Viewers often gaze into the past when settling in at home with a movie, which, fortunately, can be quite effective.
In the mid-1960s, there was serious contemplation on whether Hollywood would be over by the end of the decade. With the end of the studio system and censorship quickly loosening up, who would be the ones running the show if not the studio heads? Fortunately for movie fans and aspiring filmmakers, the godfathers of independent filmmaking, John Cassavetes and Robert Downey Sr., helped pave the way for directors to make films on their own without the help of a studio.
Over the years, directors like Martin Scorsese, David Lynch, Quentin Tarantino, Wes Anderson and Sofia Coppola began their now prominent careers with low-budget, indie roots.
With their personal tones, candid themes and freedom to feature almost anything they like, indie films seem to draw the most dedicated followings. And movies that may have been overlooked in theaters can be rediscovered on home entertainment or television.
Kelly Reichardt’s stellar new film “Night Moves,” in limited release currently, has been given an unfortunate release date in the middle of the summer movie season. But like her last two underrated films, “Wendy & Lucy” and “Meek’s Cutoff,” it might draw more attention over time. So many indie movies have only grown better and even more popular over time thanks to word of mouth and the Internet. Films like “Before Sunrise,” “Lost in Translation” and “(500) Days of Summer,” all of which were already well received upon their original releases, manage to remain popular at home with couples and young viewers.
“Rushmore,” “Donnie Darko,” “Garden State,” “Napoleon Dynamite” and “Juno” were particularly huge with high-schoolers back in their day and to this day. Even those who seem to have grown out of their taste for the films might still feel a sense of nostalgia when catching it on TV or browsing Netflix. Independent features like “Easy Rider,” “American Graffiti” and “Dazed and Confused” were produced on the essence of nostalgia and remain staples for enthusiasts of the mid-20th-century era. Cult classics like “Do the Right Thing,” “The Usual Suspects” and “Memento” have been inspiring future filmmakers for decades, as these modern classics were independently crafted by their filmmakers and are aging well.
A few brilliant yet under-appreciated indie features from the last few years that could use a few more viewers are “Blue Valentine,” “Winter’s Bone,” “Take Shelter,” “Disconnect” and “Short Term 12.”
mbianco@durangoherald.com. Megan Bianco is a movie reviewer and also contributes other entertainment related features and articles.
