Even though such things are easier to see in hindsight, as I started to ramp up my moviewatching in 1996, I could definitely tell my tastes were getting expanded, and my horizons were broadening. Ironically, it began with a TV channel.
To this day, I do not remember the name of the cable channel that really led me down the path of supporting indie cinema with reckless abandon, but it felt like an early version of the pre-show that now shows in front of every movie we see at theatres. It wasn’t available for long, but it made a lasting impression. We had some basic cable offerings at the University dorms, and this was one of them. I started to watch it on my time out of class religiously, and it provided a road map for my moviewatching to come. Of course, there were bigger movies like “Ransom” and “101 Dalmations” and “Mars Attacks!” and “The Ghost and the Darkness” that were already on my radar, but the trailers that channel played helped guide me down a more independent track that I still follow now.
I wrote in my piece on the Oscars that independent cinema really seemed to have its strongest moment in the sun when it came to audiences this year. Even if none of the movies would make “The Blair Witch Project” or “Pulp Fiction” money, it felt as though they were in the consciousness of mainstream American audiences. The summer had critically acclaimed films such as “Lone Star”, “Trainspotting” and “Emma” break through, but this was the first Fall where I really noticed the “four quadrants” of the movie year take shape in my mind. By this time, I was reading Premiere and Entertainment Weekly and Rolling Stone regularly, so that definitely helped solidify those in my head, but the difference between the movies released not just in each quadrant, but each month, began to make me think about it more.
So what movies did this magical cable channel lead me to? Only some of the bigger critical successes of the year. This was also a year where, because I was reading those magazines, I became acutely aware of film festivals, and the lag time between festival debut and general release. That meant seeing critical reactions for “Big Night” and “Swingers” in the trailers, as well as on the posters when I would go to the art houses, which- living in Atlanta- I started to do more regularly. It wasn’t just indies, however, that received a bump for me, though; I don’t know if my interest for Spike Lee’s “Get on the Bus” or Baz Luhrmann’s “Romeo + Juliet” would have been as high if I hadn’t seen the trailers as much as I did there. Two movies, however, saw their stock rise exponentially, and they’ve remained favorites of mine from the year.
Seeing Steve Buscemi in a movie after “Fargo” meant there was already an element of it that I was going to be a fan of. Him being behind the camera, as well as the star, for “Trees Lounge” had me curious. Because of Mel Gibson’s work as director, among others, the idea of seeing actors direct was intriguing to me, even when it was something as low-key as this comedy-drama from the guy who gets run through the woodchipper in “Fargo”. Positive reviews certainly helped, but watching the film, I fell in love with it. Twenty five years later, I truthfully couldn’t tell you what it was about “Trees Lounge” that landed with me at 19, because there really isn’t anything about Tommy, Buscemi’s main character, that feels like me at the time. I’ve never been a drinker, so the idea of connecting with a main character whose life feels most in tune when he’s at a local bar was as foreign to me as possible. He was always struggling for work, but I was starting college- that doesn’t really feel like it. But maybe, I was more like Tommy than I thought. You see, Tommy is a bit lost, latching on to what he can- like his Uncle Al’s ice cream truck or Chloe Sevigny’s character (his niece)- to feel like he has some meaning in his life, and as an introvert, that might have been what connected with me in 1997, even if I couldn’t verbalize it. As with the titular bar for Tommy, “Trees Lounge” is just a place where I feel comfortable, even if life feels like a struggle.
With Dan Ireland’s “The Whole Wide World”, I knew exactly why it connected with me, and as the years have gone on, that connection has shifted and solidified into something deeper. The film is inspired by the true story of Novalyne Price, a teacher in a Texas town, and her relationship with Robert E. Howard, the pulp author behind Conan the Barbarian. In college, as I began composing, I internalized the idea of the “tortured artist” this film sometimes traffics in with regards to Howard, played by Vincent D’Onofrio in maybe his best performance. The film does not exploit Howard’s mindset for cheap sentiment, however; the film is based on Price’s memoirs, and her remembrances serve him well. While there’s certainly a romantic angle the film seems to work toward between Howard and Price, played by Renee Zellweger, the film shows how much of a dead-end romance is between the two, and then carries us along with the tumultuous friendship between the two. Howard is committed to two things in his life- his work and his ill mother; the road he walks beyond that, he walks alone. Novalyne is wanting to be a writer, and is interested in Howard’s thoughts, but as they talk, she reveals the limits of her talents in what stories interest her, and her ability to inspire her students is where her heart lies. The fates of both are inevitable; without one of Howard’s commitments, the other one feels rootless. When Price learns what happens, it’s one of the most heartbreaking scenes I’ve ever seen, but as she returns home, she realizes that the memories of him will endure, and help guide her in her life.
Over the years, “The Whole Wide World” has reminded me most of my friendship with a college friend I met in 1998. We ended up working on several projects together, and she helped me come out of my shell. In the process, she helped me steer away from the mindset Howard has in this film, assuring I wouldn’t meet his fate. That connection is part of why it is one of my very favorite films of all-time now. I’m forever grateful for my friend for all that she’s done to help me grow up. I’ll always be grateful for that obscure movie channel my freshman year for helping me discover this film.
1996: The Movies and Me
1996 Movies: Kidnapping Audiences
1996 Movies: The “Indie” Oscars
1996 Movies: A Summer to Remember
Viva La Resistance!
Brian Skutle
www.sonic-cinema.com
