{"id":1170,"date":"2013-03-11T00:00:54","date_gmt":"2013-03-11T04:00:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/smugfilm.com\/?p=1170"},"modified":"2013-03-11T03:42:28","modified_gmt":"2013-03-11T07:42:28","slug":"eric-schaeffer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/smugfilm.com\/oldsite\/eric-schaeffer\/","title":{"rendered":"Eric Schaeffer: The Most Underrated Writer-Director-Actor Ever"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"ericsmall\"
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\nIf you\u2019ve never heard of Eric Schaeffer, today is your lucky day, because I am about to introduce you to quite possibly your new favorite filmmaker. I say \u2018possibly\u2019 because he\u2019s definitely not for everyone. Either you\u2019ll dig his vibe or you won\u2019t\u2014more specifically, either his art will rip your fucking heart out of your chest and hug it<\/i>, or you\u2019ll be all \u2018he\u2019s weird\u2019 and go watch something else. And I say \u2018new favorite\u2019 because if you enjoy the first thing of his you see, you will definitely quickly seek out and devour all <\/i>of his things, and force close friends and lovers of yours to go through the same process so that you can watch them<\/i> have the same reaction you <\/i>did, as a way of sort of pinching yourself to make sure you\u2019re not dreaming, and \u2018not the only one\u2019. And they will be grateful for you showing them the light. And you<\/i> will be grateful for me<\/i> showing you the light. And you\u2019re welcome<\/i>.
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\nIt\u2019s quite a shame that he isn\u2019t more well-known. Which is actually kind of a useless thing to say, because I could say the same about countless<\/i> great people and things\u2014filmmaker Chantal Akerman<\/a>, the movie Excessive Force<\/a>, artist Paolo Serpieri<\/a>, the restaurant Kajitsu<\/a>, author Richard Brautigan<\/a>, actress Emily Perkins<\/a>, the elixir of life\u00a0Ume Plum Vinegar<\/a>\u2014the list goes on. I could literally rattle \u2018em off all day, like some bizarre artistic version of a filibuster, but bottom line, there\u2019s no shortage of great under-the-radar art in this world. (Hell, I\u2019ve<\/i> even made some. Shredder<\/a> and Rehearsals<\/a> are both phenomenal films that very few people have seen. But I digress\/profess.) My point is that, on an objective level, there\u2019s no real reason for me to single out the fact that he isn\u2019t very well-known, or be upset<\/em> about the fact that this is the case. And yet, I can\u2019t help feel that way\u2014the reason being that great art just plain has that effect on you sometimes.<\/p>\n

When you absorb a truly great piece of art, one that stabs you to your core, it unleashes your inner revolutionary. You want to shout a scream from the rooftops that instantly conveys the totality of said great art into the ears of everyone around. You want to take over the world in the name of the art piece, and you are baffled and incensed by those out there who just don\u2019t \u2018get it\u2019. Is this a healthy mindset? In most cases, probably not. (I don\u2019t get my panties in a bunch over the fact that very few people think The Brothers Solomon<\/a> is as hilarious a movie as I do.) But I think that, in the case of certain<\/i> art, and artists, you really do need to get on your soap box and drop science upon the world. Eric Schaeffer is that pet cause for me. And this is my manifesto.<\/p>\n

Alright So Who Is This Guy Already Jeez<\/b><\/p>\n

Since 1993, Eric Schaeffer has written and directed eight films, three TV shows (well, three that you can see\u2014he made a few short-lived ones in the 90\u2019s that you can\u2019t get a hold of and I\u2019ve never seen) and written an autobiography. He\u2019s acted in all but one of his films and shows (the film Never Again<\/a>, which I plugged in my Valentine\u2019s Day post<\/a>). He\u2019s also acted in a bunch of other things, but for the sake of brevity, I\u2019m gonna focus primarily on the stuff he\u2019s had total creative control over\u2014his \u2018oeuvre-up-until-now\u2019, so to speak. So basically, twelve things to cover in total.<\/p>\n

But before I take you through these things individually, in the order I suggest you consume them, I need to give you a sense of him as a person. This, ordinarily, would be superfluous, since when it comes to most filmmakers, that sort of stuff just doesn\u2019t really matter. Nobody cares what Spielberg is like\u2014they just care that he delivers. In fact, the general rule of thumb when one approaches any<\/em> art is that one must separate the \u2018art\u2019 from the \u2018artist\u2019. For instance, I wouldn\u2019t give two shits if Vincent Gallo were an asshole or a sweetie pie (for the record, he\u2019s the latter) because Buffalo \u201966<\/a> and The Brown Bunny<\/a> are brilliant no matter what. However, in the case of Eric Schaeffer, he\u2019s so intertwined with his art that you absolutely cannot discuss one without the other\u2014in fact, one could say he\u2019s as much a performance artist as he is a writer-director-actor. Which is pretty unprecedented.<\/p>\n

The lazy thing most people do when faced with a writer-director-actor is to make a Woody Allen comparison. And yes, there are similarities between Eric and Woody\u2014distinct speech pattern, NYC backdrop, repeated themes, prolificacy, etcetera. But honestly, there isn\u2019t anyone quite like Eric in all of cinema. The closest comparison I can make, I actually have to jump entirely out of that world for: basically, what Charles Bukowski is to poetry\/novels, Eric Schaeffer is to film.<\/p>\n

Bukowski was a master of self-created myth, constantly blending fact and fiction. Much like Andy Kaufman, you never entirely knew what was \u2018real\u2019, but whereas Andy\u2019s goal was to deceive and lie in order to play around with the taboo of lying, such is not the case with Bukowski and Eric. In their case, the goal is hyperreality. <\/i>What I mean by \u2018hyperreality\u2019 is that when one reads a poem of Bukowski\u2019s, it is extremely affecting as a result of the fact that you know his actual life and what goes on in his art were so intertwined, to the point where you can’t really tell the two apart. There\u2019s no clear delineation\u2014it\u2019s all swirled around into marble cake. For example: Bukowski features himself in his art, and said art is based partly on his life, and partly made up, but Bukowski the artist and Bukowski the art behave the same, plus, fiction from his art is just as plausible as the things that have happened to him in his actual life. (I hope that made sense.)<\/p>\n

Such is the case with Eric Schaeffer\u2019s work. Whereas Woody Allen plays a Woody Allen persona <\/i>in his work (the actual Woody Allen is quite dissimilar from the character he portrays, sorry to be the one to have to break that to you if you didn’t know) Eric Schaeffer literally plays Eric Schaeffer.<\/i> Which means, when you watch an Eric Schaeffer movie, you\u2019re literally watching Eric Schaeffer, the person, in a movie, almost as though he was zapped inside the screen like in that movie Stay Tuned<\/a>. This hyperreality elevates even his minor works to soaring heights of damn near transcendental effectiveness. It all feels like a truly vicarious experience. You believe<\/i> what you are seeing\u2014<\/i>which is any artist\u2019s best wish for their audience.<\/p>\n

Okay But What Is He Like<\/b><\/p>\n

In one word, Eric Schaeffer is ridiculous. And he definitely knows it. Which makes him a person you can laugh with, and at, at the same time. His ridiculousness comes from the from the fact that he\u2019s unabashedly honest, and 100% himself. What you see is what you get\u2014and that is an extremely three-dimensional person who burns quite brighter than most, and wears his every facet on his sleeve (including polar-opposite facets). He\u2019s basically Mr. Dichotomy\u2014everything you could say about him, you could also say the opposite. He\u2019s masculine and feminine. Dominant and submissive. Serious and silly. Stubborn and accepting. Intellectual and ditzy. Loyal and dismissive. The list goes on.<\/p>\n

But doesn\u2019t everyone<\/i> contain all those qualities, and more, inside them? Absolutely. However, with most people, you only see the tip of the iceberg, and maybe get a few glimpses below the surface once in a blue moon. Eric is the whole iceberg, front and center. And he ever-vacillates between qualities\u2014he can be everything I listed, and more, over the course of a movie, or hell, even a scene. <\/i>If you\u2019ve ever been annoyed by protagonists not being three-dimensional enough, wait until you get a load of the damn near four-dimensionality of Eric Schaeffer.<\/p>\n

Aight But Like What Are His Movies Like Or Whatever<\/b><\/p>\n

They all tend to center around love, or lovin\u2019 and losin\u2019. Usually involving sexual taboos at some point, which are a huge fascination of his. And all of them blend comedy and tragedy. Some lean more towards the former, others the latter. And he always tells very human stories. Stuff you can relate to, even if you never went through a particular thing he went through, or one of his characters went through, simply because it just rings as ‘real’.<\/p>\n

As far as how they look<\/i>, everything always looks very natural. His shots are never overly lit. He\u2019s a director that clearly wants his scenes to always look like they look to the naked eye. In fact, he\u2019s kind of Eric Rohmer-esque in that sense. Also, he does exceptional<\/em> low light stuff, as you can see by some of the stills below. I love a director who isn\u2019t afraid of low light, and he\u2019s certainly one of the best in that regard.<\/p>\n

Okay Cool Where Do I Sign Up<\/b><\/p>\n

The following is, in my opinion, the correct and proper order for the twelve-course meal that is his work. And at each course, I\u2019ll let you know, without spoilers, what you need to know in order to best enjoy what you are about to taste. Thank you for choosing Smug Film as your dining destination, and I wish you a wonderful supper.<\/p>\n

By the way, you don\u2019t have to watch these all in a row. In fact, that\u2019d be psychotic. Just watch \u2018em here or there, always picking up where you left off.<\/p>\n

\"fallsmall\"<\/p>\n

Fall<\/a>\u00a0(1997) | 93 min.<\/b><\/p>\n

This is his masterpiece. So if you don\u2019t like this movie, don\u2019t bother with his other stuff. And I don\u2019t mean that in the sense that if you don\u2019t like this one you definitely won\u2019t like his other stuff. For all I know, you very well might. I just mean it in the sense of fuck you and get out of here.<\/i><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve watched Fall with just about every girlfriend I\u2019ve ever had. I honestly cannot take a woman seriously, romantically, if she doesn\u2019t enjoy it. It\u2019s not like I use it as a litmus test or anything, though. That\u2019d just be rude. (Buffalo \u201966, I use for that.) If I\u2019m watching Fall with a girl, we\u2019re already pretty settled into the relationship, and if we\u2019re already pretty settled into the relationship, that means I deem her an emotionally mature person. And if I deem her an emotionally mature person, she will like Fall. Plain and simple. Never fails.<\/p>\n

This is one of the greatest love stories in all of cinema, for reasons I cannot even get into, because you should really just watch the damn thing without knowing much of anything about it. All I will say is that the film is essentially a ‘love letter in film form’, if that make sense. A love letter to a very real person, I might add. Also, you should keep a tissue box handy.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re a dude, don\u2019t watch this one with other dudes. Watch it alone. Or, watch it with a girl you\u2019re okay with feeling something emotional around. Like I said before, a girl you are already in a firm thing with.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re a girl, watch it alone, or with close girl friends, or with a dude you\u2019re legit into. <\/i>And I\u2019m serious\u2014you better really love the guy you\u2019re watching this movie with, because otherwise, you\u2019ll probably break up with him not long after, in pursuit of actual <\/i>love.<\/p>\n

\"lucysmall\"<\/p>\n

If Lucy Fell<\/a> (1996) | 92 min.<\/b><\/p>\n

This is a much lighter movie than Fall. A good palate-cleanser after that emotional roller coaster. A romantic comedy that rides that wonderful line between \u2018by the books\u2019 and \u2018does its own thing\u2019. And it has a great cast to boot: Sarah Jessica Parker (not a fan, but I like her in this) Ben Stiller (doing somewhat of a proto-Zoolander) Elle Macpherson (surprisingly holds her own) and Scarlett Johansson (a kid, but displays pretty good chops).<\/p>\n

This is a good movie to watch with your lady. She\u2019ll dig it and you\u2019ll dig it and you\u2019ll score points. You\u2019ll propose it and she\u2019ll be all \u201cooh, I like Sarah Jessica Parker! I\u2019ve never seen this! Let\u2019s watch it!\u201d and you\u2019ll be all cool with watching it because it\u2019s actually good.<\/i> In fact, I debated adding it to my Valentine\u2019s Day recommendations post, but instead opted for Never Again, since that one just felt more Valentine\u2019s Day-ish to me. Basically because the romance in If Lucy Fell, although definitely romantic, is a little unusual for Valentine\u2019s Day. You\u2019ll see. I\u2019m right.<\/p>\n

You might be wondering why I didn\u2019t just tell you to watch this before Fall, being that it\u2019s lightyears lighter in tone, and as such conceivably could’ve been a nice, gentle introduction into Eric\u2019s world, and plus it came out before <\/i>Fall. So what gives, me? Well, remember that thing I said about Fall being a love letter? And remember the profession of the female protagonist in Fall? Put two and two together. I\u2019ll sit quietly over here as your eyes widen and your head explodes. (Your head will only explode if you\u2019ve seen both movies. Non-head-exploded readers, please continue reading. Head-exploded readers, R.I.P. We hardly knew ye.)<\/p>\n

\"wireysmall\"<\/p>\n

Wirey Spindell<\/a> (2000) | 101 min.<\/b><\/p>\n

Eric\u2019s most blatantly autobiographical work to date. Tonally, a good mix of light and dark. Kinda halfway between If Lucy Fell and Fall, but definitely not a romantic comedy, although it does have some romantic elements. Kinda hard to classify. I guess I\u2019d call it \u2018Wild Strawberries<\/a> for American males who don\u2019t feel like falling asleep\u2019.<\/p>\n

All his work contains autobiographical elements, for sure, but this one, to again make a Bukowski comparison, is his \u2018Ham on Rye<\/a>\u2019. It chronicles his childhood, teenage, and college years. Basically he plays a guy who is about to get married, and is still feeling a bit arrested development-y, so he reflects on his life up to this point, hoping to find some clarity and solace.<\/p>\n

This is probably my second favorite of his films, after Fall. When I first saw it, it really rubbed me the wrong way. I don\u2019t exactly know why. I guess I was just in a weird mood. But every time I\u2019ve watched it since, I\u2019ve liked it even more. So if you\u2019re not really feeling this one, who knows, maybe it\u2019ll grow on you.<\/p>\n

As far as who to watch this one with\u2014anybody, really. Except, if you\u2019re a dude, fellow dudes. I really don\u2019t think dudes should watch any Eric Schaeffer movies with other dudes, now that I think about it. I don\u2019t really know why. I guess because there\u2019s something deeply sensitive about all of them, and I\u2019m afraid that if you watch it with a dude, you\u2019ll be all afraid of fully letting the movie sink in and feeling a damn thing. I dunno. I mean, obviously I\u2019m talking about straight men<\/i> watching stuff together. Gay guys, go for it. In fact, now that I think about it, gay guys have it pretty good in the movie-watching department. They can watch fucking anything <\/i>together. One of the perks, I guess.<\/p>\n

Girls, I must warn you, I\u2019m not sure if you\u2019ll like this one too much. You might like it as a nice window into the male psyche, and you might like it if you\u2019re already a Schaeffer-holic or whatever fun name you\u2019ve now decided to call yourself, but I dunno. There are some very dark, brooding moments that only guys may be able to empathize with. Who knows, though. Could go either way. Just a heads up.<\/p>\n

\"never<\/p>\n

Never Again<\/a> (2001) | 98 min.<\/b><\/p>\n

Here\u2019s one that\u2019s more for everybody, and a lot lighter. I already wrote about it for my Valentine\u2019s Day post, but basically, it\u2019s a story about two 50-somethings falling in love. Which you don\u2019t really see much in movies. And also it gets to the heart of what makes relationships work or not work, and the self-sabotage that goes on in romance, which is a very universal theme. I like this one a lot. Definitely one of his very best.<\/p>\n

Eric isn\u2019t in this one, by the way. Jeffrey Tambor plays the \u2018Eric Schaeffer role\u2019, and acts opposite the late great Jill Clayburgh, who is delightful. There are some wonderful supporting roles too: Bill Duke, Peter Dinklage, Michael McKean. Only bad thing I can say about this one is that the music is kind of annoying in a few parts. But just ignore it.<\/p>\n

\"mindsmall\"<\/p>\n

Mind the Gap<\/a> (2004) | 134 min.<\/b><\/p>\n

This one is a bit darker, and definitely more on the sad side. Although, I guess, ultimately uplifting. It\u2019s an emotional tale about a bunch of intersecting lives, and has more major female roles than any of the other films you\u2019ve seen of his so far. With this one, Eric definitely shows he can write female protagonists just as well as he can write for himself.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s kind of a weird movie, though. It doesn\u2019t fully \u2018work\u2019 per se. Kinda uneven. Almost feels like several movies stuffed into one. And I get that that\u2019s kinda ‘the point\u2019 in that it\u2019s intersecting stories or whatever, but it just doesn\u2019t feel like it all gracefully gels. However, it\u2019s an interesting experiment. And although there are some scenes that just feel poorly conceived or even completely unnecessary, there are others that are absolutely brilliant and perfect. And most of the performances are quite good. So it’s definitely worth watching.<\/p>\n

\"turnaroundsmall\"<\/p>\n

My Life\u2019s in Turnaround<\/a> (1993) | 84 min.<\/b><\/p>\n

Eric\u2019s first film. Cheaply and shoddily made, but not without its charms. Probably my least favorite of all his work, but there are definitely good parts. Basically, it\u2019s a movie about two buddies who want to make a cheap movie. Kind of a hackneyed premise nowadays, but back when these guys did it, it wasn\u2019t. Although it\u2019s uneven, and the acting is quite poor here and there, it\u2019ll serve as a nice palate cleanser after Mind the Gap. Plus, there are some genuinely fun cameos.<\/p>\n

\"afterfallsmall\"<\/p>\n

After Fall, Winter <\/a>(2011) | 132 min.<\/b><\/p>\n

Eric\u2019s goal is to do a new movie in the \u2018Fall\u2019 series every 15 years, spanning \u2018seasons\u2019 in his protagonist\u2019s lifetime. And as one might expect, since this is \u2018Winter\u2019, it\u2019s absolutely his darkest film. And although it\u2019s not as great as Fall, it\u2019s a hell of a masterpiece for what it is, and certainly one of the best sequels ever. Plus, it has way more balls than most films in existence.<\/p>\n

Make sure you\u2019re definitely in the mood for this one before you watch it, because if you thought Fall was brutal, this one is way\u00a0<\/em>more so. It\u2019s also probably his most honed movie as far as the dynamic between him and his female lead goes. Lizzie Brochere is absolutely incredible, and keeps up with him 100%. She\u2019s a tremendous actress, and their chemistry is huge, and I hope she becomes a ginormous movie star.<\/p>\n

\"starved\"<\/p>\n

Starved<\/a> (2005) | 30 min. each, 7 episodes<\/b><\/p>\n

Not Eric\u2019s first foray into TV, but his first foray that you can actually track down and watch. This came out right when It\u2019s Always Sunny in Philadelphia came out. It aired right after it. And at the end of the season, FX picked up Sunny and not this. Which I guess was a good idea for the network financially, since Sunny is such a huge show now, but I never really cared for Sunny personally, whereas I absolutely adored this show.<\/p>\n

This is a comedy-drama about a group of food addicts. Eric, in his own life, has had issues with food, and this is kind of the first of his work to really head-on address it. \u00a0And he does so very realistically. I think everybody has had some<\/i> issues with food in their lifetime, and one can definitely relate to the characters even if one isn\u2019t technically an \u2018addict\u2019 per se.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s refreshing to see a show about a group of friends all trying to overcome a personal problem. I hate when shows just show people wallowing in their own dysfunction. Everyone on this show knows they have a problem, and is trying to change. Which is beautiful.<\/p>\n

You couldn\u2019t find this anywhere for a while, but I think they\u2019re on YouTube now. I don\u2019t wanna link to them, because they\u2019ll probably come down and go back up on some other channel, and I\u2019d have to constantly keep editing the link in this post. But anyway, go check \u2018em out.<\/p>\n

\"fucked\"<\/p>\n

I Can\u2019t Believe I\u2019m Still Single<\/a> (2007) | 336 pages<\/b><\/p>\n

His autobiography. A light read that, like Wirey Spindell, jumps around a bit in his life. Probably the most bold and honest autobiography I\u2019ve ever read\u2014although, honestly, I don\u2019t read too many of them. At points you will love him, and at points you will be annoyed by him, which, in my opinion, is how all autobiographies should be. Otherwise there\u2019s no real lessons for the reader. Who wants to read something where the author sanitized their life? Nobody.<\/p>\n

This book gets a lot of hate online, as a result of some catty Gawker hit-pieces that came out about him around the time it came out. People calling him a misogynist or whatever. Typical vapid internet hate stuff. Plain and simple, if you like his movies, you\u2019ll dig the book.<\/p>\n

\"stillsinglesmall\"<\/p>\n

I Can\u2019t Believe I\u2019m Still Single<\/a> (2008-2010) | 30 min. each, 33 episodes<\/b><\/p>\n

A reality show, based off his book, in which he tries to find a wife. Ran on Showtime for three seasons, with zero promotion. Most people probably never knew it was on the damn network. Which is a shame, because it\u2019s a really fun show, and a good glimpse into Eric Schaeffer as he actually<\/i> is (exactly the same).<\/p>\n

There are some elements peppered here and there that are clearly fake\/staged, but for the most part, this show is very real. It\u2019s great watching Eric go on dates with all sorts of real women, and watching how things go south or go well or whatever.<\/p>\n

The show gets extremely good when, for the second season, Eric brings in his buddy Mark Ebner, famed investigative journalist and best-selling author, to help him pick girls, and travel with him across the country finding new ones. Their bickering and ribbing is priceless.<\/p>\n

\"businesssmall\"<\/p>\n

They\u2019re Out of the Business<\/a> (2011) | 89 min.<\/b><\/p>\n

The sequel to My Life\u2019s in Turnaround. Kind of a slapdash, throwaway movie, but definitely much better if you\u2019ve watched the third season of I Can\u2019t Believe I\u2019m Still Single, in which you see some of the making of it, which makes some parts of it a lot more interesting. It’s nice as a companion piece, but like My Life\u2019s in Turnaround, it\u2019s not really about anything per se, or a movie that particularly \u2018needs\u2019 to exist. But it has some fun parts, and overall charm.<\/p>\n

\"gravitysmall\"<\/p>\n

Gravity<\/a> (2010) | 30 min. each, 10 episodes<\/b><\/p>\n

A very good show that he collaborated with writer Jill Franklyn on. Please ignore the opening scene of the first episode, which sucks. Just keep watching. I promise that by the end of the first episode, you\u2019ll want to keep watching it.<\/p>\n

Basically, it\u2019s kind of similar to Starved in that it focuses on a group\u2014this time, suicide survivors. Not all the characters are particularly interesting, but the show is deliciously dark and unpredictable, and takes some very<\/i> unexpected turns. There\u2019s an ending to one of the episodes in particular that is honestly one of the best cliffhangers I\u2019ve ever seen. Right up there with some of Lost<\/a>\u2019s best episode endings. Which is impressive, for such an uneven show.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a shame it got canned after the first season. But I could say the same about tons of my favorite shows ever (John From Cincinnati<\/a>, Luck<\/a>, Freaks and Geeks<\/a>, et al.) so whatever. TV networks are notoriously shitty when it comes to knowing when they have something with potential on their hands.<\/p>\n

And So Now The List is Over<\/b><\/p>\n

That\u2019s it. That\u2019s all she (he) wrote. For now. The man is very prolific, and I\u2019m sure he\u2019s got some new stuff cookin\u2019. In particular, he just began a YouTube channel for a project called\u00a0Eric Schaeffer: Life Coach<\/a>, and I don\u2019t know exactly what it is yet, if it\u2019s a real thing, or if it’s a scripted thing (at the time I\u2019m posting it, all that\u2019s up on the page is a vague promo) but I\u2019ll definitely watch it. He\u2019s a really fun artist to follow, and also, quite friendly and gracious to his fans. I\u2019ve met him a few times and he\u2019s been nothing but genuine and sweet. So, go procure his stuff! And thanks for reading this 4,000+ word mammoth post. And let me know what you end up thinking of his work in the comments. Fall in particular tends to be a very \u2018DUDE. OMG.\u2019 movie, and I look forward to seeing y\u2019all have that reaction.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\"ericsmall\"<\/p>\n

If you\u2019ve never heard of Eric Schaeffer, today is your lucky day, because I am about to introduce you to quite possibly your new favorite filmmaker. I say \u2018possibly\u2019 because he\u2019s definitely not for everyone. Either you\u2019ll dig his vibe or you won\u2019t\u2014more specifically, either his art will rip your fucking heart out of your chest and hug it<\/i>, or you\u2019ll be all \u2018he\u2019s weird\u2019 and go watch something else. And I say \u2018new favorite\u2019 because if you enjoy the first thing of his you see, you will definitely quickly seek out and devour all <\/i>of his things, and force close friends and lovers of yours to go through the same process so that you can watch them<\/i> have the same reaction you <\/i>did, as a way of sort of pinching yourself to make sure you\u2019re not dreaming, and \u2018not the only one\u2019. And they will be grateful for you showing them the light. And you<\/i> will be grateful for me<\/i> showing you the light. And you\u2019re welcome<\/i>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[25,18],"tags":[548,549,530,531,133,34,523,339,32,528,522,562,524,535,534,536,537,561,556,557,543,553,554,538,539,559,526,558,560,544,545,532,546,547,141,246,525,53,527,33,104,185,550,551,552,533,555,529,541,540,542],"class_list":["post-1170","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-allposts","category-codysessays","tag-after-fall-winter","tag-after-fall-winter-reviews","tag-brothers-solomon","tag-brown-bunny","tag-buffalo-66","tag-bukowski","tag-chantal-akerman","tag-charles-bukowski","tag-cody-clarke","tag-emily-perkins","tag-eric-schaeffer","tag-eric-schaeffer-life-coach","tag-excessive-force","tag-fall","tag-fall-1997","tag-fall-movie","tag-fall-movie-1997","tag-freaks-and-geeks","tag-gravity","tag-gravity-tv-show","tag-ham-on-rye","tag-i-cant-believe-im-still-single","tag-i-cant-believe-im-still-single-eric-schaeffer","tag-if-lucy-fell","tag-if-lucy-fell-movie","tag-john-from-cincinnati","tag-kajitsu","tag-lost","tag-luck","tag-mind-the-gap","tag-mind-the-gap-movie","tag-mrericschaeffer","tag-my-lifes-in-turnaround","tag-my-lifes-in-turnaround-2","tag-never-again","tag-never-again-movie","tag-paolo-serpieri","tag-rehearsals","tag-richard-brautigan","tag-shredder","tag-smug-film-2","tag-smugfilm","tag-starved-fx","tag-starved-fx-episodes","tag-starved-tv-show","tag-stay-tuned","tag-theyre-out-of-the-business","tag-ume-plum-vinegar","tag-wild-strawberries","tag-wirey-spindell","tag-wirey-spindell-eric-mabius"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/smugfilm.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1170","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/smugfilm.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/smugfilm.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smugfilm.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smugfilm.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1170"}],"version-history":[{"count":37,"href":"https:\/\/smugfilm.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1170\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1220,"href":"https:\/\/smugfilm.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1170\/revisions\/1220"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/smugfilm.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1170"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smugfilm.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1170"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smugfilm.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1170"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}