The Story of Film Part 14: New American Independents & The Digital Revolution

Throughout The Story of Film, we’ve seen how the advent of new technology has changed the face of cinema. Sound, color, and widescreen technology altered filmmaking significantly, and in the 1990s CGI (computer generated imagery) changed cinema again. Suddenly, it seemed anything a filmmaker wanted to show, could be. A vast Roman city, one costing thousands of dollars to build, could be created digitally at a fraction of the expense (Gladiator). A shape shifting, liquid metal villain could now seamlessly interact with living actors (Terminator 2). Dinosaurs, previously visualized using stop-motion, could amaze and endanger characters on screen for less time and effort (Jurassic Park). Yet the stories being told were old ones and their characters were stock archetypes, propped up by technology that delivered spectacle but no new content.

While Hollywood was polishing the “bauble” with CGI, new independent filmmakers were emerging in America, one a former video store clerk named Quentin Tarantino. Taking stock Hollywood characters and plots, Tarantino’s scripts infused them with new life using casual, almost inconsequential, dialogue that masked strong emotions and an inescapable threat of violence. His critically acclaimed films Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction, and Jackie Brown featured quirky characters who were as likely to talk about fast food or old television shows as they were prone to violence.

Equally beloved by critics were Joel & Ethan Coen, who brought a colder, more intellectual approach to their work. Hopping genres with each film, the Coen brothers first, Blood Simple, was a grim film noir, their second, Raising Arizona, a knockabout farce, and the third, Miller’s Crossing, a Prohibition-era gangster movie. All featured the quotable dialogue, surprising storylines, and strong performances that would become a hallmark of the Coen’s work.

While Tarantino and the Coen brothers brought new life to old stories, filmmaker Gus Van Sant turned his attention to bringing new stories about people living on society’s margins to life. Van Sant’s film Drugstore Cowboy followed a group of drug addicted thieves trying to stay out of jail, while My Own Private Idaho fused passages from Shakespeare’s plays to a story of a young, male prostitute searching for home. Van Sant would next direct the black comedy To Die For, about a murderous weather reporter, and eventually achieve mainstream success with the film Good Will Hunting.

Beyond the US, more filmmakers with bold new visions were rising. From Australia came director Baz Luhrmann, whose wildly stylized films were both enthralling and overwhelming. Beginning with the charming Strictly Ballroom, set in the world of competitive ballroom dancing, Luhrmann next directed a modernized Shakespeare adaptation, Romeo + Juliet. Luhrmann embraced digital effects, using them to create previously impossible visuals for his third film, the Bollywood-inspired, jukebox musical Moulin Rouge. Yet Luhrmann’s use of CGI was restrained compared to its use in Peter Jackson’s film The Fellowship Of The Ring, with that films worldwide success heralding the true arrival of the digital age.