Bo Burnham's "Inside" is a masterpiece

ShineOn7 · 07-06-2021 6:41pm #1

Feck it lads, it deserves it's own thread

If you previously posted about in the Netflix thread, paste your thoughts here

Here's my to the point thoughts

Bo Burnham's Inside is a triumph

It's as close to art as I've ever seen Standup, in fact it's way beyond Standup and is so strong it merits it's own thread

Essential viewing

And here's Johnny Ultimate's

TBH for me Inside is something that uses a few funny songs as a foundation for something much bigger, weirder and melancholic. It’s a disarmingly honest, self-reflective look at the isolating, destabilising effect of lockdown... an artist working to put their personal struggles on screen and into music... and one of the most relatable artistic examinations of digital procrastination, empty diversions and an increasingly chaotic world. It’s also Burnham using confinement in a small space to see how he can experiment with lighting and camerawork - something immensely claustrophobic yet with creative grandeur.

That it uses the basic structure of a comedy special and gag songs to do that if anything makes it more impressive, but as amusing as some of the songs are I think it quickly becomes much more complex than that. Some of the songs aren’t even trying to be particularly funny IMO - Funny Feeling for example is altogether sadder and rawer than Burnham’s silly, crude YouTube videos from a decade ago would ever suggest. For the most part the themes of the more overtly funny songs here fit quite snuggly into the broader tapestry of the thing.

I laughed aloud a handful of times and chuckled here and there, but the lasting impression was much more than a few good jokes.

Sabre0001 · 07-06-2021 7:02pm

Despite a good friend being big into him (so I should have watched more on the basis of that) and enjoying Lower Your Expectations and Eighth Grade, I didn't know much else of Bo Burnham. Thoroughly enjoyed this special. Really catchy songs, funny and also quite poignant. We can all relate to some of the lockdown moments that he goes through!

ShineOn7 · 07-06-2021 9:30pm

27 details and references you might have missed in Bo Burnham's new Netflix special 'Inside'

https://www.insider.com/bo-burnham-inside-special-details-analysis-breakdown-2021-6#his-first-full-song-in-inside-is-a-parody-of-his-own-internal-debate-over-whether-or-not-he-should-be-joking-at-a-time-like-this-complete-with-a-whiteboard-mapping-how-to-tell-if-a-joke-is-funny-or-not-6

Basq · 07-06-2021 9:54pm

I've been a fan of his for years but "Make Happy" showed how impressive he was, only to turn his back on comedy for directing and Hollywood it appeared (e.g Promising Young Woman"), a lot due to mental health issues with doing standup.

But when the promo for Inside was released a few weeks ago, I couldn't help but think it may be a bit of a cash in.

How wrong I was.. if anything, it showed his incredible flair for direction and editing (as evident in "Eight Grade").

Catchy "earworms" but a much deeper message of loneliness, isolation and angst throughout elevate it above a simple comedy show.

Beautifully written, edited and performed.. I do think you'll be hard pushed to find a better all round watch on Netflix. Comedy not for everyone maybe but it demands your attention throughout.

brevity · 07-06-2021 10:42pm

I’ve been singing “A little bit of everything all of the time” since the special was released. It’s excellent.

JP Liz V1 · 07-06-2021 11:10pm

derealisation, welcome to the internet

ShagNastii · 07-06-2021 11:58pm

Really fantastic.

Tunes are all banging with real substance.

It is so goofy in places but in a great way.

Stone Deaf 4evr · 08-06-2021 10:37am

I'd really love it to be added to spotify, as a lot of the songs require repeat listening to pull apart all the layers of commentary.
I'm torn on which song is my favourite, 'welcome to the internet' is a strong contender, but I think the sad hopelessness of 'that funny feeling' might take my top spot.

'giftshops at the gun range, a mass shooting at the mall'

readyletsgo · 08-06-2021 10:41am

Watched it last night.

Loved his own commentary on one of his tracks, just went a bit bonkers very fast lol

Basq · 08-06-2021 10:48am

Stone Deaf 4evr wrote: »

I'd really love it to be added to spotify, as a lot of the songs require repeat listening to pull apart all the layers of commentary.

This won’t happen due to Netflix rights.. people have been pleading to put the "Make Happy” soundtrack on Spotify for the past 5 years, and the same issue unfortunately.

From the vaults, "Art Is Dead” is another fantastic track from Bo.. more in then vein of social commentary:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eo9pU1q8sy8

Mantis Toboggan · 08-06-2021 10:50am

I must watch this this week, what's it about is it just him singing funny songs?

flasher0030 · 08-06-2021 1:05pm

Mantis Toboggan wrote: »

I must watch this this week, what's it about is it just him singing funny songs?

I was going to watch it too. I love stand-up comedy. But if it's all just singing songs along with the piano, I'll give it a miss.
I watched Tim Minchin doing that. Didn't enjoy it at all.

Penn · 08-06-2021 1:39pm

flasher0030 wrote: »

I was going to watch it too. I love stand-up comedy. But if it's all just singing songs along with the piano, I'll give it a miss.
I watched Tim Minchin doing that. Didn't enjoy it at all.

His previous shows were a mix of funny songs/performance pieces with standup bits in between. Even then, I think his songs are a lot funnier than Minchin's, and there's more variety in his song style too.

This show is a lot more about his own personal struggles, with fewer "normal" funny songs, and more pieces about his own mental health issues, compounded by the lockdown.

I watched his previous show 'Make Happy' on a whim years ago and while I didn't enjoy it too much at first (especially not knowing anything about him), by the end I really got into it and have watched it and his show before that a few more times since. 'Inside' is a genius bit of work though. Not always an easy watch and the laughs are much fewer and further between, but what he's created here is a phenomenal piece of entertainment, fully using the limitations of his space and setup and managing to produce something deeper, more visually spectacular and interesting than what many Hollywood blockbusters can manage.

flasher0030 · 08-06-2021 1:45pm

Penn wrote: »

His previous shows were a mix of funny songs/performance pieces with standup bits in between. Even then, I think his songs are a lot funnier than Minchin's, and there's more variety in his song style too.

This show is a lot more about his own personal struggles, with fewer "normal" funny songs, and more pieces about his own mental health issues, compounded by the lockdown.

I watched his previous show 'Make Happy' on a whim years ago and while I didn't enjoy it too much at first (especially not knowing anything about him), by the end I really got into it and have watched it and his show before that a few more times since. 'Inside' is a genius bit of work though. Not always an easy watch and the laughs are much fewer and further between, but what he's created here is a phenomenal piece of entertainment, fully using the limitations of his space and setup and managing to produce something deeper, more visually spectacular and interesting than what many Hollywood blockbusters can manage.

Will give it a spin so.

ShineOn7 · 08-06-2021 5:26pm

As of yesterday Bo's YouTube channel has all the songs in video form, but set to "private"

Perhaps he's just waiting for the nod from Netflix

"White Woman's Instagram" was my fav so it'd be great to link to it to a source that isn't a Facebook video on Netflix's page

Penn · 08-06-2021 6:05pm

ShineOn7 wrote: »

As of yesterday Bo's YouTube channel has all the songs in video form, but set to "private"

Perhaps he's just waiting for the nod from Netflix

"White Woman's Instagram" was my fav so it'd be great to link to it to a source that isn't a Facebook video on Netflix's page

He just tweeted that the songs/album will be available on streaming services from Thursday (eg. Spotify etc). Maybe the videos will be up on Youtube on same day.

Basq · 08-06-2021 6:26pm

Basq wrote: »

This won’t happen due to Netflix rights.. people have been pleading to put the "Make Happy” soundtrack on Spotify for the past 5 years, and the same issue unfortunately.

https://twitter.com/boburnham/status/1402309466792480768?s=19
Never have I been to happy to be proved wrong!

Basq · 08-06-2021 8:23pm

While we’re at it, give "White Woman’s Instagram" all the cinematography awards going..

https://twitter.com/NetflixUK/status/1402207389349289984
"Some random quote from Lord of the Rings
Incorrectly attributed to Martin Luther King"

Basq · 09-06-2021 5:57pm

Was brilliant on Vine back in the day..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_QYrc5ciEo

long_b · 10-06-2021 12:27am

That was intense.
And brilliantly done.

A bit like a one man, one room version of "Apocalypse Now" with some fo the best summaries do where we are at now as a culture that I've ever heard.

Basq · 10-06-2021 8:28am

Yay!

https://open.spotify.com/album/1e5OlE0EY5fucq6GIU1xi3?si=oQRisvLyQcSFzN6RQYiJWA

ShineOn7 · 10-06-2021 11:30pm

Basq wrote: »

Yay!

https://open.spotify.com/album/1e5OlE0EY5fucq6GIU1xi3?si=oQRisvLyQcSFzN6RQYiJWA

That's this weekend's tunes sorted

Bo could genuinely be a successful singer (and just a singer) if he wanted to be. He's swimming in musical talent

ShineOn7 · 11-06-2021 12:20am

The film (and it is a film imho)'s best song is now on YouTube

The work he put into this singular song in itself is phenomenal

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xHotXbGZiFY

Xaniaj · 11-06-2021 9:44am

ShineOn7 wrote: »

The film (and it is a film imho)'s best song is now on YouTube

The work he put into this singular song in itself is phenomenal

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xHotXbGZiFY

Saw some tiktoks during the week of women showing their own Instagram photos against Bos video and he absolutely nailed it!

Fysh · 11-06-2021 11:18am

Just watched this today and was very impressed at the creativity on display in terms of presentation as much as the writing. It's a one-man show filmed in a single location, but it never feels dull or limited to "here's a guy playing songs on a piano".

Oddly enough it reminded me a bit of some of Don Hertzfeldt's animation, more for the tone and mood of it than anything specific, I think.

ShineOn7 · 11-06-2021 3:53pm

I didn't use the word "masterpiece" lightly

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the special holds an approval rating of 100% based on 23 reviews, with an average rating of 9.60/10.

On Metacritic, the special has a weighted average score of 98 out of 100 based on nine critics, indicating "universal acclaim".

It is ranked the eighth-highest television show on Metacritic, and the highest television special.

The 8th highest TV show of all time on Metacritic?

ShineOn7 · 11-06-2021 6:41pm

Basq wrote: »

Yay!

https://open.spotify.com/album/1e5OlE0EY5fucq6GIU1xi3?si=oQRisvLyQcSFzN6RQYiJWA

Happy Friday indeed. I'm going to enjoy these in the sunshine this weekend

Apart from "White Woman's Instagram" and "Welcome To The Internet", what is everyone's fav tune?

Basq · 11-06-2021 6:52pm

ShineOn7 wrote: »

Happy Friday indeed. I'm going to enjoy these in the sunshine this weekend

Apart from "White Woman's Instagram" and "Welcome To The Internet", what is everyone's fav tune?

“All Eyes On Me” is a belter..

.. but also loving “Comedy” and “Problematic”.

To be fair, the album is wall-to-wall bangers!

Sabre0001 · 13-06-2021 9:03am

Yeah, many great songs. Comedy, Problematic, Welcome to the Internet, All Eyes on Me, That Funny Feeling, and Goodbye all great for their own reasons. Wish Bezos I was longer

HalloweenJack · 13-06-2021 3:43pm

Watched this last night and can't get Welcome to the Internet out of my head.

I really enjoyed it. I don't know how much was performance and how much was genuine but it was very good.

Its a real work of art. Its incredible to see the amount of work he put in to putting it together, not sure if that really gets appreciated in 'regular' programmes. The way he set up the lighting, the choreography and the editing is astounding. There was one song where he was flashing the torch from his phone in time to a drum snap then hiding it in the small of his back, a tiny detail that was.incredibly.executed.

I didn't find the comedy to be particularly laugh out loud but it had me chuckling along. The brand manager bit, the song with the sock, white women of Instagram and the reaction video were all brilliantly done.

Some of his observational stuff was.spot on and I think it probably worked better without an audience there. I do wonder how genuine the latter part of it was. If its not, he's also an incredible actor. It was also refreshing to see him addressing topics that can be more uncomfortable.

I'd higly recommend it.

plibige · 19-06-2021 2:58pm

I think there must be something wrong with me because I tried watching it last night and didn't get into it at all. For something described as comedy I didn't laugh once in the 40 minutes I watched. I'm looking online to see if anyone thought the same as me but it seems like everyone loved it it but me!

Bo Burnham's "Inside" is a masterpiece

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