Richard-Linklater Retrospective

Description

“Alright, alright, alright” “Alright, alright, alright”: The triple repetition of an adverb expressing satisfaction is the “favorite phrase,” the verbal leitmotif of Wooderson, one of the main characters in Richard Linklater's second film “Dazed and Confused,” released in 1993. The character of this “professional teenager,” who participates in the graduation rituals of his high school every year, is portrayed by Matthew McConaughey, one of Hollywood's great stars, in his first major film role. ““Alright, alright, alright” has entered American slang – a film dialogue excerpt that is as much part of the cultural repertoire as Arnold Schwarzenegger’s “I’ll be back” in “Terminator” or Clint Eastwood’s “Go ahead, Punk, make my day” from the “Dirty Harry” series. “Dazed and Confused” marks a turning point in the history of the high school film, the film about American high schools. Unlike the ultimately somewhat kitschy portrayals of the torments of teenagers in puberty in the major successes of director John Hughes from the 1980s – from “Sixteen Candles” to “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” to “The Breakfast Club” – Richard Linklater in “Dazed and Confused” offers an uncompromising look at the depths of the cruelty typical of youth – and to such an extent that Samuel Fuller, after the film's premiere in Locarno, told Linklater that he was excited because the film emphasized a feeling that interested him: hatred. An homage to Linklater can begin with this second film, as it is already a mature work: the transfer of a popular genre into the tragic framework of an artist who masters the language of American popular culture and at the same time understands how to place his reinterpretation within the larger context of film history. No other director since Chantal Akerman has expanded the possibilities of cinema with each film and found new cinematic forms. “Boyhood,” released in 2014, is a perfect example: a film about growing up, shot over twelve years with the same cast – a transfer of the documentary and sociological genre of long-term observation into feature film; a film that is both epic and large-scale, yet intimate and precise, with no precedent or possibility of imitation. Linklater’s versatility is also evident in his last two films, “Nouvelle Vague,” a fictionalized story about the creation of Jean-Luc Godard’s film “À bout de souffle,” and “Blue Moon,” a chamber play with Ethan Hawke, a regular actor in Linklater’s films, in the role of Broadway lyricist Lorenz Hart, which we present as a Swiss premiere. With his great erudition and deep roots in American art traditions, Linklater is both guardian and innovator of a rich cinematic heritage. Note: This text was translated by machine translation software and not by a human translator. It may contain translation errors.

Highlights

• Richard Linklater showcases his most significant works
• Films like “Blue Moon” and “Boyhood” in his presence
• Insight into the development of the high school film

General Information

The Richard Linklater Retrospective takes place at the Cinémathèque suisse in Lausanne. Some of the director’s most famous films will be shown, accompanied by personal introductions and discussions.

Location

Avenue du Théâtre 6, 1005 Lausanne, Switzerland

Hide Map

Loading map...

How to get there

Get Directions