Thelma and Louise. Intriguingly, a polemic artfully disguised as realism disguised deftly as sometimes caricature, and multi-genre dramedy - and vice-vice-vice-versa. It can make you think, at multiple layers, technical and normative. And Spike Lee's films for the breath of fresh air they deliver. Dog Day Afternoon. Missing. Romero. A lot of great movies inspire you to think differently about movies - and life - which in part defines their greatness. TV series similarly. Novels...
I've always struggled with movies as a medium compared to television. I'm a trilogy-of-books kind of guy, so it never surprised me that movies felt more like short stories while television gave me the time I wanted to spend with my favourite characters (who, of course, can overstay their welcome).
So while movies didn't get me here, LOST was the show that made me a media scholar - something about the way people engaged with the show, week-to-week, in the emerging online discourse is what held my attention (including various interactive paratexts and the constant public engagement of the showrunners), along with how the show seemed to be engaging with Big Questions. It led me to read thoughtful criticism from folks who were both critics AND scholars - I'm sure that exists in movie critic land, but it was TV critic land that got me to notice. And it's what got me to think about storytelling in a visual medium. It was (embarrassingly recently) only in the last 6-7 years that I realized that TV was a writer's medium (with the Showrunner holding a place of honour) compared to movies being a director's medium (it still shocks me that Hitchcock didn't write the scripts for his films, even if he was involved)! I think that says a lot about what features of visual storytelling appealed to me, at least initially. Today though, we have all of these TV auteurs who act, direct, and write all at once (from Fleabag to Atlanta to The OA) - so I can finally lean into film studies lit (instead of just media studies broadly and the emerging field of TV studies). But I still rant and rave about LOST all the time lol.
LOST was awesome and one of those shows that got both popular and academic attention. I can totally see how that could shift your perception of TV. For me and my parents (who I goaded to watch stuff with me), it was Daniel Knauf's 'Carnivale.' I'd say more but that could be a whole article in and of itself. Thanks for sharing!
For me it wasn't a movie, it was Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The TV show not necessarily the movie although I like it more than most fans. Maybe the closest thing to a movie which reminds me of your reaction to Mulholland Drive is The Crow. I can still basically speak it word for word along with the movie because I know it so well. But it wasn't until Buffy that I really wanted to dive deep into the characters, story and the behind the scenes.
Buffy, I think, was a formative text for a lot of people. I remember that I didn't really watch any genre television at all until I caught Buffy on TV when visiting my uncle. He was a big fan and convinced me to see it with him. I really liked it. That led to me getting into the spinoff Angel and then seeking out all sorts of genre shows.
For sure because it’s such a nuanced and thoughtful story that everyone can relate to. The challenge of growing up and struggling to understand the world. Angel doesn’t get enough credit, even among the community of fans. Mainly because of how it’s about being an adult.
So many TV shows have tried to recapture what Buffy did but have fallen short.
I totally get it. I love Lost Highway. It is, imo, the darkest and most terrifying film Lynch has ever made and is considerably more experimental and narratively loose than MD.
It really reminded me of this amazing poem by Sergei Esenin I read in school called 'The Dark Man,' which was all about a poet essentially having a conversation with a dark reflection of himself, who keeps criticizing him, his talent, love, and life.
Love 'The Third Man.' I thought of it for a long time as an Orson Welles movie, even though he only acted in it (and apparently didn't affect the dialogue). It's one of those works that you can see in hindsight was highly influential. I realized after watching it once that I'd previously seen an obscure Eric Roberts b-movie rip off its ending.
Welles drew me to it, but it led to me seeing Cotton as the superior actor. I love it's take on amorality. How do you confront someone who is neither good nor evil but just completely unconcerned with anyone but himself.
That scene where he reconsiders killing Martins when he realizes it's more beneficial to keep him around and buy him off is an all-timer because of how well it characterizes Lime.
Thelma and Louise. Intriguingly, a polemic artfully disguised as realism disguised deftly as sometimes caricature, and multi-genre dramedy - and vice-vice-vice-versa. It can make you think, at multiple layers, technical and normative. And Spike Lee's films for the breath of fresh air they deliver. Dog Day Afternoon. Missing. Romero. A lot of great movies inspire you to think differently about movies - and life - which in part defines their greatness. TV series similarly. Novels...
I've always struggled with movies as a medium compared to television. I'm a trilogy-of-books kind of guy, so it never surprised me that movies felt more like short stories while television gave me the time I wanted to spend with my favourite characters (who, of course, can overstay their welcome).
So while movies didn't get me here, LOST was the show that made me a media scholar - something about the way people engaged with the show, week-to-week, in the emerging online discourse is what held my attention (including various interactive paratexts and the constant public engagement of the showrunners), along with how the show seemed to be engaging with Big Questions. It led me to read thoughtful criticism from folks who were both critics AND scholars - I'm sure that exists in movie critic land, but it was TV critic land that got me to notice. And it's what got me to think about storytelling in a visual medium. It was (embarrassingly recently) only in the last 6-7 years that I realized that TV was a writer's medium (with the Showrunner holding a place of honour) compared to movies being a director's medium (it still shocks me that Hitchcock didn't write the scripts for his films, even if he was involved)! I think that says a lot about what features of visual storytelling appealed to me, at least initially. Today though, we have all of these TV auteurs who act, direct, and write all at once (from Fleabag to Atlanta to The OA) - so I can finally lean into film studies lit (instead of just media studies broadly and the emerging field of TV studies). But I still rant and rave about LOST all the time lol.
LOST was awesome and one of those shows that got both popular and academic attention. I can totally see how that could shift your perception of TV. For me and my parents (who I goaded to watch stuff with me), it was Daniel Knauf's 'Carnivale.' I'd say more but that could be a whole article in and of itself. Thanks for sharing!
For me it wasn't a movie, it was Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The TV show not necessarily the movie although I like it more than most fans. Maybe the closest thing to a movie which reminds me of your reaction to Mulholland Drive is The Crow. I can still basically speak it word for word along with the movie because I know it so well. But it wasn't until Buffy that I really wanted to dive deep into the characters, story and the behind the scenes.
Buffy, I think, was a formative text for a lot of people. I remember that I didn't really watch any genre television at all until I caught Buffy on TV when visiting my uncle. He was a big fan and convinced me to see it with him. I really liked it. That led to me getting into the spinoff Angel and then seeking out all sorts of genre shows.
For sure because it’s such a nuanced and thoughtful story that everyone can relate to. The challenge of growing up and struggling to understand the world. Angel doesn’t get enough credit, even among the community of fans. Mainly because of how it’s about being an adult.
So many TV shows have tried to recapture what Buffy did but have fallen short.
Funnily enough, I've had this same sort of feeling / experience (minus the film school part), but with Lost Highway instead.
I totally get it. I love Lost Highway. It is, imo, the darkest and most terrifying film Lynch has ever made and is considerably more experimental and narratively loose than MD.
It really reminded me of this amazing poem by Sergei Esenin I read in school called 'The Dark Man,' which was all about a poet essentially having a conversation with a dark reflection of himself, who keeps criticizing him, his talent, love, and life.
Very interesting... Going to look up this poem now!
I enjoyed it. Found it very surreal but liked all the parts. My favorite film is The Third Man and it definitely informs my world view
Love 'The Third Man.' I thought of it for a long time as an Orson Welles movie, even though he only acted in it (and apparently didn't affect the dialogue). It's one of those works that you can see in hindsight was highly influential. I realized after watching it once that I'd previously seen an obscure Eric Roberts b-movie rip off its ending.
Welles drew me to it, but it led to me seeing Cotton as the superior actor. I love it's take on amorality. How do you confront someone who is neither good nor evil but just completely unconcerned with anyone but himself.
That scene where he reconsiders killing Martins when he realizes it's more beneficial to keep him around and buy him off is an all-timer because of how well it characterizes Lime.