Rotten Tomatoes
Submit search Movies Tv shows RT App News Showtimes

Palo Alto

Play trailer Poster for Palo Alto R 2014 1h 37m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
70% Tomatometer 129 Reviews 49% Popcornmeter 10,000+ Ratings
A lack of parental guidance encourages teens in an affluent California town to rebel with substance abuse and casual sex.
Watch on Fandango Stream Now

Where to Watch

Palo Alto

Palo Alto

What to Know

Critics Consensus

A promising debut for director Gia Coppola, Palo Alto compensates for its drifting plot with solid performances and beautiful cinematography.

Read Critics Reviews

Critics Reviews

View More
Candice Frederick Reel Talk Online 09/02/2017
C
While all the young actors are committed to their characters (though none of them particularly stand out), this film will likely drown in its own nothingness as far more thought-provoking teenage fare continues to prevail. Go to Full Review
Laurence Phelan Independent (UK) 10/24/2014
4/5
The drama is scaled to just the right size: kids get into trouble or inadvisable situations, but there are no major melodramatics. We see them in their natural habitat. Go to Full Review
Mark Kermode Observer (UK) 10/19/2014
2/5
Another week, another glacial outing from the ever-expanding Coppola clan depicting the oh so beautiful emptiness of American teenage wildlife. Go to Full Review
Justin Micallef Vague Visages 02/06/2024
There's a pulsating heartbeat of an autobiographical nature within Palo Alto. Go to Full Review
Q.V. Hough Vague Visages 06/23/2023
I connected a lot more with Gia Coppola’s feature debut than I did with Boyhood. Palo Alto features a group of up-and-comers and captures the essence of youth without forcing it on the viewer. Go to Full Review
Robert Sims Lights Camera Austin 01/22/2022
Based on a collection of interconnected short stories that James Franco published in 2010, director Gia Coppola's high-school drama presents two portraits in teen angst that owe more to the worldview of Bret Easton Ellis than John Hughes. Go to Full Review
Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View More
orchid T @RT92736157 Aug 23 I watched this movie on August 16th and never planned on writing a public review but just wow. This movie was so raw and usually I hate movies which such gross and realistic storylines. But this movie just spoke to me. It resonated with me a lot. There are so many disturbing scenes but they are done so well. The character Teddy reminds me of an old friend that I had back in middle school. Don’t even get me started on Fred, he is such an accurate representation of teenage boys today. I just can’t with this movie. It’s so raw and realistic. I hate it for the sadness it makes me feel but I love it for the realism. Never have I ever seen a movie like this. - Orchid See more Michael A @Kinich61 Aug 12 The discrepancy between the tomato and popcorn meters is odd. Great screenplay, directing, and acting! See more Milo J @RT57384297 Aug 2 Only seem to what’s it cause of its aesthetically pleasing scenes and camera shots. Giving 2 stars cause the only good thing was the camera shots. See more MZ X @RT29288367 Nov 24 Worthless garbage, the most painfully boring coming of age movie ever made. It looks like a poorly edited trailer for an hour and half; disjointed, disconnected drivel very very slowly paced and very poorly written. There’s zero depth to any of the characters, minimal dialogue and one of the most annoying people you could ever imagine in the obnoxious sidekick role. He was the WORST. I’m glad he finally got struck over the head with a bottle, easily the best scene of the whole film. Seemed like a high school film project made by morons who didn’t pass the class. See more Gareth v @geewah Sep 19 A visually stylish and occasionally haunting portrait of teen ennui, but too meandering to fully resonate. See more Stephen C @bob25009 07/12/2025 Success in 1 hour and 37 minutes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The USA grossed over $750,100.00!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! See more Read all reviews
Palo Alto

My Rating

Read More Read Less WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW POST RATING
Short Term 12 98% 92% Short Term 12 Watchlist Megalopolis 46% 34% Megalopolis Watchlist TRAILER for Megalopolis The Lesser Blessed 40% 58% The Lesser Blessed Watchlist Rhymes for Young Ghouls 88% 75% Rhymes for Young Ghouls Watchlist Tetro 72% 69% Tetro Watchlist Discover more movies and TV shows. View More

Movie Info

Synopsis A lack of parental guidance encourages teens in an affluent California town to rebel with substance abuse and casual sex.
Director
Gia Coppola
Producer
Sebastian Pardo, Adriana Rotaru, Miles Levy, Vince Jolivette
Screenwriter
Gia Coppola
Distributor
Tribeca Film
Production Co
American Zoetrope, RabbitBandini Productions
Rating
R (Drug and Alcohol Use|All Involving Teens|Pervasive Language|Strong Sexual Content)
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
May 9, 2014, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Dec 9, 2014
Box Office (Gross USA)
$750.1K
Runtime
1h 37m
Join The Newsletter Join The Newsletter Cookie Settings