Movie Review: Paradox and SXSW Interviews with Daryl Hannah, and Adam CK Vollick — Only For True Neil Young Fans

Genre: Independent Drama
Director: Daryl Hannah
Cast: Neil Young, Lukas Nelson, Micah Nelson, Willie Nelson, Corey McCormick, Anthony LoGerfo, Tato Melgar, Charris Ford, and Dulcie Clarkson Ford
Studio: Netflix
Runtime: 73 minutes
Release Date: Streaming March 23, 2018
Rated: TV-MA
Rating: ★★★★★

Billed by Netflix as a “fantasy, a loud poem and a free-spirited tale of music and love,” Paradox marks the directorial debut of actress Daryl Hannah. Written by Hannah, the Netflix film stars music legend, and Hannah’s real life boyfriend, Neil Young as the mysterious man in the black hat.

Filmed over the course of three days, Paradox is more of a film student type project than an actual film. As much as Paradox is billed as Hannah’s first time directing, the film looks more like someone experimenting with the various camera features on their new iPhone while hanging around with a group of their friends. Even Hannah herself is quick to describe it as, “not a real movie, it’s just a silly fun thing.” My guess is had anyone without Hannah’s star power presented this film, and I use that term lightly, to a studio, they wouldn’t have made it past the front gate.

Filmed with no crew or budget, Paradox is a passion project for Hannah that provides a unique insight into her activism and beliefs. While the flick isn’t my cup of tea, there are others who will see the beauty in what Hannah has created. Fans of Young should enjoy Paradox, especially some of the musical performances.

While Paradox will likely never see a wide release in theaters, sites like Netflix and YouTube provide a place for visionary artists like Hannah to release content that only years ago never would have seen the light of day. With films like Paradox, the gap separating feature films shown on Netflix and random content that is posted on YouTube narrows.

There’s a part of me that wishes I could see what the legendary actress could do directing a well written script that has a great cast and a healthy budget. However, after seeing Hannah’s film and talking to her at South by Southwest (SXSW), I get the feeling Paradox reflects more of who she really is. Paradox isn’t Hannah’s attempt to make the next blockbuster movie but rather to have some fun with those close to her, and it just happened to be picked up by Netflix.

During Paradox’s red carpet premiere at SXSW, I asked Hannah what it was about this project that made her want to get behind the camera for the first time. Hanna was running behind so questions were kept short. I, therefore, included a question asked by another reporter in the video below. Hannah was accompanied by cinematographer Adam CK Vollick.

Check out my talk with Daryl Hannah and the trailer to Paradox below.

Paradox is currently available on Netflix.

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Greg Staffa

I provide testosterone to the site. You won’t be reading about how nice a actress looks in a dress or how much of a hunk Matt Bomer is in my reviews. I describe colors using words like brown, not taupe. My twitter name is @staffaroadtrip because I love road trips and have done two different 48-state road trips since 2008. My favorite show is White Collar.