Paper Moon

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What’s the Story?

Buddy movies are great fun, and so are caper flicks -- movies where you get to live out a fantasy of not being good; of in fact being really, really bad. For some viewers, PAPER MOON will be the ultimate bad-girl escape film: full of road trips, car chases, money, tricks, and general hijinx. Tatum O'Neal stars in her Oscar-winning role as Addie Loggins, a little girl whose mother has just died and is suddenly thrust into the care of Moze (Tatum's dad, Ryan O'Neal), a traveling conman whom Addie is convinced is her real father because they have the same chin. While Moze denies it, he does take little Addie under his wing, teaching her to con widows out of money, steal liquor, and generally live a depraved but fun life.

Is It Any Good?

If kids can get past the black-and-white screening created by director Peter Bogdanovich, they may love the pleasure Addie takes in tricking people. And she may have won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar, but she's certainly the star of the film. You can thank the writing for that.

Addie, as a street-wise orphan, is smarter, sneakier, and more conniving than her foil of a father figure. As Moze dumbly tryies to get the same $7 out of every widow for a "deluxe edition Bible," Addie adjusts prices based on a customer's financial status and earns them more money. When she feels abandoned by Moze for taking a lover, the "harem slave" Trixie (Madeline Kahn), Addie is sharp enough to know that Trixie is a prostitute and makes sure Moze catches her turning a trick. No doubt, Addie (cigarette dangling) lives in a very adult, criminal world, and it's why this movie is a much better choice for teens and up.