A very accomplished picture for a director who was just 26 years old at the time of production, 'All the Real Girls' may be heavily influenced by the likes of John Cassavetes and even early Terrence Malick, but David Gordon Green doesn't plagiarize, he just fuses these inspirations and his own talent to lend 'All the Real Girls' an unworldly air. Gloriously photographed, the film's narrative also takes a rather ethereal approach to things as it recounts the story of a group of young men and women in their mid 20's in a backwater North Carolina mill town. In this world, there's much else to do but get drunk and laid as often as possible, which is precisely what the smart but directionless Paul (Paul Schneider) spends most of his time doing. His best mate is Tip (Shea Whigam, so arresting in 'Tigerland') whose life is equally bland. However when Tip's sister Noel (Zooey Deschanel) returns from boarding school, Tip knows it's only a matter of time before his best pal tries it on with his sister. Meanwhile, after meeting Noel, Paul starts to think that maybe there is something beyond getting liquored up and waking up next to someone's whose name you can't even remember.
With much of the film taking place outdoors, Green uses his locations quite brilliantly - all gorgeous vistas and open skies - and he's equally adapt at coaxing marvellous, deeply emotional performances out of his cast, with the three leads weighing in with some excellent work. However, where some will find fault with the movie, others will delight in. Gordon and his co-writer, star Paul Schneider, have a well founded distrust of the Hollywood storytelling conventions and each scene of the film seems to exist in its own little world, which further heightens the dreamy sensation. Gorgeous
