There's some interesting quotes in here and I sort of have to give it to Garland on why he's in general leaving the director's seat.
But Garland [...] says that isn’t it: “The pressure doesn’t come from the money. It comes from the fact that you’re asking people to trust something that, on the face of it, doesn’t look very trustworthy.” He gives, as an example, sitting in a car park outside Atlanta, asking his Civil War cast to believe that one day the VFX blue screen behind them will be a night sky lit up by mortar fire.
But also there's some truly insane quotes here that feel like they're gaslighting me for ever liking any of his works.
“What I’m usually doing in films is presenting more than one opinion, so it’s more like a conversation, rather than: ‘Do this, think that’. So there are several ways you could look at Ex Machina; as a film about sentience, or where gender resides, or objectification. The same is true of Men. And somewhere, coded within that, I will be taking a position. But I’ve tried to do it in a way that isn’t interrupting the conversation.”
What?? What the fuck are you talking about, 'conversation'? What clown thinks I'm going to the theatre to be like ah yes, time to have an ideological debate with this brick wall. You have made several works based on explicit political ideology either generally or very directly referencing modern day issues, and then turn that shit back around on me and be like "I don't really want to state my opinion here."
????
Then why the fuck make movies, man!! Why pick up the pen!! Why pick the subject matter that you do!! Is it all for the taking, for you? Are women and their collective trauma about various aspects of life just a bouncing board to you? Are the vibes just too good? Motherfucker we make art to say something. It is irrefutably a statement no matter the end result.
He does, however, seem to be having much less fun with the unpredictable way people might participate in this conversation when it comes to Civil War, at one point requesting to go off-record so he can explain his personal views and voting preferences.
ASDKJSDKJASKDJASAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH
MAN SO CONCERNED WITH SAYING ANYTHING IN HIS POLITICAL MOVIE THAT HE WON'T EVEN GO ON THE RECORD ABOUT HIS POLITICAL BELIEFS. Coward.
I suppose it's a blessing, then, that we will never get another movie directed by him. I suppose it's a curse, then, that he will instead be focusing on screenwriting again. A man so thoroughly scared of saying anything wholly dedicating his time to the craft of literally putting words on paper.
