"I'm so worried that criticism will be levied against me that I levy it against myself before anyone else can. and concludes that if it's mean, it's not funny. Still, its difficult not to be lulled back into, again, this absolute banger. Or was it an elaborate callback to his earlier work, planted for fans seeking evidence that art is lie? The final shot is of him looking positively orgasmic, eyes closed, on the cross. "And so today I'm gonna try just getting up, sitting down, going back to work. Got it? The result, a special titled "Inside," shows all of Burnham's brilliant instincts of parody and meta-commentary on the role of white, male entertainers in the world and of poisons found in internet culture that digital space that gave him a career and fostered a damaging anxiety disorder that led him to quit performing live comedy after 2015. A harsh skepticism of digital life (a life the pandemic has only magnified) is the dominant subject of the special. ", "I do not think my intention was homophobic, but what is the implicit comedy of that song if you chase it all the way down? He slaps his leg in frustration, and eventually gives a mirthless laugh before he starts slamming objects around him. And its easier to relax when the video focuses on a separate take of Burnham singing from farther away, the frame now showing the entire room. I have a lot of material from back then that I'm not proud of and I think is offensive and I think is not helpful. It's a hint at the promised future; the possibility of once again being able to go outside and feel sunlight again. Relieved to be done? Perform everything to each other, all the time for no reason. "I was in a full body sweat, so I didn't hear most of that," Burnham said after the clip played. He was alone. But then, just as Burnham is vowing to always stay inside, and lamenting that he'll be "fully irrelevant and totally broken" in the future, the spotlight turns on him and he's completely naked. But by the end of the tune, his narrative changes into irreverence. The aesthetic telegraphs authenticity and vulnerability, but the specials stunning final shots reveal the misdirection at work, encouraging skepticism of the performativity of such realism. It's just Burnham, his room, the depressive-sound of his song, and us watching as his distorted voice tries to convince us to join him in that darkness. And she's with us now to tell us more about it. our full breakdown of every detail and reference you might have missed in "Inside" here. Like, what is it? So we broke down each song and sketch and analyzed their meaning and context. Remember how Burnham's older, more-bearded self popped up at the beginning of "Inside" when we were watching footage of him setting up the cameras and lighting? In the worst case, depression can convince a person to end their life. He says his goal had been to complete filming before his 30th birthday. ", Right as Burnham is straightening up, music begins blaring over the speakers and Burnham's own voice sings: "He meant to knock the water over, yeah yeah yeah, but you all thought it was an accident. Long before the phrase parasocial relationship had entered the mainstream zeitgeist, Burnhams work discussed the phenomenon. Depression acts like an outside force, one that is rather adept at convincing our minds to simply stay in bed, to not care, and to not try anymore. MARTIN: So as you can hear in that bit, he sounds something like other comedic songwriters who do these kind of parody or comedy songs, whether it's Tom Lehrer, Weird Al or whoever. But Burnham doesn't put the bottle down right, and it falls off the stool. But when reading songs like Dont Wanna Know and All Eyes On Me between the lines, Inside can help audiences better identify that funny feeling when they start feeling like a creator is their friend. Theres a nostalgic sweetness to this song, but parts of it return throughout the show, in darker forms, one of many variations on a theme. '", "Robert's been a little depressed, no!" And I think that, 'Oh if I'm self-aware about being a douchebag it'll somehow make me less of a douchebag.' With menacing horror movie sound effects and hectic, dreamy camerawork, what becomes clear is Burnhams title has a double meaning: referring to being inside not just a room, but also his head. We're a long way from the days when he filmed "Comedy" and the contrast shows how fruitless this method of healing has been. WebA biotech genius tries to bounce back from the depths of grief with help from his son, who works to escape his dads shadow and save the family business. This sketch, like the "White Woman Instagram" song, shows one of Burnham's writing techniques of bringing a common Internet culture into a fictionalized bit. I was not, you know, having these particular experiences. I like this song, Burnham says, before pointing out the the lack of modern songs about labor exploitation. Netflix did, however, post Facetime with My Mom (Tonight) on YouTube. It chronicles Burnhams life during the pandemic and his journey creating the special. It's a dangerously tempting invitation to stop caring, coming from the villain of this musical comedy (depression). Audiences who might not read a 1956 essay by researchers about news anchors still see much of the same discussion in Inside. The clearest inspiration is Merle Traviss 16 Tons, a song about the unethical working conditions of coal miners also used in weird Tom Hanks film Joe vs. But what is it exactly - a concert, a comedy special? Toward the end, he appears completely naked behind his keyboard. It's as if Burnham knows there are valid criticisms of him that haven't really stuck in the public discourse around his work. "Everything that once was sad is somehow funny now, the Holocaust and 9/11, that s---'s funny, 24-7, 'cause tragedy will be exclusively joked about, because my empathy iss bumming me out," he sang. While this special is the product of evolution, Burnham is pointing out its also a regression. It's wonderful to be with you. Inside, a new Netflix special written, performed, directed, shot, and edited by comedian Bo Burnham, invokes and plays with many forms. He uploaded it to YouTube, a then barely-known website that offered an easy way for people to share videos, so he could send it to his brother. But usually there is one particular voice that acts as a disembodied narrator character, some omniscient force that needles Burnham in the middle of his stand up (like the voice in "Make Happy" that interrupts Burnham's set to call him the f-slur). But then the music tells the audience that "he meant to play the track again" and that "art's still a lie, nothing's still real.". He also costarred in the Oscar-winning movie "Promising Young Woman," filmed in 2019. Viewer discretion is advised. And it portends and casts doubt on a later scene when his mental health frays and Burnham cries in earnest. HOLMES: Thank you. Burnham's earlier Netflix specials and comedy albums. Next in his special, Burnham performs a sketch song about being an unpaid intern, and then says he's going to do a "reaction" video to the song in classic YouTube format. And it's important to remember, you know, this is a piece of theater. For those who are unaware, Bos real name is Robert Burnham. The second emotional jump scare comes when Burnham monologues about how he stopped performing live because he started having panic attacks on stage, which is not a great place to have them. The monologue increases that sense of intimacy; Burnham is letting the audience in on the state of his mental health even before the global pandemic. "This show is called 'what.,' and I hope there are some surprises for you," he says as he goes to set down the water bottle. The first half is dominated by sharp, silly satires of the moment, like a visually precise and hilarious song about social media vanity, White Womans Instagram, and a commercial for a woke brand consultant. I don't know exactly how it tracks his experience, Bo Burnham, the person, right? All Eyes on Me takes a different approach to rattling the viewer. Trying to grant his dying father's wish, a son discovers an epic love story buried in his family's distant past. At the end of the song, "Inside" cuts to a shot of Burnham watching his own video on a computer in the dark. jonnyewers 30 May 2021. "Robert's been a little depressed," he sings (referring to himself by his birthname). But during the bridge of the song, he imagines a post from a woman dedicated to her dead mother, and the aspect ratio on the video widens. A series of eerie events thrusts an unlikely trio (John Boyega, Jamie Foxx and Teyonah Parris) onto the trail of a nefarious government conspiracy. "Any Day Now" The ending credits. Bo Burnhams Inside begs for our parasocial awareness The comedians lifetime online explains the heart of most of his new songs By Wil Williams @wilw_writes Jun 28, 2021, 11:01am EDT Bo Burnham's new Netflix comedy special "Inside" is jam-packed with references to his previous work. My heart hurts with and for him. Is he content with its content? He doesn't really bother with any kind of transitions. For all the ways Burnham had been desperate to leave the confines of his studio, now that he's able to go back out into the world (and onto a real stage), he's terrified. BO BURNHAM: (Singing) If you'd have told me a year ago that I'd be locked inside of my home, I would have told you a year ago, interesting, now leave me alone. And did you have any favorites? I've been singing that song for about a week NOW. By inserting that Twitch character in this earlier scene, Burnham was seemingly giving a peek into his daily routine. "You say the whole world's ending, honey it already did, you're not gonna slow it, heaven knows you tried. Under stand up, Burnham wrote "Middle-aged men protecting free speech by humping stools and telling stories about edibles" and "podcasts. 7 on the Top 200. Finally doing basic care tasks for yourself like eating breakfast and starting work in the morning. The reason he started making this special, he explains in the show, is to distract himself from shooting himself in the head, the first of several mentions of suicide (including one in which he tells viewers to just dont). He tries to talk into the microphone, giving his audience a one-year update. Burnham slaps his leg in frustration and eventually gives a mirthless laugh before he starts slamming objects around him. At first it seems to be just about life in the pandemic, but it becomes a reference to his past, when he made faces and jokes from his bedroom as a teenager and put that on the internet. And we might. It feels like the ending of a show, a climax, but it's not. "Trying to be funny and stuck in a room, there isn't much more to say about it," he starts in a new song after fumbling a first take. Still terrified of that spotlight? One of those is the internet itself. "Got it? The tension between creator and audience is a prominent theme in Burnhams work, likely because he got his start on YouTube. Sitting in the meeting room, not making a sound becomes the perceived 24/7 access fans have to DM you, reply to you, ask you questions. I did! I think this is something we've all been thinking about. Parasocial relationships can be positive too, as outlined in culture critic Stitchs essay On Parasocial Relationships and the Boundaries of Celebrity for Teen Vogue. So he has, for example, a song in which he adopts the persona of a kind of horror movie carnival barker, you might call it, who is trying to sell people the internet. I feel very close and intimate with him in this version. Now, you heard me struggling to describe what this is, so help me out. Its a feat, the work of a gifted experimentalist whose craft has caught up to his talent. But he knows how to do this. Good. Other than Fred Rogers, Bo Burnham is one of the most cited single individual creators when discussing parasocial relationships. Using cinematic tools other comics overlook, the star (who is also the director, editor and cameraman) trains a glaring spotlight on internet life mid-pandemic. The special is set almost entirely in one cluttered room. He also revealed an official poster, a single frame from the special, and the cover art prior to its release. The song begins with a fade in from back, the shot painfully close to Burnhams face as he looks off to the side. I'm talking to you, get the f--- up.". His 2014 song Repeat Stuff and its music video parodies how boy bands and other corporately-owned pop stars prey on young fans desire to feel loved by writing songs with lyrics vague enough anyone can feel like it was written specifically about them. Maybe we'll call it isolation theater. When that future-Burnham appears, it's almost like a precursor to what he'll have shown us by the end of the special: That both he, and his audience, could never have known just how brutal the next year was about to be. So let's dive into "Inside" and take a closer look at nearly every song and sketch in Burnham's special. Its a visual that signifies a man exposing himself, until you realize hes in a spotlight. Its an uncanny, dystopian view of Burnham as an instrument in the soulless game of social media. Today We'll Talk About That Day MARTIN: And it's deep, too. The song, written in 2006, is about how his whole family thinks he's gay, and the various conversations they're having trying to figure it out. The song's melody is oddly soothing, and the lyrics are a sly manifestation of the way depression convinces you to stay in its abyss ("It's almost over, it's just begun. He decided to stop doing live performances, and instead set out to write and direct his first feature film, the critically-acclaimed 2018 movie "Eighth Grade." NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. The picturesque view of sun-soaked clouds was featured in "Comedy," during the section of the song when Burnham stood up and decided that the only thing he (or his character in the song) could do was "heal the world with comedy.". Now, the term is applied to how viewers devote time, energy, and emotion to celebrities and content creators like YouTubers, podcasters, and Twitch streamers people who do not know they exist. Bo Burnhams Inside: A Comedy Special and an Inspired Experiment, https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/01/arts/television/bo-burnham-inside-comedy.html. Come and watch the skinny kid with a / Steadily declining mental health, and laugh as he attempts / To give you what he cannot give himself. Like Struccis Fake Friends documentary, this song is highlighted in Anuska Dhars video essay, Bo Burnham and the Trap of Parasocial Self-Awareness. Burnhams work consistently addresses his relationship with his audience, the ways he navigates those parasocial relationships, and how easy they can be to exploit. According to a May 2021 Slate article, the piece was filmed at Bo Burnhams Los Angeles guest housethe same room used for June 2016s Are You Happy? and the closing shots of the Make Happy special. It's an instinct that I have where I need everything that I write to have some deeper meaning or something, but it's a stupid song and it doesn't really mean anything, and it's pretty unlikable that I feel this desperate need to be seen as intelligent.". We see Burnham moving around in the daylight, a welcome contrast to the dark setting of "All Eyes on Me." Burnham brings back all the motifs from the earlier songs into his finale, revisiting all the stages of emotion he took us through for the last 90 minutes. You know, I was not, you know, I was alone, but I was not trapped in one room. Many of his songs begin seriously, then shift into the joke, but this one doesnt. Some of the things he mentions that give him "that funny feeling" include discount Etsy agitprop (aka communist-themed merchandise) and the Pepsi halftime show. I'm sitting down, writing jokes, singing silly songs, I'm sorry I was gone. He has one where he's just sitting on a stool with an acoustic guitar describing our modern world. Bo Burnham; former YouTuber, iconic Viner, and acclaimed stand-up comedian has recently released a new Netflix special. HOLMES: That was NPR's Linda Holmes reviewing Bo Burnham's new Netflix special "Inside." Comedian and filmmaker Bo Burnham used his time alone during the pandemic to create a one-man show. Thematically, it deals with the events of 2020, rising wealth inequality, racial injustice, isolation, mental health, social media, and technologys role in our lives. Not only is this whiteboard a play on the classic comedy rule that "tragedy plus time equals comedy," but it's a callback to Burnham's older work. Inside takes topics discussed academically, analytically, and delivers them to a new audience through the form of a comedy special by a widely beloved performer. Like he's parodying white people who think that by crucifying themselves first they're somehow freed from the consequences of their actions. Relieved to be done? It's a hint at the promised future; the possibility of once again being able to go outside and feel sunlight again. People experiencing depression often stop doing basic self-care tasks, like showering or laundry or brushing their teeth. Bo Burnhams latest Netflix special, Inside, is a solo venture about the comedian and filmmakers difficult experience in quarantine thats earned enthusiastic critical acclaim. Now, five years later, Burnham's new parody song is digging even deeper at the philosophical question of whether or not it's appropriate to be creating comedy during a horrifyingly raw period of tragedy like the COVID-19 pandemic and the social reckoning that followed George Floyd's murder. Most of the comments talk about how visceral it is to hear Burnhams real voice singing the upsetting lyrics. See our full breakdown of every detail and reference you might have missed in "Inside" here. I have a funky memory and I sometimes can't remember things from something I've watched, even if it was just yesterday. Here's a little bit of that. Bo Burnham: INSIDE | Trailer - YouTube 0:00 / 2:09 The following content may contain suicide or self-harm topics. Initially, this seems like a pretty standard takedown of the basic bitch stereotype co-opted from Black Twitter, until the aspect ratio widens and Burnham sings a shockingly personal, emotional caption from the same feed. Burnham has said in interviews that his inspiration for the character came from real YouTube videos he had watched, most with just a handful of views, and saw the way young women expressed themselves online. "Goodbye sadness, hello jokes!". Burnham lingers on his behind-the-scenes technical tinkering handling lights, editing, practicing lines. Likewise, the finale of Burnhams next special, Make Happy (2016) closes in a song called Handle This (Kanye Rant). The song starts as him venting his hyperbolically small problems, until the tone shifts, and he starts directly addressing the audience, singing: The truth is, my biggest problem is you / [. Netflix How how successful do you think is "Inside" at addressing, describing kind of confronting the experience that a lot of people have had over the past year? Thank you so much for joining us. Burnham is also the main character in the game, a character who is seen moving mechanically around a room. With electro-pop social commentary, bleak humour and sock-puppet debates, the comics lockdown creation is astonishing. Its called INSIDE, and it will undoubtedly strike your hearts forevermore. That YouTube commenter might be understood by Burnham if they were to meet him. His virtuosic new special, Inside (on Netflix), pushes this trend further, so far that it feels as if he has created something entirely new and unlikely, both sweepingly cinematic and claustrophobically intimate, a Zeitgeist-chasing musical comedy made alone to an audience of no one. Anyone can read what you share. Thank you, Michel. In recent years, he has begun directing other comics specials, staging stand-up sets by Chris Rock and Jerrod Carmichael with his signature extreme close-ups. It's a quiet, banal scene that many people coming out of a depressive episode might recognize. But he's largely been given a pass by his fans, who praise his self-awareness and new approach. Thought modern humans have been around for much longer than 20,000 years, that's around how long ago people first migrated to North America. Web9/10. Comedian Bo Burnham recently a new comedy special for Netflix aptly titled Inside which was filmed entirely by himself while under lockdown during the Coronavirus Pandemic in 2020.

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