Adapted from the novel by John Green (“The Fault in Our Stars”), Paper Towns is likely best described as a coming-of-age road movie. Margo (Cara Delevingne), is the cool girl in school. Her neighbor and fellow high school senior Quentin (Nat Wolff), has been secretly in love with her since they were kids. Now, suddenly after the two have a night of adventure, Margo has left town, leaving behind several clues as to her whereabouts at her home, landmarks in town in town and Wikipedia.
Quentin who’s played it straight for his entire life, is determined to find her, convinced it’s an opportunity to begin a romance with Margo. Quentin embarks on a road trip with his buddies Ben (Austin Abrams) and Radar (Justice Smith). Also in tow are Radar’s girlfriend, Angela (Jaz Sinclair) and Margo’s best friend Lacey (Halston Sage). The one edict: the have to be back in time for prom. While the girls are along for the ride, the focus of Paper Towns is really on the three young men and the realization that the ‘dream girl’ is often just that.
From a larger perspective, Margo represents something that takes Quentin out of his carefully organized comfort zone and allows him and his friends to engage in one last adventure; a swan song of sorts to their adolescence. It’s when the teens hit the road that Paper Towns is at its most successful, screenwriters Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber (The Fault in Our Stars) allow the teens to truly open up and express their fears, dreams and even a few doubts. Exactly why Margo is was such a popular girl remains largely a mystery, but the road trip is where the real heartbeat of Paper Towns lives. Watching the boys riff on black Santa’s, Pokémon and even a well-placed Confederate Flag joke make for a fun watch.
Presented in the 2.40:1 aspect ratio, Fox has delivered a solid 1080p transfer. The image looks sharp and colors are appropriately crisp throughout. Contrast has been consistently maintained. While black levels can’t be considered inky, they are certainly adequate for the presentation.
Paper Towns‘ lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track does a solid job creating surround with Ryan Lott’s background score as well as various pop tunes. Dialogue is clean and clear. Lots of ambient environmental sounds during the road trio also come through nicely. There are no issues to report.
English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles are included.
The following extras are available:
- Audio Commentary with Director/Producer Jake Schreier and Novel Author John Green: The two men discuss a lot about turning the book into a film and give numerous shoutouts to the cast. Not the most informative commentary, but fans of the film might want to give it a listen.
- Deleted Scenes (HD, 3:54) four scenes may be watched individually or in montage and with or without commentary from Jake Schreier and John Green.
- Alternate Scene: “Shake It Off” (HD, 1:57)
- The Making of Paper Towns (HD, 21:09) An EPK featuring comments from director Jake Schreier, novel author/producer John Green, producers Wyck Godfrey and Isaac Klausner, screenwriters Scott Neustadter and Michael Weber, and stars Nat Wolff, Cara Delevingne, Austin Abrams, Justice Smith, Halston Sage, and Jaz Sinclair.
- John and Nat: Lightning Round (HD, 8:04) A quick fire Q&A, with the author lobbing questions at the star.
- John and Cara: Lightning Round (HD, 5:15) See above.
- Gag Reel (HD, 3:08)
- Van Acts (HD) Author John Green asks the cast a series of questions as he drives them around Charlotte, NC (which stands in for Orlando and New York in the film): their most memorable moments (1:04), the coming of age question (1:13), special road trips (1:15), their feelings about the van they’ve named Lurlene (1:02).
- Gallery (HD) Two dozen color stills and behind-the-scenes shots.
- DVD/Digital Copy/Ultraviolet: Disc and code sheet enclosed in the case.