Richard Linklater is one of Hollywood's most acclaimed directors, famous for his cinematic slices of life often set during a 24-hour period. His filmography is impressive with only two debatable duds in Bad News Bears (2005) and The Newton Boys (1998), but he has only garnered two Oscar nominations, and neither are for directing. His newest and most buzzed-about film Boyhood seeks to change that, showcasing his ability to easily- but not lazily- weave a story.
What's (ironically) striking about Linklater's style is that there is no real rush or sense of urgency within them, even when the plot dictates that there is only one day for two young lovers to spend together. The current obsession with plot does not change the way he makes films. Every character onscreen, be they minor or main, is given the chance to establish a real connection with the audience. It's not far removed from real life, with each person in the background living a life equally as complex and valuable as the people in the foreground. Theme, metaphors, and overarching meanings are no doubt present in Linklater's work, but they are nuanced, not holding the director back from completing his mission: to present a good, untroubled story first and foremost. This is not to say his movies lack depth, but it can often be hard to pin down exactly what makes his films great. They're magical- touched by that special something that draws us all to films int he first place.
One of the many themes explored in Linklater's movies is that of the rough edges that come along with growing up. The three movies to exemplify this are Dazed and Confused (1993), Boyhood (2014), and surprisingly, School of Rock (2003). While often dismissed as a childish comedy, School of Rock offers both a look at changing with evolving times and a good time at the movies. But back to business. Dazed and Confused holds a romantic power to make you feel nostalgic for a time you never lived in, but what really makes it interesting is the way it handles characters. As previously mentioned, there are no small characters in a Linklater movie, but Dazed goes farther than that by fluidly switching protagonists throughout the movie. We start with Pink (or Randall, as his given name), the star football player, but in the end we are left with Mitch, the freshman. It's different from the rest of the class of dated, coming-of-age, high-school movies like The Breakfast Club and Ferris Bueller's Day Off in the fact that it sticks to the near-facts, drawing on real experiences to create something better than a fairy tale dotted with ridiculous plot points- an intimate 24 hours with teenagers we all knew, even if we knew them in different ways. Boyhood's magic is akin to this. There is an undertone of closed off sensitivity common in adolescent men, but it follows no bullet-point plot. There is no big reveal, no climactic kiss set to the swell of indie music, only the documented life of a character so real it's hard to let go of him when the film ends.
The Before Trilogy (Before Sunrise (1995), Before Sunset (2004), and Before Midnight (2013)), at its core, is a look at romance over time, despite the fact that there is little time in the movie's actual universe. Before Sunrise, the first film, follows an American man named Jesse and a French woman named Céline who serendipitously meet and spend one night together in Vienna. Nine years later, they see each other for the second time, which is what Before Sunset details. Finally, Before Midnight picks up nearly two decades later from their first encounter, where Jesse and Céline are married. There's no doubt that there's an air of idealistic romanticism present in the first two movies, but they're grounded in reality. The spontaneous nature of the film nearly adds to the realism- both characters have lives outside of the frame. But it'sBefore Midnight that really grounds the trilogy. The tone is decidedly different, focusing on the trouble of maintaining love rather than finding it. It's the deleted scene from any big romance flick that was supposed to be set right after the big kiss. Though this doesn't artistically add anything to the film, it is worth noting the truth behind the story. About 25 years ago, in 1989, Richard Linklater met a woman named Amy Lehrhaupt, and in a very Before Sunrise fashion, they spent one night together in Philadelphia before going their separate ways. Unlike Jesse and Céline, however, Richard and Amy swapped numbers. Unfortunately, they lost contact after a few messages back and forth, but Linklater never forgot her. Four years ago, he discovered that Lehrhaupt had died in a motorcycle accident in 1994, just one month before the fictional couple he had created after their encounter were to meet. Amy is honored in the end credits to Before Midnight.
The one movie that seems to stick out as being different from the others is A Scanner Darkly (2006). The visual style is incredibly graphic, as the film was animated using interpolated rotoscope, meaning animators took digital footage and traced over it frame by frame. This was also used in Waking Life (2001), but I believe that Scanner uses it more artfully to create a fitting mood for the piece. A Scanner Darkly takes place in a dystopian future where a drug addiction epidemic is taking place over the mysterious Substance D. Unlike Linklater's other films, Scanner follows a definite plot, and has a underlying message that becomes increasingly apparent as time goes on. It's this message that has drawn criticism, however. Critics dislike Linklater's injection of personal beliefs into the plot. In response to a particular scene in Boyhood where Mason, Mason Jr., and Samantha are handing out Obama signs to neighbors (and eventually steal a competing McCain sign), one online critic said: "It was a good film ruined by the reveal of nasty political affiliations." I disagree with this criticism, as all film is going to be projected through the lens of the director, and to varying extent, the writer. There is no such thing as an objective film, and just because you disagree with the specificities presented does not decrease the quality of the film overall.
It's easy to criticize the leisurely, at times rambling nature of Linklater's work, but I will always argue that it works to his advantage, creating a beautiful narrative experience that is so much different from anything else offered in the modern cinema.
What's (ironically) striking about Linklater's style is that there is no real rush or sense of urgency within them, even when the plot dictates that there is only one day for two young lovers to spend together. The current obsession with plot does not change the way he makes films. Every character onscreen, be they minor or main, is given the chance to establish a real connection with the audience. It's not far removed from real life, with each person in the background living a life equally as complex and valuable as the people in the foreground. Theme, metaphors, and overarching meanings are no doubt present in Linklater's work, but they are nuanced, not holding the director back from completing his mission: to present a good, untroubled story first and foremost. This is not to say his movies lack depth, but it can often be hard to pin down exactly what makes his films great. They're magical- touched by that special something that draws us all to films int he first place.
One of the many themes explored in Linklater's movies is that of the rough edges that come along with growing up. The three movies to exemplify this are Dazed and Confused (1993), Boyhood (2014), and surprisingly, School of Rock (2003). While often dismissed as a childish comedy, School of Rock offers both a look at changing with evolving times and a good time at the movies. But back to business. Dazed and Confused holds a romantic power to make you feel nostalgic for a time you never lived in, but what really makes it interesting is the way it handles characters. As previously mentioned, there are no small characters in a Linklater movie, but Dazed goes farther than that by fluidly switching protagonists throughout the movie. We start with Pink (or Randall, as his given name), the star football player, but in the end we are left with Mitch, the freshman. It's different from the rest of the class of dated, coming-of-age, high-school movies like The Breakfast Club and Ferris Bueller's Day Off in the fact that it sticks to the near-facts, drawing on real experiences to create something better than a fairy tale dotted with ridiculous plot points- an intimate 24 hours with teenagers we all knew, even if we knew them in different ways. Boyhood's magic is akin to this. There is an undertone of closed off sensitivity common in adolescent men, but it follows no bullet-point plot. There is no big reveal, no climactic kiss set to the swell of indie music, only the documented life of a character so real it's hard to let go of him when the film ends.
The Before Trilogy (Before Sunrise (1995), Before Sunset (2004), and Before Midnight (2013)), at its core, is a look at romance over time, despite the fact that there is little time in the movie's actual universe. Before Sunrise, the first film, follows an American man named Jesse and a French woman named Céline who serendipitously meet and spend one night together in Vienna. Nine years later, they see each other for the second time, which is what Before Sunset details. Finally, Before Midnight picks up nearly two decades later from their first encounter, where Jesse and Céline are married. There's no doubt that there's an air of idealistic romanticism present in the first two movies, but they're grounded in reality. The spontaneous nature of the film nearly adds to the realism- both characters have lives outside of the frame. But it'sBefore Midnight that really grounds the trilogy. The tone is decidedly different, focusing on the trouble of maintaining love rather than finding it. It's the deleted scene from any big romance flick that was supposed to be set right after the big kiss. Though this doesn't artistically add anything to the film, it is worth noting the truth behind the story. About 25 years ago, in 1989, Richard Linklater met a woman named Amy Lehrhaupt, and in a very Before Sunrise fashion, they spent one night together in Philadelphia before going their separate ways. Unlike Jesse and Céline, however, Richard and Amy swapped numbers. Unfortunately, they lost contact after a few messages back and forth, but Linklater never forgot her. Four years ago, he discovered that Lehrhaupt had died in a motorcycle accident in 1994, just one month before the fictional couple he had created after their encounter were to meet. Amy is honored in the end credits to Before Midnight.
The one movie that seems to stick out as being different from the others is A Scanner Darkly (2006). The visual style is incredibly graphic, as the film was animated using interpolated rotoscope, meaning animators took digital footage and traced over it frame by frame. This was also used in Waking Life (2001), but I believe that Scanner uses it more artfully to create a fitting mood for the piece. A Scanner Darkly takes place in a dystopian future where a drug addiction epidemic is taking place over the mysterious Substance D. Unlike Linklater's other films, Scanner follows a definite plot, and has a underlying message that becomes increasingly apparent as time goes on. It's this message that has drawn criticism, however. Critics dislike Linklater's injection of personal beliefs into the plot. In response to a particular scene in Boyhood where Mason, Mason Jr., and Samantha are handing out Obama signs to neighbors (and eventually steal a competing McCain sign), one online critic said: "It was a good film ruined by the reveal of nasty political affiliations." I disagree with this criticism, as all film is going to be projected through the lens of the director, and to varying extent, the writer. There is no such thing as an objective film, and just because you disagree with the specificities presented does not decrease the quality of the film overall.
It's easy to criticize the leisurely, at times rambling nature of Linklater's work, but I will always argue that it works to his advantage, creating a beautiful narrative experience that is so much different from anything else offered in the modern cinema.
Defining Linklater Moments:
This scene from A Scanner Darkly not only shows the aesthetic viewpoint of the film, but the clever writing, even when talking about something as seeming banal as a nine-speed bike.
The telephone scene from Before Sunrise is sweet and touching, without going into the saccharine territory that is almost a hallmark of the romance genre.
I apologize for the abbreviated nature of this clip, but there is no line more quoted from Dazed and Confused than Matthew McConaughey's drawling debut of "alright, alright, alright".