mumblecore hits the mainstream

[resk]

Last night I saw Cyrus. And it was good. It was very funny. In fact, it was better than any mumblecore movie I've ever seen. And I've seen a few:

Funny Ha Ha
The Puffy Chair
Mutual Appreciation
LOL
Baghead
Humpday

Never seen any of these movies? Never even heard of them? No idea what mumblecore is? Well, you're not missing much. Here's a link and

Comments

[ozy_y2k]

GODDAMMIT I AM SO SICK OF SHAKY-CAM INDIE MOVIES ABOUT SELF-ABSORBED TWENTYSOMETHINGS STARRING FILM STOODENT INTERNS WHO CAN'T ACT.

I mean, I'll give CYRUS (and BAGHEAD) a chance, but after suffering mightily through unwatchable navel-gazy indie crap like LOVE AND OTHER CATASTROPHES (which features mumbling! And Australian accents!) and LOST AND DELIRIOUS (which features cheesy declamatory poetry! And lesbians!), I am ready to stab any twentysomething wannabe-"deep" director who crosses my path.

[resk]

after suffering mightily through unwatchable navel-gazy indie crap like LOVE AND OTHER CATASTROPHES (which features mumbling! And Australian accents!) and LOST AND DELIRIOUS (which features cheesy declamatory poetry! And lesbians!), I am ready to stab any twentysomething wannabe-"deep" director who crosses my path.

You can't fool me. You were just as likely to stab them before you saw those movies.

[ozy_y2k]

Point.

[tonycaselli]

Just my two cents: I liked the performances, especially Marisa Tomei, but I really did not enjoy most of the film. I don't know the rest of the mumblecore films you mentioned ( LOVE that name!), so I can't compare how it was to them, but I really thought the director/screenwriter were off with this one - I thougt it was really predictable, and just hated the pacing. That being said, I really liked the Tomei/Reilly relationship! I may have to look up some of the other films you mentioned though - any recommendations?

[resk]

Well, if you and I don't see eye to eye on Cyrus, I'm not sure how a recommendation from me would work compatibility-wise regarding the other mumblecore movies I've seen. But I can give you brief synopses of the ones I liked:

Baghead -- Four friends go to a cabin in the woods for a weekend to write a screenplay. One of them dreams about a psycho with a paper bag on his head. The rest of the weekend . . . . This is my favorite of the non-mainstream mumblecore films.

Humpday -- Two hetero college pals, one married and one much more bohemian, drunkenly declare that the most shocking thing they could do for a Seattle film fest is to have sex with each other.

The Puffy Chair -- A guy, his girlfriend, and his brother go on a road trip to get a chair his Dad used to love when they were growing up. Hijinks ensue. There's a lotta good stuff here, but overall, this is marginal for me because the girlfriend character is so incredibly extremely annoying.

[k_sui]

The Duplass Brothers were just on the greatest-podcast-ever-that-I-cannot-recommend-enough-to-anyone-who-has-even-a-passing-interest-in-television-or-movies:

http://www.kcrw.com/etc/programs/tb

Honest to God, it's flipping fantastic. Intelligent, non-rah rah talk about Hollywood works without snark or sensationalism. It makes Hollywood look mildly grown-up. Every Monday, I spend some quality time with Kim Masters and John Horn. Whenever they're late in uploading to iTunes and I can't get it for my Monday drive to work, it's like Christmas never happened.

Anyway, I need to see Cyrus because, let's face it, John C. is a criminally underrated actor. Your recommendation pushes it over the top.

[darness]

I never knew there was a word for this genre! And to think I've been watching it for the past ten years. I loved Baghead and Humpday, and have been meaning to check out Cyrus. Thanks for the tip.