Richard Linklater films (1 Viewer)

[SammyPinski]

Hi. I recently saw Waking Life (on dvd) and I absolutely loved it. I would like to familiarize myself with other Richard Linklater films, but the one other one I have seen, Dazed and Confused, was very different from Waking Life, and not nearly as good. So based on my opinion of those two, can you suggest where to start? Here’s the list of his directing that I pulled off of IMDB.

Director – filmography

Tape (2001)
Waking Life (2001)
Newton Boys, The (1998)
SubUrbia (1996)
... aka subUrbi@ (1996)
Before Sunrise (1995)
Dazed and Confused (1993)
Slacker (1991)
It's Impossible to Learn to Plow by Reading Books (1988)


TIA!
Sammy

 

[Rich Malloy]

I like "Dazed" a lot (might have something to do with growing up in Tx), but hands-down the most similar Linklater film to "Waking Life" is his first: the great indie-classic "Slacker" (not to be confused with the dreadful "Slackers" of last year).

Next, you should probably check out "Before Sunrise". Julie Delpy and Ethan Hawke reprise their roles from this movie in "Waking Life", as do many other Linklater characters from films past (the main character in "Waking" is from "Dazed", and many of the other characters/real persons he meets first appear in "Slacker", etc.).

My favorite Linklaters (in order):
Waking Life
Slacker
Before Sunrise
Dazed and Confused
Tape (a one-act drama shot in a single room on DV.)

(Not as big a fan of "The Newton Boys" or "Suburbia".)

 

[Mark Palermo]

Linkater's films from best to worst:

Dazed and Confused (1993)
Linklater's best film. One of the most accurate portraits of adolescence ever committed to film.

Before Sunrise (1995)
Many beautiful moments, heightened by lush Vienna setting. But it also encompasses the academic lecture-making which is the worst attribute of Linklater's films.

SubUrbia (1996)
Clearly this is a piece of theater, not cinema, but it's entertaining and with a good cast. Pretty depressing, though.

Waking Life (2001)
If it wasn't animated it might have been the most awful, slovenly piece of digital filmmaking to ever be released theatrically. The characters don't converse, they only berate each other (and the audience) with humorless Philosophy 101 lectures. BUT, the animation is stunning, and after a while you really feel like you've been pulled into a dream. Though I generally dislike the movie, it is unmissable.

The Newton Boys (1998)
Better than its reputation, though generally forgettable period-piece.

Slacker (1991)
Well, if you weren't annoyed by Waking Life...

Tape (2001)
Haven't seen it.

It's Impossible to Learn to Plow by Reading Books (1988)
Haven't seen it. Don't know if it's available.

Mark

 

[Scott Weinberg]

Sammy-
First off, welcome to the HTF.
Of Linklater's films, the only one I think is truly bad is The Newton Boys. You won't even be able to tell it's a Linklater flick. Just boring and predictable.
I really like Before Sunrise, although it took me 2 viewings to appreciate it.
I didn't like Waking Life at all, but I admit it was an interesting experiment.
The cool thing about Linklater is that he's sort of a Soderbergh Jr. He refuses to be pigeonholed into one genre, which is why you get a great teen comedy one minute, a period western the next (even if it is pretty awful), a romantic comedy the next...and then something like Waking Life.
I could dislike his next three movies and still be interested in his upcoming projects. You never know which direction he'll head in next.

 

[Shane Gralaw]

I blame Linklater for every random moron in Austin thinking that everyone wants to hear their crappy, half-baked philosophical ramblings. Thanks, Rick.

 

[Derek Miner]

I blame Linklater for every random moron in Austin thinking that everyone wants to hear their crappy, half-baked philosophical ramblings.

So there's no way that this was a case of art imitating life in Austin?
I can fully understand why some people are just going to hate Richard Linklater's movies. There is definitely a tendency toward pseudo-intellectual rambling, but at least there's something fresh and different about it. Depending on your tastes or personality, you might even find it compelling.
Slacker came out at a time when the theater chains were pushing indie films more into the mainstream. I managed to catch it in Sarasota, Florida, of all places. My experience parallels Kevin Smith's in the sense that seeing that movie changed my view of what movies were and who could make them. I loved the film. It showed me something I had never seen in a movie, and it was hillarious to boot.
When Dazed and Confused was being marketed, there was a lot of controversy over the drug, alcohol and language content of the film, and I think a lot of people got the impression it was going to be some wild teen exploitation movie. Having seen Slacker, I had my faith in Linklater, and I was rewarded with a very well-observed story and great characters. I loved how Linklater could get people to interact and make it seem so real.
As a huge fan of the first two features, I was very eager to see Before Sunrise. Personally, I never doubted the reality of those two people on screen. I loved every minute of it, but most of the audience at the sneak preview I attended felt cheated or bored.
SubUrbia is probably even more subjective. Because Linklater still delivered characters that acted like real people so convincingly, I liked it. And as a college student at the time, I thought the movie has a bit more resonance.
The Newton Boys isn't like Linklater's other movies at all. I'm not going to say whether this is good or bad, it's just different.
Tape is interesting, but it might suffer from living with only three characters (one of which doesn't show up until half-way through the story). Great performances, but this is the only one of Linklater's movies I found tedious (yes, more than SubUrbia and Waking Life). The payoff of the story is worth watching for, however.

 

[SammyPinski]

I had no idea that Julie Delpy and Ethan Hawke were reoccurring characters. I will definitely check out Slacker asap. Thanks for the information.

TIA!

 

[Rich Malloy]

Sammy, Ethan and Julie first showed up in "Before Sunrise"... not "Slacker"!... but "Slacker" is the most "Waking Life-ish" of all Linklater's other movies.

 

[Jeff Willy]

Dazed and Confused is a tremendous party film. When friends come over to have a drink before heading out for the night, it is one of the few films I always plop into the DVD. More great lines in that film than most comedies put together.

"You know what I like about these high school girls? I keep gettin' older and they stay the same age. Yes they do."
-Wooderson

Also, Parker Posey is at her best in this movie.