April 22, 2010

Slacker - 1991

Director: Richard Linklater
Writer: Richard Linklater
Starring: a cast of nobodies

"Uh, I don't do much really, I just read, and work here, and, uh, sleep and eat, and, uh, watch movies. " There is no plot to describe whatsoever.

Richard Linklater made a movie in the early 1990s with no plot, no stars, and only 163 cuts (most films have between 500 and 1000) for $23,000. Despite its nondescript quality, this film is AMAZING. Entirely dialogue-driven, it follows various eccentrics in Austin, Texas, each scene consisting of a short conversation about a quirky topic, then moving on to another group. Via Wiki: "The characters include...a miscreant who just steps off a bus, a UFO buff who insists the U.S. has been on the moon since the 1950s, a JFK conspiracy theorist, an elderly anarchist who befriends a man trying to burglarize his house, a serial television set collector and a woman trying to sell a Madonna pap smear." Kevin Smith has repeatedly said that this is the movie that inspired him to make Clerks, and it shows, although Clerks has slightly more plot and a lot more profanity. It's a shame Linklater ended up helming the Bad News Bears remake, but they're called "classics" for a reason. Everyone needs to see this as soon as possible.

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