My biggest niggle with the entire film industry at the mo' is that indie films have now become nothing more than a genre. Films like Little Miss Sunshine aren't indie films, not by any stretch of the imagination. They're atypical Hollywood films filmed in a slow, ponderous style with lots of wide, meaningful shots and quirky characters.

The very worst kind of indie film are those like Junebug. Those that say fucking nothing but use that same "indie style" with character actors and those same long, lingering Altman-esque shots to pretend as though they're profound, when, in reality, they're just boring, plot-less skidmarks with dreams of Sundance glory.

Essentially, if you want to make your own modern indie flick follow the following criteria:

1) Get the backing of a major studio's independent arm by writing a script that takes tired plots and/or convenions but adds mopy characters, pretentious dialogue and long silences.

2) Cast major Hollywood actors looking to up their indie cred by appearing in a big studio's indie branch's film for a cut price and promise them the Oscars will come knocking.

3) Film the whole thing as though its the most profound thing anyone will ever see, even though everyone involved knows it's boring, overlong, clichéd and trite.

4) Submit to Sundance.

5) Watch the accolades and awards roll in, while the rest of the world goes - "what the fuck?"

Once again, the main source of my hatred lies with Junebug... but nearly every new indie film that comes out has a similar structure and style. I blame Wes fucking Anderson.

btw moviedude, i put the brave one in the indie forum because 1. people who actually know/like jordan post there and 2. it wouldn't get squashed as quickly.

it's definitely not indie, but look at the stuff being discussed in cinemania.... it isn't exactly the best spot to put a topic on a jordan film.... not unless i want to see it quickly forgotten.

it's all semantics, anyway. there are good movies and there are bad movies.

Snrub is spot on.


Of course... but I'm saying (in a confusing, round about way) that all of the indie stuff has become just as predictable and formulaic is the teen slasher flicks. And on top of that it's worse because even a bad teen slasher flick usually ends up pretty amusing.

this is true....

but loyal is spot on.

In my book, limited-release studio "art" films have always trumped independent ones. Can't top stuff like Babel (hate me, all-y'all-bitches) and Little Miss Sunshine.

Lesbian Eskimos? Sign me up.

I wonder who should direct it. Egoyan maybe.

Zack Snyder.

We can have animated Lesbian Eskimos with great CGI blood flying as they maul each other.

Or something like that.

There is some seriously stupid shit being said in this thread.

I think a lot of people want to agree with add-rock, it's no mystery that he's many people's favorite poster. Either way though makeshift please please please see Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon. It may require you driving up to Portland to the Fox Tower but I'll give you your money back if you don't think it's pretty damn great.

What a depressing thought.

Coming from you, that's a moral encouragement.

*Train of thinking puke*

Yup this is an epic battle between Pretentious Bastard Anderoo and Ciniplex Popcorn Anderoo.

For years the Pretentious Bastard held sway beating the Ciniplex swine with the mallet of indie excellence. But a barren period struck and suddenly the indie mallets were made of the weak shitty material found on counterfeit trainers from Malaysia.

So now Ciniplex Anderoo rules the roost and Pretentious Bastard Anderoo is in serious pain.

Are we to take this as a cry for help? Should we all sabotage the Popcorn seat fillers so it may live again. Either way my mild interest is held, for pretentious Bastard Anderoo is an excellent piece of readable fodder that would be tragic to lose. The idea of him being forced to hyper-analyze the latest Michael Bay movie would be horrific, akin to Oscar Wilde cast onto the streets of Paris.

*serious tone enabled*

Yes indie cinema is going thru a bad patch at the moment but hey thats life, there are highs and lows in everything so hope for juicy goodness around the corner. Snrubs post would be the best default reason for the current level of crud.

I actually think that all people in this forum are capable. My rant didn't have to do with people's taste in movies, I'm attacking the films themselves.


Wes Anderson does rock. But he also comes from a time when indies were better (as I acknowledged).

Michael Bay speaks to me as a man. A MAN.

Michael Bay makes movies like someone driving down the freeway at 190mph while snorting coke off the half-dead hooker in the passenger seat while making high powered Hollywood deals on his Blackberry. And that is AWESOME. "Shia LeBoooff or whatever's in my movie? Who gives a fuck, I'm most concerned with the cost of rocket fuel that we need to fucking blow up on this airstrip..."

My current personality is like... remember when U2 had The Joshua Tree and it was all about the environment then they went away for awhile and went all Gandalf the White and did Achtung Baby which was really a dip into a the world of massive excess and such. Sure it was ironic but then they ACTUALLY DID become excessive. I aim for that now.

Indie-by-numbers strikes again:

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Diggers - Starring Paul Rudd - It's Little Miss Sunshine by way of Garden State with a touch of Junebug and kill me now!

I HATE Wes Anderson, his movies are quirky for the sake of quirky, and boring as fuck.

There's also "Everything's Gone Green" recently posted in the foreign/indie forum...

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Honestly I'm probably never going to come across or rent these movies in my local store, so it doesn't bother me. Though more and more I see where the original complaint is coming from.