Sam Raimi's Best Scene (Is In a Movie He Didn't Direct)

Patrick (H) Willems

2 Jun 202233:28

EducationalLearning

32 Likes 10 Comments

TLDRThis video analyzes the hula hoop montage sequence from the 1994 Coen brothers film 'The Hudsucker Proxy', directed by Sam Raimi. It provides background on the history of creative collaboration between Raimi and the Coens, from 'Evil Dead' to 'Crimewave', and how their distinctive styles fuse in this stylized sequence. The video extensively breaks down how Raimi utilizes dynamic camera movements, rapid editing, sight gags, and music to build narrative momentum and mythic grandeur around Norville's hula hoop invention. It argues the sequence represents the core of Raimi's primal, fable-like filmmaking, the story of an optimistic hero changing the world despite being battered by sinister forces.

Takeaways

😊 The video explores the collaboration between director Sam Raimi and the Coen brothers on the 1994 film 'The Hudsucker Proxy'
🎥 Raimi directed the iconic hula hoop montage sequence in the film
🤝 Raimi and the Coens have an intertwined history, working together on films like 'Crimewave'
👪 The hula hoop montage tells a visually dynamic story on its own about the spread of a fad
🎞 The montage exemplifies Raimi's kinetic directorial style
🎬 The sequence contrasts with the Coens' more restrained approach to montages
🔁 Themes like fads spreading tie into larger ideas about capitalism and conformity explored in the film
🤔 The video posits the montage as a metaphor for the ambitious but commercially underappreciated film itself
🎞 Raimi excels at using montages to condense emotions, ideas and storytelling
👍 The video makes a case for revisiting 'The Hudsucker Proxy' during this era of Raimi appreciation

Q & A

Who directed The Hudsucker Proxy?
-It was co-written and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen, with Sam Raimi as co-writer and second unit director.
What is the plot of The Hudsucker Proxy?
-It's a comedy set in 1950s New York about a man from Indiana named Norville Barnes who becomes president of a massive company called Hudsucker Industries and invents the hula hoop.
What techniques did Sam Raimi bring to the hula hoop montage sequence?
-Raimi brought his signature energetic camera moves, whip pans, long follow shots, fractured body part close-ups, and visuals influenced by old cartoons.
How does the hula hoop montage tell a story?
-It has a narrative arc, beginning with the frenzied initial idea and creation process, a slower middle section showing initial failure, and an uplifting conclusion as a child discovers and popularizes the hula hoop.
What is the theme of Sam Raimi's films?
-Many of Raimi's films are about protagonists who are cursed or doomed to difficult lives where the world is against them, but they heroically persevere.
How does The Hudsucker Proxy fit into Raimi's themes?
-Norville is an optimistic protagonist nearly destroyed by capitalism's evil, but he changes the world in a silly way, fitting Raimi's theme of heroes overcoming extreme odds.
What is the author's interpretation of the montage?
-The author sees the montage as a metaphor for the movie itself - the Coens and Raimi passionately creating an odd commercial project that was initially rejected.
Why did the hula hoop succeed?
-A child discovered it after being discarded and showed its play value through his pure joy, sparking desire in other children.
What is the trailer at the end advertising?
-It's a trailer for a new 25-minute short film called Knight of the Coconut that continues the story from the author's previous YouTube videos.
Where can the new short film be watched?
-Knight of the Coconut will premiere exclusively on Nebula, a streaming service the author helped build as an alternative to YouTube.

Outlines

00:00

🎥 Intro to Raimi Season and The Hudsucker Proxy

The video introduces Raimi Season celebrating director Sam Raimi's new film in theaters after 9 years. It will discuss his collaboration with the Coen Brothers on the 1994 film The Hudsucker Proxy, which Raimi co-wrote and worked on as second unit director handling the hula hoop montage sequence.

05:02

🤝 History of Raimi and Coens' Collaboration

Raimi first met Joel Coen when he hired Coen's brother Ethan as editor for Evil Dead. Later, Raimi asked the Coens to help with his script for Crimewave, which had similar comedy style. The Coens then got help from Raimi for their directorial debut Blood Simple. Both parties continued collaborating in small ways across projects.

10:03

🎥 Making The Hudsucker Proxy

After the Coens won big at Cannes for Barton Fink, producer Joel Silver offered to fund their next passion project Hudsucker Proxy, which they had written earlier with Raimi. With the biggest budget of their careers, the Coens brought Raimi on as second unit director to handle complex shots like the hula hoop montage.

15:03

🎞️ Breakdown of Hula Hoop Montage

The 6-minute hula hoop montage shows the journey of Norville's invention from his decision to mass produce it, to the advertising team naming it, manufacturing and initial failed product launch, and finally its surprise success with children. The sequence has signature Raimi style - kinetic camerawork, rapid cuts, visual gags.

20:07

👀 Raimi's Directorial Style in Montage

The hula hoop montage has trademarks of Raimi's directing that stand out from the Coens' usual styles. These include montage as visual storytelling, dynamic camera movements, long takes, sudden whip pans, closeups of body parts, homages to old cartoons and collage editing.

25:07

🎞️ Montage as Metaphor for Film Production

The sequence metaphorically represents the making of the film itself - Raimi and Coens collaborating within the studio system to create a passion project novelty (like the hula hoop), that is initially rejected commercially before being appreciated. The kids rediscovering it represent the video essay bringing attention to it.

30:09

🍿 Trailer for The Season Finale Short Film

The end of the video presents a trailer for the 25-minute short film "Knight of the Coconut" concluding the long-running YouTube series. It premieres exclusively on streaming service Nebula, which funded its expansion into a feature film over this past year of production.

Mindmap

Keywords

💡Sam Raimi

Sam Raimi is an American filmmaker known for his distinctive visual style and blending of genres, especially horror and comedy. He directed the original Evil Dead trilogy, the Spider-Man trilogy, and other films. In this video, the narrator discusses Raimi's style and frequent use of montages as a way to condense emotions, ideas and story. The montage sequence in Hudsucker Proxy directed by Raimi exemplifies his kinetic camerawork and ability to build mythic narratives.

💡montage

A montage in filmmaking is a sequence that condenses space, time and information. Sam Raimi frequently uses fast-paced, visually creative montages like the chainsaw rig montage in Evil Dead 2. In Hudsucker Proxy, he directed a 6-minute hula hoop montage showing the rapid spread of a new toy. His montages advance story and emotion through visual juxtaposition rather than literal plot.

💡Coen brothers

The Coen brothers are acclaimed writer/directors known for clever dialogue, quotidian characters and subtle visual style. They co-wrote Hudsucker Proxy with Sam Raimi, an atypically flashy and effects-driven film for them. The hula hoop montage contrasts their usual restrained filmmaking with Raimi's kinetic, exaggerated approach.

💡Hudsucker Proxy

The Hudsucker Proxy is a 1994 comedy by the Coen brothers, co-written by Sam Raimi. It tells the mythic story of the invention of the hula hoop at a large corporation in the 1950s. Raimi directed the hula hoop montage sequence, which exemplifies his visual flair.

💡second unit director

A second unit director handles shots like landscapes without main actors. On Hudsucker Proxy, Raimi was the second unit director, helming the hula hoop montage. This allowed him freedom to employ his dynamic camera techniques like crash zooms.

💡film language

Film language refers to the techniques used to convey meaning visually - camera movement, editing, mise-en-scene etc. The video analyzes Raimi's idiosyncratic film language like whip pans and close-ups on body parts. It creates kinetic excitement and matches his stories about super-powered, mythic heroes.

💡mythic

Sam Raimi's films often have mythic quality - grand stories of heroes and villains, heightened conflicts between good and evil. Even tales without supernatural elements like For Love of the Game gain mythic proportions. The rapid ascent of the hula hoop is presented like the origin story of a cultural icon.

💡visual juxtaposition

Visual juxtaposition means placing contrasting images side-by-side to compare them and create new meaning. Raimi's montages excel at this through techniques like superimpositions. The hula hoop montage juxtaposes the beginning and end of the craze to show the dramatic change brought by a simple toy.

💡mise-en-scene

Mise-en-scene means the arrangement of everything in front of the camera - sets, props, actors, lighting, costumes etc. Raimi uses mise-en-scene to set up visual gags, like a woman reading War and Peace to indicate the passage of time while executives name the hula hoop.

💡camera movement

Camera movement is used to add excitement or convey themes. In the montage, a fast lateral track and reverse whip pan visually echo the frantic spread of memo about the hula hoop within Hudsucker Industries at the sequence's start.

Highlights

After 9 years, Sam Raimi finally has a new movie in theaters

The Hudsucker Proxy is the only movie the Coen brothers co-wrote with someone else - Sam Raimi

Raimi served as second unit director on The Hudsucker Proxy and handled the hula hoop montage sequence

The hula hoop montage sequence is my favorite in any Coen brothers movie

The Coen brothers and Raimi have a long history of friendship and collaboration

The Hudsucker Proxy production had the biggest budget the Coens ever worked with

The hula hoop montage tells a full story from beginning to end in 6 minutes

The montage begins urgently but also clownishly, very Raimi-esque

The montage turns dreamlike, visually stretching time and space

The second half mirrors the first, but now people are waiting to see what happens

The kid embracing the hula hoop is the culmination of everything in the montage

Saber Dance signals the scene's shift from grandeur to frenzy

This sequence is clearly the work of Sam Raimi

We're watching the creation of something that will succeed and last forever

Next month, the Charles saga concludes in the season finale film Knight of the Coconut

Transcripts

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