Paper Moon
Maverick director Peter Bogdanovich affectionately recreates the world of the 1930s Dust Bowl in this beloved, briskly entertaining chronicle of one of cinema’s unlikeliest crime sprees.
Real-life father and daughter Ryan and Tatum O’Neal (who became the youngest-ever Oscar winner for her spark-plug performance) play off each other with almost musical agility as a Bible-hawking con man and the precocious, recently orphaned tomboy who falls into his care—and soon rivals her newfound father figure’s skill as a swindler.
With period-perfect detail, glowing monochrome imagery by cinematographer László Kovács, and a memorable supporting cast (including the inimitable Madeline Kahn), Paper Moon is a witty, loving portrait of two natural-born hustlers on a road trip through Depression-era America.
