Charlie, mainstream audiences are the morons who gave over a billion dollars to Minions and trash remakes. Your film will outlast the mass' incompitence.
Charlie I loved this movie I’ve watched it 10 times and it got me through a suicidal time of my life, to feel seen and understood. Every time I watch I crawl into that world that’s so sad and weird but comforting at the same time. Having a piece of art touch me like that started the process of digging myself out of depression and being interested in life again.
I always love his work. This one required some research, (I wasn’t familiar with Oklahoma) for me but once I knew what was happening, think it’s my favorite.
@@RustinChole do you think specifically watching Oklahoma helped you in understanding this movie? Cause I haven’t seen the musical and didn’t really feel the need to watch it to understand the movie to a large extent. I definitely don’t fully understand the movie though, as is expected by a Kaufman film.
@@DevyanshBahri no - but being familiar with the basic story beats, Judd’s character, the knife fight, and the song “lonely room” absolutely provided much needed context for the final act - in my experience. I don’t think there’s much in that movie to not understand, honestly. Once you know what’s happening it all makes perfect sense. It just requires some random, likely obscure to most people, pop culture knowledge without which it would seem much more abstract than it is. I have never, and likely will never watch Oklahoma. I just LOVE Kaufman - specifically ESOASM, Adaptation, Synechdoche New York, and I’m Thinking Of Ending Things. I don’t think Kaufman’s films have random unexplainable stuff in it. They just require full, phone turned off no talking attention, and repeated viewings. Absurdity? Sure. But things you aren’t meant to understand, I don’t take that away from his films, (or his book).
@@DevyanshBahri in fact - I often recommend people watch an explanation video first. Even having a basic understanding of what’s gonna happen doesn’t spoil the movie. Easily my favorite meditation on suicide I’ve yet seen on film. The first time I watched it I had no idea the woman was fictional, and that the title was a direct reference to the janitor contemplating suicide, I thought it was about the girlfriend thinking of ending the relationship. I didn’t even catch that Plimpton could hear his gf’s thoughts till I saw it the second time after an explanation video. I didn’t even make it to the second act the first time I watched it, cause I was so lost, and I knew CK has a narrative through line, I just couldn’t see it until I knew what to look for.🤷🏻♂️ Amazing film.
The way Boots talks about streaming and being able to do research while watching is super interesting. It is a new mode of spectatorship that is only possible in the streaming era. I do this myself but I've never thought about it in the way he described it. Fascinating stuff.
CT - especially given the number of literary references in this piece in particular. Charlie even said somewhere that some phrases that the characters speak are lifted from other sources, beyond what the characters expressly reference. I'm tempted to rewatch with the intent of googling notable phrases to see if they are quotes from elsewhere. I watched this film having already read a satisfactory resolution of the movie (I only watched because I understood the movied and liked the concept) So it was like my first viewing of the movie was what most people would get from their second viewing. It was less confusing, but knowing mostly what was happening made me appreciate all the more the crafting of the story. I might have been one of those viewers that walked away confused and unimpressed had I not known beforehand.
wow- what a treat to get to know a little bit about all these amazing people. Cinema is alive. I have so many threads to follow from this that my head is spinning!
This movie has so much in common with The Shining, and I love that Tamara brought in the play Buried Child. All have themes of the absurd, cyclical nature of the family system breaking down over time, with TIME also as a character, which also plays into the horror genre. Horror is cyclical in its nihilism & it’s absurd continuous acts of murder. Child abuse is also a central theme in everything mentioned above, and here’s something I’d like to throw out there: who else thinks The Janitor molested that girl with the “birthmark” at the Tulsi Town/shy girl he passes in the hall? That looked more like scrapes than a birthmark, and at the end Jake says, “He’s looking at us like a pervert! A look I’m very familiar with!” Sure, some might think it’s just a perception the mean girls & kids place on him at school. Jake or The Janitor is an unreliable narrator, so it could just be an urge, someone he thinks he could connect with, since they both seem invisible to everyone else. Who knows? All I know, is that I’ve seen this movie 17 times Ah yes, PS: The Yellow Wallpaper is also in here, too. The woman becoming an object of the house of his mind, or the fact that she’s wearing a floral dress, similar to his wallpaper. Come join us
I think Tamara Jenkins has it right comparing Kaufman's writing to Sam Shepherd plays. I recently re-watched Synecdoche too and wondered if he was inspired by La Turista, True West, or Buried Child. A kind of American surrealism.
Writing, editing and producing are HARD. Charlie did all three for this movie. In addition the way he tells the story is designed to stir up emotion, including some confusion. Some people do not appreciate that tension of the unknown. They want the director to 'tell the story' in a more standard way - exposition, tension, climax, resolution (usually with a twist). But it's beautiful (although painful for him) how Charlie leaves room inside the story for people to find their own experience of the movie. It's amazing to me how openly he solicits other peoples' views and feedback (I read that actors would give them their interpretation and he'd never correct them - he'd listen to their experience. Similarly I watched interviewers tell Charlie what he meant to say in his own movie - to his face. And Kauffman would listen intently. That's AMAZING! ) It's surprising to hear his comment at around the 20 min mark that despite all the feedback, he did not change the movie very much movie between the time that he wrote it and its release. The changes were as a result of feedback on the almost final product solicited from friends and advisors. So despite the constant feedback, it would seem that Kauffman DID have a clear version of what the movie should look like from the beginning.
This rocks I’d vastly prefer to listen to these brilliant people talk about the movie than somebody’s nephew at an entertainment outlet trying to build a career in Hollywood asking Charlie fatuous questions. 👍
I had the same impulse to watch 'Woman Under the Influence' as it was being discussed in I.T.O.E.T. but I didn't follow through, immediately. Did anyone else?
I relate very much to what Tamara was saying, the main reason I had trouble connecting with the film was the betrayal when the complex mind we had been living inside for at least the first half turned out to be some male construction. I was both disappointed by that turn and didn’t really buy it
@@JEEDUHCHRI I appreciate Kaufman’s looseness with the boundaries between his characters’ self-determination and their obvious constructed-ness, but it doesn’t make for an engaging film narrative IMO. I was invested in Buckley’s character and still aren’t willing to concede to her being merely a cerebral plaything.
@@guysimchony309 the female complex mind existing in a male complex mind is the construction of a male complex mind. Do you think that the janitor is not a complex mind? or does your enjoyment of the character rest on the ability to identify with a particular gender narrative?
Kaufman had said that one of most important things that he was working on for this film was turning the young woman’s character into a fully developed human being on her own though
I agree I was also thrown for a loop and initially denied the interpretation that she was a projection at all. but in a lot of Kaufman’s movies the boundaries between gender are flipped or gradient. Lots of transformation. I guess with this in mind and an expectation going in I didn’t find it disappointing but actually touching, real and indicative of Charlie’s mind.
Cool! Except the writing was the opposite of lazy and the only reason you could consider the storytelling “poor” is that you weren’t interested enough to pay attention. Which is fair, but you can’t shit on the director for your uninterest.
Charlie Kaufman boots Riley collab when
I love Charlie Kaufman !
Hi ! My name is Charlie Kaufman
I love the way everyone came together to support Charlie Kaufman during this round table.
This my dream blunt rotation
Thank GOD I'm Thinking Of Ending Things isn't mentioned in this video
Charlie, mainstream audiences are the morons who gave over a billion dollars to Minions and trash remakes. Your film will outlast the mass' incompitence.
OMG! just the presence of these people at roundtable is the most awesome thing in itself! ❤️
Charlie I loved this movie I’ve watched it 10 times and it got me through a suicidal time of my life, to feel seen and understood. Every time I watch I crawl into that world that’s so sad and weird but comforting at the same time. Having a piece of art touch me like that started the process of digging myself out of depression and being interested in life again.
The authenticity of Charlie Kaufman's work is so inspiring. He's making real human art in an industry that's mostly just interested in marketing.
I always love his work. This one required some research, (I wasn’t familiar with Oklahoma) for me but once I knew what was happening, think it’s my favorite.
@@RustinChole do you think specifically watching Oklahoma helped you in understanding this movie? Cause I haven’t seen the musical and didn’t really feel the need to watch it to understand the movie to a large extent. I definitely don’t fully understand the movie though, as is expected by a Kaufman film.
@@DevyanshBahri no - but being familiar with the basic story beats, Judd’s character, the knife fight, and the song “lonely room” absolutely provided much needed context for the final act - in my experience. I don’t think there’s much in that movie to not understand, honestly. Once you know what’s happening it all makes perfect sense. It just requires some random, likely obscure to most people, pop culture knowledge without which it would seem much more abstract than it is. I have never, and likely will never watch Oklahoma. I just LOVE Kaufman - specifically ESOASM, Adaptation, Synechdoche New York, and I’m Thinking Of Ending Things. I don’t think Kaufman’s films have random unexplainable stuff in it. They just require full, phone turned off no talking attention, and repeated viewings. Absurdity? Sure. But things you aren’t meant to understand, I don’t take that away from his films, (or his book).
@@DevyanshBahri in fact - I often recommend people watch an explanation video first. Even having a basic understanding of what’s gonna happen doesn’t spoil the movie. Easily my favorite meditation on suicide I’ve yet seen on film. The first time I watched it I had no idea the woman was fictional, and that the title was a direct reference to the janitor contemplating suicide, I thought it was about the girlfriend thinking of ending the relationship.
I didn’t even catch that Plimpton could hear his gf’s thoughts till I saw it the second time after an explanation video. I didn’t even make it to the second act the first time I watched it, cause I was so lost, and I knew CK has a narrative through line, I just couldn’t see it until I knew what to look for.🤷🏻♂️
Amazing film.
The way Boots talks about streaming and being able to do research while watching is super interesting. It is a new mode of spectatorship that is only possible in the streaming era. I do this myself but I've never thought about it in the way he described it. Fascinating stuff.
CT - especially given the number of literary references in this piece in particular.
Charlie even said somewhere that some phrases that the characters speak are lifted from other sources, beyond what the characters expressly reference.
I'm tempted to rewatch with the intent of googling notable phrases to see if they are quotes from elsewhere.
I watched this film having already read a satisfactory resolution of the movie (I only watched because I understood the movied and liked the concept)
So it was like my first viewing of the movie was what most people would get from their second viewing.
It was less confusing, but knowing mostly what was happening made me appreciate all the more the crafting of the story.
I might have been one of those viewers that walked away confused and unimpressed had I not known beforehand.
34:01 "Yogurt" Lanthimos 😂😂😂
Incredible group of directors.
Charlie this film is a genuine masterpiece! For certain my faviroute film of the year
Mine too! I’m still thinking about it!
@@megamoviez same. Can’t stop watching it. Every time I discover something I missed. Such an incredible accomplishment.
Charlie Kaufman is the greatest mind of this generation
Thank you I'll take it as an compliment
True
wow- what a treat to get to know a little bit about all these amazing people. Cinema is alive. I have so many threads to follow from this that my head is spinning!
Thank God for this. I could watch this call all day.
This movie has so much in common with The Shining, and I love that Tamara brought in the play Buried Child. All have themes of the absurd, cyclical nature of the family system breaking down over time, with TIME also as a character, which also plays into the horror genre. Horror is cyclical in its nihilism & it’s absurd continuous acts of murder. Child abuse is also a central theme in everything mentioned above, and here’s something I’d like to throw out there: who else thinks The Janitor molested that girl with the “birthmark” at the Tulsi Town/shy girl he passes in the hall? That looked more like scrapes than a birthmark, and at the end Jake says, “He’s looking at us like a pervert! A look I’m very familiar with!” Sure, some might think it’s just a perception the mean girls & kids place on him at school. Jake or The Janitor is an unreliable narrator, so it could just be an urge, someone he thinks he could connect with, since they both seem invisible to everyone else. Who knows? All I know, is that I’ve seen this movie 17 times
Ah yes, PS: The Yellow Wallpaper is also in here, too. The woman becoming an object of the house of his mind, or the fact that she’s wearing a floral dress, similar to his wallpaper. Come join us
I think Tamara Jenkins has it right comparing Kaufman's writing to Sam Shepherd plays. I recently re-watched Synecdoche too and wondered if he was inspired by La Turista, True West, or Buried Child. A kind of American surrealism.
Holy shit that summary around 7:00 really described something about Kaufman that I haven't been able to express
Writing, editing and producing are HARD. Charlie did all three for this movie.
In addition the way he tells the story is designed to stir up emotion, including some confusion. Some people do not appreciate that tension of the unknown. They want the director to 'tell the story' in a more standard way - exposition, tension, climax, resolution (usually with a twist).
But it's beautiful (although painful for him) how Charlie leaves room inside the story for people to find their own experience of the movie. It's amazing to me how openly he solicits other peoples' views and feedback (I read that actors would give them their interpretation and he'd never correct them - he'd listen to their experience. Similarly I watched interviewers tell Charlie what he meant to say in his own movie - to his face. And Kauffman would listen intently. That's AMAZING! )
It's surprising to hear his comment at around the 20 min mark that despite all the feedback, he did not change the movie very much movie between the time that he wrote it and its release. The changes were as a result of feedback on the almost final product solicited from friends and advisors. So despite the constant feedback, it would seem that Kauffman DID have a clear version of what the movie should look like from the beginning.
Actually he’s not credited as an editor on this movie
Thanks for pulling me off of the ledge in 2020, Charlie.
I hope this becomes a series with different films. More please!
3 of my favorite moviemakers in a call, amazing!
Who are those?
If I had to guess: Kaufman, Linklater, and Lanthimos, but I could also just be listing my top 3 of the bunch
David Ehrlich, one of the books on Charlie Kaufman’s wall, and Boots Riley’s glorious sideburns.
I second that I could have watched this conversation for hours.
can't believe this has been viewed less than 6000 times. what a great interview.
goated convo. read antkind twice. kaufman is a special mind.
Great roundtable, so fascinating to listen to! I love to hear filmmakers heap praise on each other like this.
This was a delightful conversation amd I would love to see these people all together again
This rocks I’d vastly prefer to listen to these brilliant people talk about the movie than somebody’s nephew at an entertainment outlet trying to build a career in Hollywood asking Charlie fatuous questions. 👍
It’s is my favorite movie of all time mr. Kaufman if that helps at all lol
Seeing Linklater trying to get a word in in the beginning is killing me.
I'm thinking of ending things was unlike any movie I'd ever seen
This is a murderers row line up!!!!!
High praise from Linklater! Didn't even know this was out. Definitely watching it! Great talk.
Charlie rocking a Wellington brewery shirt? Cheers from Canada 🍻
Fascinating conversation!
Wow, what an amazing discussion. Thank you guys. This movie is, by the way, excellent in so many ways.
This deserves more attention
Charlie Kaufman es Dios
Y se sale con la suya.
This is the best movie of the year! I’m still thinking about it. Excellent discussion with all these cinema masters!
NOICE
That ending got me tear up
This was a great roundtable interview, but I'm kind of sad that Yorgos didn't get to answer the last question. It felt like it got rushed at the end.
"I DON'T WANNA LIVE IN A WAREHOUSE", I was living just to hear that line
What if we all trashed the movie in the comments regardless of our actual opinions
I just watched it. It was really good. I recommended it to many people. Amazed that you start off about some critics.
❤️
Loved this! Hope you guys do more round tables like this!
Please do more of these for other films!!
I had the same impulse to watch 'Woman Under the Influence' as it was being discussed in I.T.O.E.T. but I didn't follow through, immediately. Did anyone else?
Well the movie basically ended right before that monologue, so I understand that instinct.
Woman Under the Influence is a pretty amazing film.
If you see it I recommend you follow it up with " Mikey and Nicky "
I want that shirt
Charlie's shirt? Look up Wellington brewery up here in Canada!
I relate very much to what Tamara was saying, the main reason I had trouble connecting with the film was the betrayal when the complex mind we had been living inside for at least the first half turned out to be some male construction. I was both disappointed by that turn and didn’t really buy it
But did you buy it before the realization?
Because on the first level, the complex mind we were living inside was a construction of Kaufman’s.
@@JEEDUHCHRI I appreciate Kaufman’s looseness with the boundaries between his characters’ self-determination and their obvious constructed-ness, but it doesn’t make for an engaging film narrative IMO. I was invested in Buckley’s character and still aren’t willing to concede to her being merely a cerebral plaything.
@@guysimchony309 the female complex mind existing in a male complex mind is the construction of a male complex mind. Do you think that the janitor is not a complex mind? or does your enjoyment of the character rest on the ability to identify with a particular gender narrative?
Kaufman had said that one of most important things that he was working on for this film was turning the young woman’s character into a fully developed human being on her own though
I agree I was also thrown for a loop and initially denied the interpretation that she was a projection at all. but in a lot of Kaufman’s movies the boundaries between gender are flipped or gradient. Lots of transformation. I guess with this in mind and an expectation going in I didn’t find it disappointing but actually touching, real and indicative of Charlie’s mind.
the "shut the fuck up Richard Linklater" challenge
Who invited Linklater?
What about Larry elder's documentary Uncle Tom, it's a fabulous documentary on how black people can change their mindset and be successful anywhere!
Does Yorgos have a corded phone in the back?
This movie was horrible. Lazy writing and poor story telling.
Cool! Except the writing was the opposite of lazy and the only reason you could consider the storytelling “poor” is that you weren’t interested enough to pay attention. Which is fair, but you can’t shit on the director for your uninterest.