Dazed and Confused at 20

Funny this comes up. Last week I weeding out old work crap and I found a couple of 'Sneak Preview!"passes the station I was working at when the movie came out was giving out to the masses. I'm one of those who has never seen the movie.

 

Worth it just for the soundtrack.

 

Foosball?

 

It has a supporting role.

 

Regarding the soundtrack, there's a reason "Slow Ride" is in there twice.

I read a lengthy interview with Linklater years ago where he talked about wanting a Led Zeppelin song for the soundtrack, but knew that Zeppelin was notorious for saying "no" to such requests. So he wrote an impassioned letter to Plant, Page and JP Jones talking about how important Zeppelin songs were to his generation, etc, etc. All signed off on his using "Rock N Roll" except Plant, who didn't want it "interfering with his solo career."

So Linklater had to re-edit the film with "Slow Ride" in there twice.

More proof that Plant's a jerkoff.

 

A friend and I used to be able to hold a table for a couple of hours or so at local establishments.

As Starman noted earlier, those were the 18 days.

 

You are the worst pool player I have ever seen. You're lucky I even let you play at my table!

 

OK, I'm about to get scolded for this but ...

I kind of hate Dazed and Confused. I've watched it at least four times trying to like it. I love so many high school-based movies, including many that predate Dazed. I love American Graffiti, which is to the 1970s/1950s what Dazed was to the 1990s/1970s. Fast Times at Ridgemont High is one of my favorite movies ever, one of the four funniest movies I have ever seen. I love Ferris Bueller's Day Off, which also ranks in my top 20. Heathers is exceptional. Everything about Dazed seems like something I should like.

But I can't. I can't watch it. It bores me to tears. Nothing happens, which really isn't a problem for me (Clerks is one of my three favorites ever), but the characters and writing do nothing for me. It basically seems like nostalgic masturbation to me. I don't know what more to say because I really do want to like this movie.

 

My favorite "Dazed" anecdote is that Matthew McConaughey's charity is the "Just Keep Livin'" Foundation.

 

I think a lot of people either totally relate to it or feel the same way you do. Nostalgic masturbation might be a good way to describe it, but I gets me off, so to speak.

I was discovering a lot of the music when I first saw it and where I grew up had a pretty similar culture to the place in the movie. Getting to high school, becoming a senior, that was a big deal. Being a jock was a big deal. Who was going to go out for or be eligible for football was a huge deal. A town like that where the high school and its sports teams are the biggest thing going on can make kids feel like they own the place. I was Mitch at one point in my life. I wasn't ever Pink, but I was friends with him. Our Wooderson was named Jeremy.

My wife grew up in a totally different place and doesn't get how I can watch that movie over and over again.

 

Cameron Crowe wanted to use a Zeppelin song in "Almost Famous." He screened the movie for Page and Plant to convince them to sign off. He sat in the back of the little screening room, with Page and Plant at the front watching. It got to the scene when the singer of the band climbs up on the roof and shouts "I am a golden god!" before jumping off the roof into the pool.

Plant jumped up, turned to Crowe and shouted "I never did that! I never did!" and sat back down.

Without even turning around Page said "Yes he did. I was there."

They signed off on the song.

 

I was a jock up until high school and then got deep into partying once I got there, so I spent plenty of time in both scenes. I knew EVERY character in that movie and related personally to many of them.