Youth Without Youth is Francis Ford Coppola’s first film in a decade. All the press attention shines on Coppola himself, and that’s revealing. I saw the film last Sunday, on the opening weekend. Why the rush for a film in limited release from an acknowledged master? Because even here in San Francisco, the center of Coppola’s work world, this movie won’t stay in theaters long. It’s hard work to watch this film, and I walked out thinking “what?” It’s intelligent, but goes too deep without leaving you a trail to get back.
While I duck reviews of movies I’m going to see, I did read the brief mention by the Wall Street Journal’s Joe Morgenstern:
Mr. Coppola is one of the cinema’s peerless masters, and I would have enjoyed nothing more than a chance to celebrate his new film. I’m truly sorry to say, then, that I found it impenetrable.
Impenetrable is a good word. Metacritic score of a 43 reinforces my impression. (Sorry, Sean.)