I know this might not come off as the greatest endorsement or sell of a film, but Connor O’malley’s Rap World is all the good stuff from a Harmony Korine film (Trash Humpers & Julien Donkey Boy specifically), reshaped by someone with a much better sense of humor & creativity and zero cynicism (it is my personal opinion that Connor O’malley is one of the funniest and most talented people working today). This is absolutely the kind of movie that will be co-opted by the ironic vice magazine folks that like things ironically but I don’t think they were ever the audience in mind for this. I’m a fan of most Harmony Korine films but a lot of times his work comes off like it’s made by someone pretentious that thinks they’re bored and better than everyone. There’s nothing boring or pretentious or “ironic” about Rap World. It’s is loud, chaotic, energetic, disorganized, schizophrenic and I loved every moment of it. I know this sounds cliché but Rap World has that DIY spirit of picking up a camera, getting a small intimate crew of folks together and just creating something. That something is the darkly comical found footage tale about a group of suburban friends trying to record a rap album over a 24 hour period. And much like the car race in Two Lane Blacktop, the recording of the rap album seems to be least important thing in the story even thought it’s (supposedly) the focal point. Our wanna-be rappers find themselves getting distracted from the recording process at every turn...
Trash Humpers / Rap World
Trash Humpers / Rap World
Julien Donkey-Boy / Rap World
Rap World has the perfect amount of nostalgia that doesn’t work against it. Underneath the chaotic humor & alt-comedy, this film pokes fun a at very specific niche demographic that I’m very familiar with – underground suburban hip-hop fans. While the characters in the film are all white, small town suburban underground rap fans come in all races & genders. They spent a lot of time on internet rap message boards getting their hip-hop history lessons from the wrong outlets and always had a warped sense of reality. No offense, and I am a fan of these artists, but think early 2000’s anticon/sage francis/rawkus/def jux message boards and online battle rap forums. I’m all for poking fun at these folks no matter how mean-spirited that may sound.
The major difference here is that those internet message board rap fans were mostly teenagers while the characters in Rap World are full on adults (one is pushing 30 years old).
This archetype still exists. Again, not to be mean, but given that a lot of Connor O’Malley’s comedy is internet/youtube-based, I wouldn’t be surprised if he was poking fun at recent stuff like this:
Krispy Kreme is another possible reference point (although part of me thinks this whole persona is a "bit")
Krispy Kreme / Rap World
I'm pretty certain this movie sets out to be uncomfortable & alienating to some. Connor O'Malley isn't always the easiest comic to digest but fans of his work will feel rewarded watching this. I certainly did.
I've released a collection of old and new instrumental music on the Three Dollar Pistol label. This music is inspired by my love of cinema and low tempo instrumental hip-hop in the lane of 90s DJ Shadow, DJ Krush, Push Button Objects & Boards Of Canada.
In addition to being available on all streaming platforms (bandcamp is preferred)...
We are also putting out a limited cassette release (click here to order). There are only 50 tapes available and a large chunk have already been claimed so don't miss out...
The cinematographers who have influenced me have been guys who have used color heavily. Jack Cardiff, a British Technicolor cinematographer, his use of color was awesome, even in later films that were minor, like GHOST STORY: a minor entry, [but] the color in it is gorgeous. BLACK NARCISSUS, one of the most beautiful color films ever made - Ernest Dickerson, Millimeter Magazine, June 1990
Black Narcissus / Juice
Black Narcissus / Juice
A Matter Of Life and Death / Juice
The red Shoes / Juice
The more you read about Dickerson the more you learn how influenced he was by both classic directors and cinematographers. Obvious nods from Spielberg to Depalma show up in Juice...
Jaws / Juice
Carrie / Juice
Through the work of Brian Depalma, Dickerson came up admiring the work of Vimos Zsigmond (it was Zsigmond that recommended Dickerson for his ASC cinematography membership)
Blowout / Juice
Dickerson with a (possible) homage to George Romero (Dickerson ended up working under Romero early on in his career)
The Night Of The Living Dead was one of the few films that gave me nightmares - Ernest Dickson, Monsters, Madness and Magic podcast
The Night Of The Living Dead / Juice
The Night Of The Living Dead / Juice
The filmmaker who stuck with me the most and really made me want to become a director was Stanley Kubrick - Ernest Dickerson, Complex
The Shining / Juice
In the previous entry we looked at some of the bigger homages Dickerson makes to City Across The River but there are so many other smaller references that you might miss if you blink...
Another influence was an unknown film from back in the late 1940s called CITY ACROSS THE RIVER, which was an adaptation of a book called The Amboy Dukes - Ernest Dickerson, Flavor Wire
The City Across The River / Juice
The City Across The River / Juice
The City Across The River / Juice
The City Across The River / Juice
The City Across The River / Juice
The City Across The River / Juice
The City Across The River / Juice
The City Across The River / Juice
Much more examples of Dickerson's love for/background in horror movies...
Even when I directed my first film [Juice] there were elements I put in you could consider horror - Ernest Dickerson, Zavvi.com
Halloween II / Juice
Friday The 13th Part V / Juice
Friday The 13th Part III / Juice
Friday The 13th Part VII / Juice
Halloween II / Juice
Halloween II / Juice
Halloween II / Juice
The Burning / Juice
Nightmare On Elm Street / Juice
Halloween II / Juice
The Burning / Juice
Nightmare On Elm Street / Juice
To be compared with Scorsese is an honor because he’s a hero of mine - Ernest Dickerson, Freshfiction.tv
The main critique/commentary/talking point concerning Fincher’s latest hitman thriller has to do with it being a cynical/somewhat on-the-nose response to the negative criticisms of Mank. Almost like he’s trying to make up for something at the same time. I get why folks feel that way. In my personal opinion, Mank has zero original style. It’s also boring. The bad kind of of boring. This is going to sound harsh but it felt like...nothing. This time around Fincher made a film that was all about style. That ice-cold euro style reminiscent of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. The Killer certainly has a handful of exciting moments but for the most part it’s also pretty boring. But the good/interesting kind of boring. Imagine The Killer in a triple feature with Anton Corbjin’s The American and Jarmusch’s The Limits Of Control. “The cool silent Hitman trilogy” (you could add The Mechanic in there and make it a quadtrilogy)
The American / The Killer
The Mechanic / The Killer
I don’t think The Killer is a cynical response or Fincher apologizing for anything (if anything, The Killermakes up for Michael Fassbender inThe Snowman). I think it’s more of a “slick” response in that he’s saying; “you think I don’t have any style after Mank? Well watch this…”. He took the negative criticisms of his previous feature as a challenge and made a mostly fun feature length stylish music video (that isn’t an insult as Fincher’s roots are in music videos which are all over his latest feature).
Express Yourself / The Killer
And to be clear - there is a plot concerning revenge after a botched assassination but, The Killer is all about style at the end of the day (and maybe a deeper meaning about covering your tracks after a fuck up at work). That might not be for everyone but it certainly worked for me.
Le Samourai / Ghost Dog / The Killer
Naturally like The Killer pulls from every single classic hitman movie in existence. This is also a voyeuristic film so there are plenty of homages to Fincher's hero; Alfred Hitchcock…
Movies like this is where Fincher is at his best for me. Style over substance is the pocket I prefer Fincher to be in. Lens flares, electronic music, etc. But that’s just me. I doubt I’ll be thinking about The Killer in a few months but I certainly enjoyed it in the moment.
