Have you heard about the Ultimate Double Feature?
This special bit of movie magic hinges on the moment when characters in a movie go to see another movie, and the one they see is a real movie that actually exists in the world.
What if you could watch a movie, then watch the movie within the movie at the very moment the characters in it are watching it?
That’s the Ultimate Double Feature.
And at least one movie theater in America is making it happen.
The Brattle in Cambridge, MA plays the first movie until the characters enter a cinema to watch a different film, then plays the film the characters are also watching. Then, once that movie-inside-the-movie is finished, they go back to the first film and finish that story.
Brilliant. Right?
The examples that immediately came to mind:
“Donnie Darko” and “The Evil Dead”
“Gremlins” and “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs”
“Taxi Driver” and whatever pornographic film Travis Bickle takes Betsy to see
That last one would be a doozy of a double feature.
The example offered by The Brattle on its website is “Annie Hall” and “The Sorrow and the Pity.”
They write:
“Imagine if you were watching “Annie Hall” up until Woody and Diane decide to go and watch “The Sorrow and the Pity,” and then it cuts to the entirety of “The Sorrow and the Pity,” and then it goes back to Woody and Diane coming out of the cinema in “Annie Hall” (Don’t worry, we’re not doing that one).”
Pretty neat. Huh?
Along similar lines, I also love it when the film’s soundtrack blends with a character’s own music.
A few examples I love include:
“Baby Driver” — The film opens with “Bellbottoms” by The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, and at first it feels like a normal action-movie soundtrack, but then it’s revealed that the music is coming from Baby’s iPod, and the entire chase is timed to it.
“Guardians of the Galaxy” — “Come and Get Your Love” by Redbone begins like a typical soundtrack cue. Then the camera reveals Peter Quill listening to his Walkman, dancing through the ruins.
“Shaun of the Dead” — “Don’t Stop Me Now” by Queen kicks in during a zombie fight, then characters realize it’s coming from the pub jukebox, and they keep fighting in rhythm with it.
Brilliant examples that surprised me in a delightful way.
