is more than just love, but also his solution to figuring out his life. Q views Margo as a miracle child with all the answers—if he can find Margo then he can find a purpose in life. There are many instances where Moby Dick is brought up, even an instance where Q compares himself to Ahab; Q’s single-minded resolve makes him oblivious to the many joys and experiences he’s having/missing with his friends, which is steadily reinforced as the film progresses.
Paper Towns’ second half is a complete 180 from its previous scenes, unexpectedly becoming a road trip adventure between Q and his friends. The film becomes more focused on Q’s friends rather than simply Q and Margo, giving time for small talk and character development. The group’s conversations feel humorously realistic, conversations I might’ve had with friends back in high school. The film’s second half feels more slice of life, yet also serves as a way to bring Q back down to reality; several conversations involve characters pointing out how Margo is not in fact a perfect being, but rather a teenager with her own flaws. Lacey points out how she’s on the trip because she’s worried about Margo, but questions whether Margo would go the same distance for her. The second half is sweeter, funnier, more entertaining, and satisfying thanks to its deconstructive/reconstructive elements of the first half (there’s even an amusing cameo from Ansel Elgort as a cashier).
SPOILERS BEGIN: Paper Towns is a film about a teen’s obsession with a girl he views as magical, but in reality is as flawed as himself. The film takes a gamble with its deceptively shallow-minded first half, but it pays off in a remarkable coming-of-age second half. Though Q does get a big finale kiss from Margo, it is done as a sentimental goodbye, a wake-up call from fantasy rather than a fantasy come true. In doing so Q comes down from the clouds and back to reality, yet this is done through a positive viewpoint—because as the film displays in the end, reality can be splendid as well. SPOILERS END
P.S. Paper Towns automatically gets bonus points for having Q and friends spontaneously sing the entire Pokémon theme song (the scene is apparently not in the book). As far as I’m aware, this is the first instance a non-Pokémon film has accomplished such an amazing task. Oh and after singing, Lesley and Ben start discussing their favorite Pokémon (Lesley is a Charizard girl)…which is f@#%ing awesome!
