Over the past week, I've been watching movies non-stop, partly because there are no rules over winter break and I love movies, partly to help cope with the fact that spending the holidays alone stings, but mostly because I've found a new something to obsess over (apologies to Jim Jarmusch and my collection of pet rocks): Mark Duplass. As an actor, you'd probably recognize him from the fantasy football-based show The League, or from his newest movie with Elizabeth Moss, The One I Love. As a screenwriter, you may remember offbeat comedies like Cyrus or Jeff, Who Lives at Home, and as a director, his newest work is premiering January 11th on HBO in the form of a TV show called Togetherness. Oh and did I mention he's the lead singer of an indie rock band? Duplass does it all, and he does it all so damnably well.
Despite the accomplishments listed above, I haven't brought up what most people would probably name as his biggest contribution to the film world. In 2005, with the release of The Puffy Chair, a story about a man moving a plush armchair cross-country, Mark and Jay Duplass (along with Andrew Bujalski) put their name on a new aesthetic that would later be called "mumblecore." If we look at past trends, it's safe to say that cinema history does not appreciate new waves. But the strange thing about mumblecore is that, in essence, it is a no-wave: a movement without movement. There is not much progress to show for it. Filmmakers have been making cheap, relatable movies since the invention of affordably priced video cameras, but the group of filmmakers associated with this aesthetic take low-budget and realism to new heights. The main components of a mumblecore film are:
In the past few years, however, Mark Duplass has moved on from the movement (or lack thereof) that he helped to begin. He has good reason to want to distance himself from mumblecore. For one thing, unlike a lot of movies of their ilk, the Duplass brothers' films incorporate professional actors, and they've worked with studios. Fox Searchlight released their 2010 dark comedy Cyrus- Ridley Scott produced it and Jonah Hill and John C. Reilly starred in it- and Jeff, Who Lives at Home, stars Ed Helms and Jason Segel. More importantly though, their films offer emotional depths and nuanced characters that go beyond the simple navel-gazing that is associated with mumblecore.
And as for Mark's acting, he's willing to wear his heart on his sleeve in a way that doesn't feel saccharine, but candid and real. In his most layered performance to date, he plays eccentric supermarket worker/scientist Kenneth in 2012's Safety Not Guaranteed. He has a naive lovability to him one minute, and he's all too strange the next. There's a scene where he's sitting fireside with Aubrey Plaza (who plays Darius, his time traveling partner), and he pulls out a zither to play a song for the woman of his life when he's finally reunited with her. It's a rare scene, filled with what feels like real emotional power, and when he's done and apologizes, says he messed up a few parts, it's my favorite moment in the whole movie. I can't exactly explain why, but there is something undoubtedly real about the way Aubrey looks at him, his embarrassment, and the care put into the song.
Honestly, Mark's acting career is really starting to take off when you consider that he's been a lead character in two TV shows and two movies in the past year, and he's got some pretty interesting projects coming up. I can't wait to see what's next.
I really like his intensity. He's, like, no nonsense.
Despite the accomplishments listed above, I haven't brought up what most people would probably name as his biggest contribution to the film world. In 2005, with the release of The Puffy Chair, a story about a man moving a plush armchair cross-country, Mark and Jay Duplass (along with Andrew Bujalski) put their name on a new aesthetic that would later be called "mumblecore." If we look at past trends, it's safe to say that cinema history does not appreciate new waves. But the strange thing about mumblecore is that, in essence, it is a no-wave: a movement without movement. There is not much progress to show for it. Filmmakers have been making cheap, relatable movies since the invention of affordably priced video cameras, but the group of filmmakers associated with this aesthetic take low-budget and realism to new heights. The main components of a mumblecore film are:
- A cast of unprofessional or unknown actors
- Shot on prosumer grade cameras
- Shoestring budget
- Improvised script
- Focuses on personal relationships of people in their early to mid-twenties
In the past few years, however, Mark Duplass has moved on from the movement (or lack thereof) that he helped to begin. He has good reason to want to distance himself from mumblecore. For one thing, unlike a lot of movies of their ilk, the Duplass brothers' films incorporate professional actors, and they've worked with studios. Fox Searchlight released their 2010 dark comedy Cyrus- Ridley Scott produced it and Jonah Hill and John C. Reilly starred in it- and Jeff, Who Lives at Home, stars Ed Helms and Jason Segel. More importantly though, their films offer emotional depths and nuanced characters that go beyond the simple navel-gazing that is associated with mumblecore.
And as for Mark's acting, he's willing to wear his heart on his sleeve in a way that doesn't feel saccharine, but candid and real. In his most layered performance to date, he plays eccentric supermarket worker/scientist Kenneth in 2012's Safety Not Guaranteed. He has a naive lovability to him one minute, and he's all too strange the next. There's a scene where he's sitting fireside with Aubrey Plaza (who plays Darius, his time traveling partner), and he pulls out a zither to play a song for the woman of his life when he's finally reunited with her. It's a rare scene, filled with what feels like real emotional power, and when he's done and apologizes, says he messed up a few parts, it's my favorite moment in the whole movie. I can't exactly explain why, but there is something undoubtedly real about the way Aubrey looks at him, his embarrassment, and the care put into the song.
Honestly, Mark's acting career is really starting to take off when you consider that he's been a lead character in two TV shows and two movies in the past year, and he's got some pretty interesting projects coming up. I can't wait to see what's next.
I really like his intensity. He's, like, no nonsense.