Why Do Christopher Nolan Movies Feel Different
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- Опубликовано: 20 сен 2024
- Christopher Nolan is one of the most celebrated directors, but he stands as a remarkable outlier. So how does he, evoke admiration, occasional perplexity, and above all, pure wonder?
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A video essay on Christopher Nolan
Produced by Josh Yang
Written by Benjamin Piñeros
Narrated by Caitie McCollow
Edited by Dushyant Singh
#christophernolan
Nolan is the man! He's proven you that you can make epic blockbuster movies without sacrificing compelling storytelling. Studios can trust him and his artistry. He always gives you a unique movie going experience.
And he also managed to fulfil the new diversity standards to win Best Picture for Oppenheimer without fundamentally changing the way he makes his films
@@reptongeek What's a "diversity standard"??
@@mikespearwood3914 A few years back BAFTA and the Academy wanted to increase the number of women and minorities who work in the industry, so they tied these new hiring practices to award nominations. A few people hugely disliked them, one reason given was it meant 'Chris Nolan now can't win an Oscar'. He now has two which means he managed to sensibly employ the necessary people to allow him to win awards, while still making a successful film
@@mikespearwood3914 A couple of years back, the BAFTA'S introduced extra rules to movies so the nominees weren't 'so white' You had to have a certain number of minorities and female cast/crew in your project to be nominated for the top awards.
I think a lot of people overlook that Christopher Nolan's best works were done in collaboration with his brother Jonathan Nolan.
Great Point. Jonathan Nolan did Westworld, wich was so Deep and Mindblowing. Did you watch it?
Thank you Mr Nolan for everything you have given to movie history and to us , audiences around the world. Cinema is not understood in the 21 st century without Christopher Nolan movies. There are not enough awards to thank your contribution to movie making . Thank you for so much. October 21, 2023.
I second this 21st December 2023
Great video, but I feel like it is missing out on one of the key aspects that elevate Nolan's movies to the next level: his exceptional, mind-bending plot writing. His stories are incredibly detailed, original and planned out to perfection, almost always containing at least one unexpected twist that so many movies nowadays lack. Complaints about his stories being too complex are simply a result of a lack of attention during his movies imo.
I'd agree with all of that except how his stories are really complex, being honest. People always say they had to watch his movies twice or thrice before understanding, and I've never once watched any of them more than once. Every movie has a well structured story that is self explanatory on the first watch, and I'd only ever agree that maybe Memento may have had a few people re-watching. And even more, Inception is revered so much despite just being very much "inspired" by Paprika (the colors, scenes, direction, etc.) and the Japanese novel Paprika was adapted from, and I feel Inception was inferior in originality comparatively to those two, and nowhere near as good as Nolan's other movies, except TENET (which didn't feel much like a Nolan's movie either).
Nolan is the king of cross-cutting and slow zooms. I’m always on the edge everytime he does either
Unrelated but I don’t get why redditors like to accuse people of being Nolan meat riders just for liking his films. Like it doesn’t matter if they are pretentious or try to be too smart. I’d rather have a film that’s too smart than too stupid
Superb analysis!
Especially inclusion of his weaker aspects which usually gets blurred out in the light of his movie's success.
The amount of work on this video is appreciated. Thank you
Within the first minute, saying most of Hollywood relies on Hollywood tent pole movies using previously established intellectual properties, and showing Batman, then calling Nolan an outlier. He directed three Batman movies. I love Nolan movies and this was a good video. Just thought that was funny.
I don't get the whole inaudible dialogue complaint. Never in theaters or at home have I had any trouble understanding Nolan's films.
You just gave yourself away Clark Kent
@@blackdynamite_5470everyone is overreacting. There are times when the sound mixing isn't the best, but from how the internet acts, it's inaudible
Same here
@charlesburns7391 I struggle to hear dialog in his films quite frequently. I don't hate him for it, and I think there are times when environmental and background noise are more important than dialog, but I often struggle to hear what the actors are saying. I don't hare Christopher Nolan for this, but everyone processes audio and dialog differently, which is something to consider. The fact that it's a know topic regarding CN films indicates that this may be an issue for some viewers, and others' opinions may be perceived as inconsiderate and apathetic
kinda funny i just commented on a interstellar video that the audio is terrible, i can't even hear the dialog,.
Inception restored my faith in film
Go and watch Stanley Kubrick 2001
Very high quality video. Nolan at the very least is an auteur. Love him or hate him you know his films when you see them.
_Ah yes, Christopher Nolan, the maestro behind the curtain of _*_Man of Steel_*_ not only lent his golden touch to the film’s production, but also, in his infinite wisdom, carefully curated the sonic experience, handpicking none other than Hans Zimmer, Lisa Gerrard, and Patrick Cassidy for the score._
_Because when you're sculpting a modern-day myth, you don’t just leave the music to chance-you summon titans of sound._
_It’s as though Nolan, in his quiet omnipotence, whispered to Snyder, “Here’s how you craft the perfect Superman, and while you’re at it, let me arrange the soundtrack that will make every goosebump rise in synchronized awe.” Of course, Nolan’s selection was impeccable-as if he was gifting Snyder a symphonic roadmap that could only be read by the gods of Olympus themselves._
I never understood this sound issue people have with his films.
English is not my mother tongue, but I watched Tenet and Oppenheimer in The Netherlands, without speaking a word of Dutch, so the captions didn't help whatsoever, and understood everything just fine
how old are ya?
Tenet remains one of Nolan’s best movies, endlessly questioned by people who didn’t pay enough attention to it.
The Protagonist from the very first mission we see him in, is established that he will divert from the mission for the sake of saving people. He does succeed in the main objective in the Opera, but he also takes it upon himself to save the civilians in the crowd as well.
As soon as he returns from his coma, the first thing he asks is whether his team made it out. When he hears they didn’t, he cries.
From the get go we realize he will do whatever is necessary for his missions, but that he also cares for people and will deviate from his main objective to save lives.
Nolan doesn’t have an exposition problem. Audiences have simply proven themselves to require spoon feeding information, and Tenet’s unfair backlash is a prime example.
Interstellar WILL NEVER be beaten, EVER!
Its largely boring dotted with a few interesting scenes with a very loud score to cover. Contact from 1997 is a far more interesting movie with a similar run time.
@@99footballfreak nah, you're just upset that Interstellar challenged your nostalgic ego 😂
Hell yeah🫡
I agree, makes me cry everytime, not because of the sad plot but because of the magnificence
Don't try to understand. Just feel it.
This was a fantastic video. Broke down what makes Nolan great with clear examples and also showed with examples the legitimate criticisms people have with his work. Outstanding stuff. Educational, entertaining, and informative.
awesome video! very insightful and informative. In regard to his sound mixing... I do agree that it is very hard to understand at times, but he made a great point in an interview a while ago. He basically said that it's intentional because he considers dialogue to be not the focal point of his scenes, he prefers all other sound over the dialogue. What I gathered from him saying that was it is basically a "you'll figure it out" situation. And I usually find that upon rewatches I understand it way more. Denis Villeneuve works similarly with (lack of) dialogue in his movies. All that to say, I totally still understand why people are annoyed by not being able to hear haha it's totally valid. The other thing I've noticed about his storytelling is that a lot of his plot points are very subtle. For example the motivation of Sator in Tenet that you mentioned... he has a line directed toward his wife in the movie "If I can't have you, then nobody can". I think that line right there mostly explains his motivation for ending the world (as odd as it may be, but alas, he's the antagonist).
those last lines were cool; and pretty much summarizes the magic behind his movies
The editing is beautiful!
Thanks!
I'm not overly impressed with that VOX article you quoted. It mistakenly assumes what the film Tenet is trying to say, and then criticizes the film for failing, rather than even considering whether the initial assumption might be wrong.
I feel like there's a phenomenon in modern film appreciation that I think amounts to jumping on bandwagons. There's so much discourse, so many emotionally charged hot takes, that once an opinion takes hold in the public arena, a veritable mob emerges, ready to die on that hill. When The Last Jedi came out, critics for the most part thoroughly enjoyed the way it examined and deepened the Star Wars universe. But once the mob took over the discourse, no one wanted to discuss it in the face of emotional "fans" coming out of the woodwork to proclaim, yet again, it had destroyed Star Wars. So discourse vanished, leaving the least considered, most emotionally reactionary opinion as the last word on the subject.
The same seems true for Tenet. After it proved to be its own thing, and not the new Inception, everyone had a hot take on what they think it's supposed to be, and how it fails. In particular, it's assumed that the connection between the protagonist and Kat is romantic in nature. Of course, because it's Nolan's take on James Bond, what else should it be? But in fact, this is anything but the case. Everyone is wrapped up trying to follow all the details of the dialog, and getting frustrated when it's unclear, while simultaneously criticizing Nolan's reliance on dialog-heavy exposition rather than character development. Meanwhile, the real story plays out in the actions. The protagonist cockily appears in Kat's life as a savior, and then promptly puts her in mortal danger. But he doesn't really seem aware of how cavalier he's been with her life while playing his spy games. Not until she rakes him over the coals for it, shattering his self-image as a smooth action hero. Suddenly, he's no longer strutting around as he did earlier in the film. He's trying to fix his mistakes, taking risks to protect her, and ultimately, rebuilds his whole mission around saving her life, because after all, he's the one who put it in danger. Ultimately, the point of the whole story is "What does it mean to save the world if you don't care about the people?"
As for Sator's threat to destroy the world, that's not the real stakes. The stakes come down to Sator's philosophy that the world is meaningless, vs the protagonist's desire to find meaning in it. If no one matters to the protagonist, if he's only saving a hypothetical whole world and not a particular person, then saving the world doesn't really matter to him anymore than it matters to Sator. The whole film is a philosophical debate about the need for faith in the real, objective existence of other people. Sator's stance, stated plainly at the end, is that he doesn't believe in anything or anyone beyond his own experience. So it doesn't matter to him that it all ceases to exist. "If I can't have you, no one can." That's the philosophy of solipsism, the belief that the universe can't be proven to exist beyond one's own experience of it. It's the ultimate narcissistic belief, the locked room from which there's no escape, because it can't be disproved. To escape it requires faith, and true empathy. Ultimately, the protagonist's determination to save Kat is his expression of empathy for her, something he didn't give thought to in the beginning.
So in the same way, it doesn't matter that we don't know Kat's son, whether he's a good kid or a bad one. Kat's motivation isn't about his qualities. It's about Kat's absolute love for him regardless. That's what motherhood means, but it's also a demonstration of faith that inspires the protagonist. She models for him the love without judgement he should feel for humanity as a whole, especially if he's going to lay down his life for it.
All this is right there in the film if you stop worrying about timelines, stop trying to tease out the puzzle. That's the point of the film, to be presented with a complex problem that's nearly impossible to unravel, until you realize that unraveling the puzzle was never the point. The point is to save the Kat.
TL'DR
@@FranciscoJV0 I get that a lot. 🙂
More than great analysis video 🫡✨🎥
There he goes, finally a well deserved Oscar.
I don't know whu but I can't help but to compare and align Nolan's movies and Hideo's video games. I got the best of two worlds honestly, both makes you feel wonder and critical about things. So glad that I get to witness these two in the same lifeline.
At 12:10, the thing is cooper is not just any pilot he is also an engineer, skilled and knowledgeable through Math and Science also add technology, that's why he understand the deep meaning of every theoretical situation.
You misinterpreted what she said. The argument is he would already understand/be the slightest bit familiar with it as an engineer
...and it is so nicely made. Really enjoyed watching it.... thank you!
theres movies i watched i didn't know he directed and i loved them.. when i found out it was a duh moment why i loved them
The fact that I, as the viewer, had to do homework to understand all the things going on in TENET, made me super respect that film. I’ve never had a movie that *required* me to understand things about the movie before I could appreciate the movie.
1. Story is told in 2nd person. Making Neil the main character.
2. Neil is Maxmillien
3. Based on the SATOR square
4. I didn’t realize I liked Robert Pattinson until I saw this movie
I appreciate you going through the whole spectrum of good, bad, and ugly. Too many videos exclusively swing to one extreme or the other: either all of this is the best thing, or all of this is the worst- which is insulting and tiresome.
You did a proper critique and I enjoyed watching your video.
Cheers.
The relationship in Tenent doesn’t need much beyond “Mother wants to be with her child”. The protagonist is in a position to achieve his goals and actually help. She tells us he’s purposefully keeping him from her and damaging their relationship, so the distance we see as the audience makes sense because it imitates how the mother feels herself. As for Sator, we often have to react in the real world to others with knowing the full scope of their motivations. Like the other complaint it would feel out of place to have him monologue an explanation in full detail. People who are truly set on ending their life have few words left and we see this behavior. And to visibly show the stakes would feel cheap and preachy given the current political climate.
Many of the other claims are 100% valid imo. Tenet seemed to be an exercise in seeing how much the director could get away with in terms of conveying a narrative experience mostly through the experience.
I like Nolan, more as a film creator than a film director. You praised things about him that make him weak as a director, in my opinion. The comparison between The Dark Knight's fighting scene to the 2022 fighting scene was a fail, the latter being the better.
Shoulda write why stanley kubrick's film feel so different.
The horns in Inception are actually the horns in Edith Piaf's "Non, je ne regrette rien", (theme song of the movie) but played 7 times slower, as if you were hearing it from a different dream layer.
Amazing video, well edited as well adds to story ur telling and critical points u make and i agree with with both the pros and cons of Nolan's Directing style. Often his amazing technical direction makes us loses the emotional pull.
13:10 Her kid is Neil who came from the future and became friends with the protagonist
love nolan
5:30 -- Dunkirk
8:42 -- Hater gonna Hate and Lover gonna Love 😵😵
My Theory as to why the dialogue sound is crappy on Nolan films has to do with the over exposition. If it was very clear dialogue every time then it would get very cheesy very fast: “a dream within a dream within a dream and I go in there and put a thought on a persons mind“. “Reverse bullets from reverse universe I made and sent myself to stop myself “. 😊
It's genuinely hard for me to remember a time before the *_BWOMMMMMMMM_* sound was used in movies 😅
At this point whatever nolan is making is incredible , we want to watch what he is making regard of the fact how it should be , we just want to watch whatever he is up to.
Christopher Nolan is one of the greatest directors ever his use of sound and imagery is just brilliant
Oppenheimer was an exercise in cramming as much exposition in each scene as possible, at times it felt like a musical but without the music
Amazing video
Thanks!
nolan isn’t the best film maker or story teller. but he does get the required budget from studios to present his vision, which others don’t.
Do you recommend any other directors that you think are better in either aspects? Just curious
What was the budget of movie that you have directed
you made me realise what were the cons of tenet that made me disconnected to the film , couldn't agree more . Was unable to figure it out over my blind love for Nolan
My favourite director, love his amazing works!
incredible video
It's bc the son in Tenet is Robert Pattinson
super nice video, thank you !
"We never see anything to justify this level of emotional connection". Sure we do; she kills her husband, the protagonist saves him; it is his fault she is in danger.
They had Rembrandt we have Nolan..
Amazing video ❤. Do Quentin Tarantino next
Not watching videos from creators who use AI
Then go watch Cocomelon
in what part did they use AI?
Nolan is Elon Musk of Hollywood
ALso, his face on thumbnail. Totally diffrent...
Great video!! But just wanted to know if I'm colourblind/an idiot, or if the colours of the graph at 3:55 makes no sense for anyone else too? Lol
Now you made me think I'm colour-blind with that timestamp...😶😶🌫
17:49 heheheh “despise” hehehe
Good review lol
Very nice video. New perspective.
12:31 Isn’t that to bring the audience along? I suspect he writes exposition both ways - showing and dialog - to decide. In some cases he may shoot it both ways to see what works best. A big pain to re-shoot if crucial feedback complains about clarity. 7:37 Maybe watch audio levels, 18:47 and strongly consider saying “Warner Brothers” or “Warners.” 13:21 True. Many of us have fatal illnesses without wanting to kill the world. Well done.
Nolan's best work was Memento and the Dark Knight trilogy, everything else has been second rate by his standards. Its possible that Nolan when in total control of a movie production simply lacks any creative challenges to his vision producing trash like Tenet or the annoying Dunkirk with its constant cross cutting. When I see a Nolan film now I know it will be long, loud and most likely boring. To be honest I'd rather watch random stuff on RUclips than a 3 hour Nolan grind.
Talented Director but I don't fully agree with his choice of actors.
Why? How?
Nolan is a genius, but he can be too smart for his own good, and he doesn't go out of his way to make the stories more digestible or understandable for the audience and often just expects then to know what's in his head to appreciate what he's doing. There's no doubt his filmmaking is brilliant, but it's frustrating when he's so self-indulgent in creating this intricate puzzles of stories that he forces you to watch his films several times to get what he's trying to say.
7:10 what scene it is
It's a scene from Batman vs Superman
His movies are what movies should be. An event that takes you to another world or time. Disney movies are too political same with other Hollywood studios. When I go watch a Nolan movie I know I will be entertained not pandered
It's because he's very intelligent period
Funny enough, Nolan made the Snyderverse possible. My theory is Zac Snyder has blackmail material on the Nolans. Can't prove it.
Because they are good. So few are today. I can only think of 3 people making quality films; Nolan, Cameron and Villeneuve.
Tarintino is done right?
Tarantino has 1 more movie left
Watch more movies
Great report. I love Nolan movies, but I cant hear shit
3:59 background music ?
Nice!
Make one detailed analysis on Quentin Tarantino also
How foes he gets those Ideas for the movies
I love Nolan....but I like Villeneuve a bit better
I respect your view, even if it is wrong
@@mattofborg hahaha....nice. I appreciate your cordially disagreeing with my opinion. Mind you, Nolan's film Memento is still one of, if not my fav movie ever. I just feel that Villeneuve has more spectacle and grandeur - taking the audience out of reality and inserting them into the world of the story.
I loved balde runner 2049, nolan and villeneuve are one of the best directors in the world.
The Video was good until she started to talk about things she/they/team didnt understand. Chris didnt build the kids character, because it was Neil himself as a kid...it was a clue and you missed it...just to highlight the many layers the movie offers.
Nolan didnt lost himself in any movie, you and many ppl are just not into physics and quantum physics. Also a lot of ppl are just not intelligent enough to unpack it. They just want to watch a fun cinema after a long week and thats fine. BUT that is exactly why masterpieces are often fail at box office.
His movies demand a rewatch...you want to rewatch it. Its beautiful!
sad many hate Nolan especially the so called movie critic youtubers
this next Gen of fame should be only ai renders and no live concerts. all wealth should be mandatory in depth. don't expose it.
Also his movies are all about boys who go on adventures. It's weird.
nolan is the goat.
OSCAR WINNER FINALLY I LOVE YOU BROTHER
Because they are.
They don't feel different lol - But i admire your bare faced fluffing, maybe watch lawrence of arabia or a Kurosawa movie sometime ✌🏾
Contempt for the audience? Or contempt for the sub-standard theaters taking the audience's money and delivering lousy sound? Which he literally states the words 'sub-standard theaters' so that should prolly be your focus.
The last thing that Nolan has ever had for the audience was contempt. Seems rather fundamental to understanding his work. Are you ok?
NIcE
Hans Zimmer
Later guys busy watching my ott movies bye bye for now
Villeneuve is greater than him, the Mexican film maker who made Gravity is even greater than both..
Feels different? You mean like his skin isn’t too smooth and isn’t to coarse.
Talents definitley there. But the whole tortured (usually) white western male trope gets old after about 2 decades.
His films always have a bleak feel to them.
The Greatest Director of All Time, albeit not perfect.
@@christopherflux6254 🤣🤣🤣
Don't use fucking AI thumbnails, jesus
What does Putin have to do with this?
Is that AI Nolan in the thumbnail? Gross.
I'm not a fan
Sick video. Subscribe
nolan is assss
Because him and his movies suck.
if by different you mean uber boring, then i know why
Nolan is overrated. Especially the Batman Trilogy he made, it felt different alright…different like all the characters felt like cosplay 😂😂😂😂
Your vocal fry is over the top. Why not just speak like a real woman. Make the sexy voice something you dip into on special occasions. 50 years ago they called it “puking,” very popular in Top 40. Glad those days are over, but it sounds like you’re trying to bring them back. And hey! I could almost hear the voices in the mumbley intro! At least your voice is clear. 👍