The progression of my taste in movies (right to left): Django Unchained, Fight Club, The Dark Knight, The Big Lebowski, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Oldboy, Prisoners, Rushmore, American Beauty, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Apocalypse Now, Chinatown, Her, Where the Wild Things Are, Raging Bull, Magnolia, Stranger than Paradise, Nights of Cabiria, There Will Be Blood, Blue Velvet
As some of you know, I work at a film festival, and the other day my friends and I were reflecting on the interview process that started it all. Specifically one question: what was our favorite film? I remember that question specifically on the written questionnaire, because I'd definitely spent time thinking about it beforehand. So after many long, painstaking hours of thought, I decided on Django Unchained. Looking back exactly one year later, I cringe a little at that memory (I'd like to think I have at least slightly better taste now), but I haven't moved up too much. I think I'm in that area of "middlebrow" taste- where I don't thoroughly enjoy those films that are universally accepted as masterpieces, but I'm not a blockbuster junkie anymore, either. I like a range of movies that average out to be just below the main mainstream, and I think that's okay.
To more clearly show my progression in taste for movies, I made the above picture. At some point in time over this past year, each of these movies could be considered my favorite movie, and without looking at the caption, you could probably name them all. The more recent movies have the allure of being directed by notorious auteurs, they're visually and thematically attractive, but you wouldn't have to go to a hipster-ridden arthouse theater to find them playing. I am middlebrow because my tastes are perfectly conventional now. There is a general consensus that the people I like (Spike Jonze, David Lynch, PTA) make 'good' work. They might shoot for higher goals than your average summer blockbuster, but their work is nothing groundbreaking. It's often just a good story with good acting and a traditional narrative structure.
But while I consider my current taste level to be totally average, I think I have definitely elevated myself since last year. While I can still love and enjoy a film from Quentin Tarantino, most of his movies have lost their initial charm and are now reduced to a bloodbath of shallow masculinity that is fun in small doses, but it's not something I'd want to watch on a regular basis. Of course there is an audience for every director, but I find myself drawn more and more to middle-of-the-road directors that can still surprise me, but keep things real in every sense of that saying. And I don't mean any of this in an insulting way. I know most people interested in film aim to be part of the highbrow audience, but I hope that if you read this far it is because you identify in some way with this assessment. I don't think there is anything wrong with it. It takes hard work to be highbrow. There's not a ton of room to just watch a movie for pure enjoyment, not because you are appreciative of it as a piece of film or as a signifier of taste. And just because you're not highbrow doesn't mean you like total trash, either. You probably didn't see that Legend of Hercules movie. Or maybe you did, and you liked it. That's fine, too. Your favorite movie can be Mac and Me, and that's fine as long as you don't shit on other people for enjoying Transformers. It's a delicate balance, and I'll admit that I haven't achieved it yet. But I'm working on it, and I think everyone else should too.
And now we come to part two of the "which 'brow' are you?" experience. It's not just what you watch, but how you watch films that determines your sector. Let's take David Fincher for example, considering that his movie Gone Girl was the last film I watched. David Fincher makes films that can undoubtedly be called entertaining. He had no problem keeping the audience on the edge of their seat for Gone Girls' considerably long running time, and there is rarely any dead space in his films. I had no trouble at all convincing my friends to go see Gone Girl with me last weekend, but when I suggested we hit up Boyhood (again, for me) before it left theaters, there was radio silence. Most of my friends like David Fincher because of his ability to craft an entertaining story. That's why I like him too. But of course, I know that the thing that makes him a great director is his ability to handle nuances within the his characters and within his stories, his eye for cinematography, his editing, and his technical skills when it comes to actually shooting the film. I think this is all part of what defines what 'brow' you're in. You can enjoy films on a pure enjoyment level, or you can really delve into films and pick them apart to see what makes them tick. Then it doesn't really matter what you watch. Even the most mediocre of films will have some part worth analyzing. It's not bad to enjoy a film only on a story level, that's what they're for, but there is so much more behind that to be aware of is you choose.
It's okay if you don't understand a film the first time you see it, or even ever. Even the late, great Roger Ebert admitted that he didn't get movies all the time. You don't need to list your favorite filmmakers or movies like a password to get into someone's conversation or anyone's good book, and if you don't understand, ask questions.
To more clearly show my progression in taste for movies, I made the above picture. At some point in time over this past year, each of these movies could be considered my favorite movie, and without looking at the caption, you could probably name them all. The more recent movies have the allure of being directed by notorious auteurs, they're visually and thematically attractive, but you wouldn't have to go to a hipster-ridden arthouse theater to find them playing. I am middlebrow because my tastes are perfectly conventional now. There is a general consensus that the people I like (Spike Jonze, David Lynch, PTA) make 'good' work. They might shoot for higher goals than your average summer blockbuster, but their work is nothing groundbreaking. It's often just a good story with good acting and a traditional narrative structure.
But while I consider my current taste level to be totally average, I think I have definitely elevated myself since last year. While I can still love and enjoy a film from Quentin Tarantino, most of his movies have lost their initial charm and are now reduced to a bloodbath of shallow masculinity that is fun in small doses, but it's not something I'd want to watch on a regular basis. Of course there is an audience for every director, but I find myself drawn more and more to middle-of-the-road directors that can still surprise me, but keep things real in every sense of that saying. And I don't mean any of this in an insulting way. I know most people interested in film aim to be part of the highbrow audience, but I hope that if you read this far it is because you identify in some way with this assessment. I don't think there is anything wrong with it. It takes hard work to be highbrow. There's not a ton of room to just watch a movie for pure enjoyment, not because you are appreciative of it as a piece of film or as a signifier of taste. And just because you're not highbrow doesn't mean you like total trash, either. You probably didn't see that Legend of Hercules movie. Or maybe you did, and you liked it. That's fine, too. Your favorite movie can be Mac and Me, and that's fine as long as you don't shit on other people for enjoying Transformers. It's a delicate balance, and I'll admit that I haven't achieved it yet. But I'm working on it, and I think everyone else should too.
And now we come to part two of the "which 'brow' are you?" experience. It's not just what you watch, but how you watch films that determines your sector. Let's take David Fincher for example, considering that his movie Gone Girl was the last film I watched. David Fincher makes films that can undoubtedly be called entertaining. He had no problem keeping the audience on the edge of their seat for Gone Girls' considerably long running time, and there is rarely any dead space in his films. I had no trouble at all convincing my friends to go see Gone Girl with me last weekend, but when I suggested we hit up Boyhood (again, for me) before it left theaters, there was radio silence. Most of my friends like David Fincher because of his ability to craft an entertaining story. That's why I like him too. But of course, I know that the thing that makes him a great director is his ability to handle nuances within the his characters and within his stories, his eye for cinematography, his editing, and his technical skills when it comes to actually shooting the film. I think this is all part of what defines what 'brow' you're in. You can enjoy films on a pure enjoyment level, or you can really delve into films and pick them apart to see what makes them tick. Then it doesn't really matter what you watch. Even the most mediocre of films will have some part worth analyzing. It's not bad to enjoy a film only on a story level, that's what they're for, but there is so much more behind that to be aware of is you choose.
It's okay if you don't understand a film the first time you see it, or even ever. Even the late, great Roger Ebert admitted that he didn't get movies all the time. You don't need to list your favorite filmmakers or movies like a password to get into someone's conversation or anyone's good book, and if you don't understand, ask questions.