Is Charlie becoming a genre? (Or has everyone forgotten, you know, science fiction?)

Cold Souls is the latest film labeled as "Kaufmanesque." It stars Paul Giamatti as himself. Says the IMDB:

Actually, it's kind of like two Charlie Kaufman ideas, Being John Malkovich and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.

There is the presentation of the famous actor as a fictionalized version of himself a la Being John Malkovich, plus the concept of physically removing from one's body something that isn't physical. In this case, it's Giamatti's soul, kind of like the erasing of memories in Eternal Sunshine. (Source)

Thanks to Clay for that link.

Geek blog io9.com goes further and wonders if Charlie himself is becoming a genre. But apparently it annoys Cold Souls' writer-director, Sophie Barthes, when her film is compared to Charlie's stuff. Sort of understandable - she probably wants her work to stand for itself, and doesn't want audiences to expect something they aren't necessarily going to get.

I'd be pretty pleased if people went around referring to me as a genre (as long as they mean it in a good way, as opposed to something like, say, "Oh, it's very Ed Wood-esque"), but I'm sure even Charlie would acknowledge that ideas like his and Barthes' have been mined in science fiction for decades, and the self-referential stuff has been going on even longer in literature as well as film.

What's my point? Beats me. Maybe it's this: Charlie isn't a genre, but he's probably at the forefront of a trend. That's pretty nifty.

Contribute

BCK is free to use, but not free to run. If you like the site and would like it to stay alive, you might consider making a small donation. Every little bit is VERY appreciated! Money goes into hosting, domain renewal, plugins that keep the site looking pretty and working correctly. Thanks to James and John for the latest donations! Raised: $195.00. Target: $450 Updated: 28/12/2025

Amount

Search

Follow Us

facebook blueskyreddit