Posterized: Where'd ya go with Richard Linklater?
Friday, August 16, 2019 at 7:20PM by Nathaniel R
Richard Linklater directing Cate Blanchett on the set of "Where'd Ya Go, Bernadette?"
Richard Linklater, who burst on to the indie film scene as the voice of the "Slacker" generation, has had quite an eclectic career all told. He's made 19 theatrically released narrative features of a wide variety of genres and been instrumental in launching new stars (Matthew McConaughey, Parker Posey, and Miranda Cosgrove) or adding significant lustre and awards notices to other filmographies (Ethan Hawke, Julie Delpy, Jack Black and Patricia Arquette chief among that list). The Austin-based filmmaker's latest is the adaptation of the best-seller Where'd Ya Go Bernadette. Cate Blanchett stars as the artist in self-imposed exile.
Linklater's films have ranged from perfect gems to little seen oddities, director for hire gigs, weird and funny larks, remakes, misfires, and ambitious personal projects. How many of them have you seen? All 19 posters are after the jump...
Act 1 - The Voice of Generation X
SLACKER (1990) - 2 Spirit Award Nominations
DAZED AND CONFUSED (1993)
BEFORE SUNRISE (1995)
Act 2 - Wait, what kind of filmmaker are you?
SUBURBIA (1996)
THE NEWTON BOYS (1998)
WAKING LIFE (2001)
TAPE (2001) - 1 Spirit Award nomination
SCHOOL OF ROCK (2003) - 1 Golden Globe nomination
BEFORE SUNSET (2004) - 1 Oscar nomination
Act 3 Mid-Career Wanderings
BAD NEWS BEARS (2005)
FAST FOOD NATION (2006)
A SCANNER DARKLY (2006)
ME AND ORSON WELLES (2008) -1 BAFTA nomination
BERNIE (2011) - 1 Golden Globe nomination
BEFORE MIDNIGHT (2013) - 1 Oscar nomination
Act 4 - Currently...
BOYHOOD (2014) - 6 Oscar nominations including Best Picture
EVERYBODY WANTS SOME!! (2016)
LAST FLAG FLYING (2017)
WHERE'D YOU GO, BERNADETTE (2019)
SO, HOW MANY IS IT? ARE ANY OF THEM TOTALLY PRECIOUS TO YOU?
Previously on this season of Posterized
- Zhang Yimou
- Keanu Reeves
- Dame Judi Dench
- Regina Hall
- Jim Jarmusch
- Julianne Moore
- Dino de Laurentiis
- Anne Hathaway
- Tom Holland
- Liza Minnelli
- Godzilla
Reader Comments (23)
Several, although I won't be seeing the new one. I can't stand turkey.
Should we be worried for Cate Blanchett? I really expected bigger things for her.
Of these, I love the films that were more tailored for children.
Favorite living director.
Perfect Gems:
Before Trilogy
Boyhood
Dazed and Confused
Everybody Wants Some!!
Fascinating Flicks:
Waking Life
Slacker
Suburbia
Tape
Hit or Miss:
School of Rock
A Scanner Darkly
Haven’t seen the rest.
14. Probably one of my favourite working directors
7, Dazed and Confused, The Before Trilogy, School of Rock, Fast Food Nation and Boyhood, and I at least liked six of them, three of them absolutely masterpieces of their style. But the one I didn't? Is most of the reason I kind of pass on Linklater unless the reviews are ecstatic.
1. Before Sunset (A+)
2. School of Rock (A) (Yes, it's a studio comedy, not an indie comedy. But it's a REALLY FREAKING GREAT studio comedy. Probably the last one, to date, I'd put at this level.)
3. Dazed and Confused (A)
4. Before Sunrise (A-)
5. Boyhood (A-)
6. Before Midnight (B+)
7. Fast Food Nation (C) (It's...very 2006. A hyperlink cinema movie pretty much banking on the success of Super Size Me? Yeah, that's absolutely "of that time." Linklater's worst movie? Probably. That C might even be generous.)
I've seen 15. My favs are Before Sunset and Boyhood.
The eye-candy in Everybody Wants Some!!! was also deeply appreciated here.
Boyhood
Before Sunset
Before Sunrise
School of Rock
Bernie
Before Midnight
Dazed and Confused
Those were listed from favorite to least favorite, but they're all good. And a few are straight-up brilliant.
Masterpieces
1. Before trilogy
2. Boyhood
Very good
3. Dazed and Confused
4. School of Rock
5. Waking Life
6. A Scanner Darkly
Good
7. Bernie
8. Everybody Wants Some!!
9. Me & Orson Welles
Bad
10. Fast Food Nation
okay fine i'll rank
1. Before Sunset (easily his masterpiece)
then...
2. Boyhood
3. Before Sunrise
4. Dazed & Confused
then...
5. Before Midnight
6. Everybody Wants Some!! (would love to see this again at some point)
really enjoyed both of those
but the rest not as enthused about
7. Waking Life (loved it at the time - dont remember it at all)
8. Tape (liked it kinda at the time - dont remember it well)
9. Me and Orson Welles (okay)
the two i don't have any fond memories of...
10. Bernie (I don't get this one at all. and people seem to love it)
11. Last Flag Flying (big misfire)
I surprised to say I've seen 9. Of those I enjoyed exactly three-Dazed and Confused, School of Rock and Me and Orson Welles.
Everybody Wants Some had its moments but overall was rather meh.
Unlike everyone else so far I DETESTED Boyhood utterly and unequivocally.
So far, everything but Last Flag Flying and Where'd You Go, Bernadette and here is my list of what I've seen from him so far...
Poor Cate. I like School of Rock, Before Sunrise and Boyhood. The others are meh.
Slacker is such a gem. I've seen 10. Surprised that I saw nothing between Sunset and Midnight.
Those Before movies are such a gift! I wonder if we'll get a fourth in 3 years.
Such a sprawling, strange career. As much as I loved Boyhood, the Before trilogy will always be his masterpiece. His sense of realism hits hardest with deep emotions stretched over years.
I've only seen 5 - "Dazed and Confused", "Before Sunrise", "Waking Life", "Before Midnight", and "Boyhood". I have to admit I found Boyhood very unremarkable, and view it as a technical/logistical feat that didn't pay off for me emotionally.
"Before Midnight" is my favorite - it depicts a long-term relationship so realistically. To see Celine basically leave him, and then play act while they sit at a cafe is such a real depiction of the sacrifices and compassion that make a relationship worthwhile. It's a small act of mercy that saves their relationship - the opposite of that scene in "Blue Valentine" when Michelle Williams finds the dead dog and Ryan Gosling just says "I told you so many times to close that gate". A little bit of understanding and empathy where vs a total lack of empathy.
All hail Julie Delpy.
Only 7. Such an eclectic career. I was looking forward to BERNADETTE, but it's not sounding that great. I thought LAST FLAG FLYING was baaaaad - really dull.
Overrated director. In the future the'll see he's a common talent.
I’ve seen 13. I fell so hard for Slacker and it’s still my favourite, but there’s so much to cherish in the Linklater filmography. When he’s in full auteur mode with original material he’s absolutely top of the class: Before trilogy, Dazed and Confused, Boyhood and Waking Life - essential viewing. His career is uneven and there are some definite misfires but the highs are so high...
I've seen six: the Before trilogy, A Scanner Darkly, Me and Orson Welles and Boyhood. I remember being impressed by Zac Efron in Me and Orson Welles and it's a charming film. I couldn't get into A Scanner Darkly. Boyhood is a bit long but it's a very clever film and I love how it wears its production prowess lightly - it doesn't fetishise the jumps in time. I like the trilogy a lot but Before Sunset is my favourite: what a way to pull off a sequel that, at the time, seemed to have no reason for existing. As soon as you watch it, you see how well it works and how Hawke and Delpy are such a good partnership onscreen.
He's one of the best directors working. I've seen them all except A Scanner Darkly and Suburbia. I'll be at Bernadette today because even lesser Linklater is worthwhile.
“United Artist Releasing’s Where’d You Go Bernadette was a glorified dump, despite being a Richard Linkletter movie and despite starring the likes of Cate Blanchett, Kristen Wiig, Billy Crudup and Laurence Fishburne. To be fair, reviews were miserable, and this just isn’t the kind of movie that audiences show up for in theaters anymore.”
"A constantly detonating quirk bomb, Blanchett plays Bernadette as if she has every one of those issues plus a few more piled on for good measure. It is a supremely mannered performance, one in which Blanchett takes great pain to stretch out the vowels of each of the words she says as if she is playing with salt water taffy. It is the Oscar winner’s most affected performance to date, which is truly saying something when you consider that she has already played both Katherine Hepburn and Bob Dylan'
Really interesting director who's not easily pigeonholed. I've seen 12, and liked most of them, especially Waking Life and the Before Trilogy. But I'm in the minority on Boyhood: as an unique long-term filmmaking experiment, it's fascinating... but the story and characters left me cold.