Making Dazed (2005) - 7/10

I’m watching this having just read Melissa Maetz’s book ‘Alright, Alright, Alright: The Oral History of Richard Linklater’s Dazed and Confused’ cover to cover, I couldn’t put it down. Dazed and Confused is one of my favourite films and the book is a wonderful insight into its making, by those who made it. This documentary feels very much like a source and extension of the book and the film. It’s the usual mix of talking heads and behind the scenes clips, that tells the story of inception. It’s independent core navigating the studio machine. The crop of first time actors, many of whom went on to be stars, that made their debut in Dazed. The film feels loose and chaotic on the surface and it’s clear with this insight that it comes from the production. Tight budgets, inexperienced actors, heavy handed producers, all lead to what could’ve derailed another set of people, but here, it’s fluidity is Dazed’s strength, it’s not shambolic, it looks like it might’ve been one of the best movies to work on, ever! It’s a testament to Linklater, that although there’s some massive personalities at play here, he somehow manages to wrangle Mathew McConaughy, Parker Posey, Ben Affleck, honestly the cast is nuts! The joy permeates the screen, the sadness that it must end palpable. Apparently the first cut of Dazed was nearly three hours, god I’d love to see that.

7/10