Say no more!
I know the ScreenAnarchy reader base knows a fair few fans of genrefilms, so I assume the following situation will sound pretty familiar. You have just watched a very good film. Maybe it wasn't truly original, maybe it carried its influences a little too boldly, but nevertheless it was good and made a couple of worthwhile efforts at being different. So you set out to tell the world about this film. It takes about 2 or 3 replies before the word influence enters the discussion, about 3 more before someone start shouting rip-off. Ah yes, how quickly your enthusiasm fades in the light of these remarks.
And so I though this week's ScreenAnarchy-O-Meter could be about directors or films that have been referenced one time too many. Not that I will deny any of the influences mentioned further along my list, but even influences have their limits. When a director like Tsukamoto says he is influenced by Kurosawa's lighting techniques I won't doubt his sincerity. Still, I fail to recognize any of it in his films, let alone find enough ground to compare the two. Anyway, as any Ritchie fan will know, sometimes enough is enough, and you just can't bear to hear any more Tarantino rip-off arguments. So after the break I'm presenting a list of 5 films/directors that are somewhat overused when discussing influences.
David Lynch
Don't get me wrong, I'm a big Lynch fan. Not his biggest fan ever, but there are plenty of his films I can really appreciate. Eraserhead, Rabbits, Inland Empire and Mulholland Drive all rank high on my list of favorite movies. Still, I do get tired sometimes of his name popping up whenever a film is discussed that's even remotely vague. Lynch didn't invent vague. Also, there are many different kinds of vague and most importantly, Lynch has such a disctinctive style that calling a film Lynch-like should be done with at least some care. But whenever a plot ventures into dreamy, less linear or blurry territory, Lynch's name is always just around the corner. Worst victim: Reconstruction.
Blair Witch Project
No two ways about it, Blair Witch Project left a permanent mark on film history. It will always be the film that introduced that fake-amateuristic "first person" style of camera work to the big audience. Not too long ago that style found some following with two other high profile films. Both [REC] and Cloverfield applied the same style to put the audience right inside the action (and they both succeeded pretty well I thought). Of course it didn't take long before people to start calling it BWP rip-offs. It's an interesting case which lays down the question when exactly a style becomes accepted enough to start using it without being called a rip-off. Chances are the camera work of your favorite film isn't really all that innovative either. Victim tag: [RE.C] and Cloverfield
Texas Chainsaw Massacre
The horror genre isn't the most innovative to begin with, but it certainly is one of the biggest segments to invoke genre and cult following. 9 out of 10 horror films are exactly like a dozen titles before, yet even in the horror genre there are a bunch of titles which are often referenced. I could just as well have picked Romero's Night of the Living Dead, or Carpenter's Haloween, but since I'm a pretty big fan of fucked up film families, Texas Chainsaw Massacre was sure to make my list. I do appreciate how it sets some standards and launched the idea, but setting aside the nice ending, I find the remainder of the film pretty bland. So I don't need to be reminded every time there's a horror film released featuring some strange family. Most recent victim: Frontière(s).
Deliverance
Many people like this Boorman film, for me it was nothing more than a rather boring adventure raft flick with two decent scenes. The little musical intermezzo being the most impressive of the two. It's not the first film where I fail to see the genius that hords of other people do, but when Fabrice du Welz arose to the scene I quickly became very bored with the Boorman talk, even though Du Welz himself acknowledged the influence of Deliverance. It's easy to spot the common ground between Calvaire and Deliverance, but it's even easier to spot the differences. When people started dropping Boorman's name again with the release of Vinyan, I was completely puzzled though. Human victim: Fabrice du Welz.
Blade Runner
Blade Runner is not a bad film. I really liked the first half, even enjoyed the visual designs, though blinking once in a while to black out the 80s cheesyness. I found the second half a lot less interesting, turning the film into a boring catch-the-baddy story featuring a less than charismatic bad guy. So why is it in the list? Simple. If you know my favorite director is Mamoru Oshii (Ghost in the Shell) it's not hard to figure out why I am dead tired of seeing the name Blade Runner pop up. It's not even like Blade Runner has such an original story, and the points where it does score Oshii obliterates the film on every level.
