How does one follow-up creating, showrunning, and sticking the landing to The Sopranos, the cultural phenomenon, often thought to be the greatest television show ever, and arguably the spark for our current era of Peak TV? By writing and directing a first feature, an autobiographical coming of age story about a ‘60s band that never made it, and then watching the movie largely… fade away (sorry, had to do it). Ted is back this week to discuss David Chase’s 2012 film:
why it’s been largely ignored by critics,
whether its rich period detail is evocative or a nostalgic indulgence,
and Chase’s sensibility that mixes auteurist precision with a Raymond Carver-like sense of poetic digression.
Also:
How Chase shares that sensibility with former Sopranos writer and Mad Men creator Matthew Weiner,
how Weiner’s Mad Men follow-up first feature Are You Here is the out-of-character misfire that many assume Not Fade Away is,
why the film has more empathy than the entirety of The Sopranos,
Ted’s favorite Beatles song,
and, in a world where you’re either a Beatles or Stones person, how two Beatles people can want a movie clearly made by a Stones guy to have its day in the sun.
Not Fade Away is not available to stream, but is available to rent on VOD.
Haycraft is film critic for WFIE-14 and co-hosts Cinema Chat on its Midday show. He can also be found on Cinema Chat’s Facebook page.