To Being A Little More Dazed And Confused

Simon argues that the lasting appeal of Richard Linklater's Dazed and Confused, which turned 30, reflects a value of unstructuredness that modern data-driven studios and communication habits have lost. He cites Linklater's remark that a studio would no longer give a director $6 million to make an indie-style "weirdo film" like Slacker. He also describes a Variety report that studios now assemble "super fan focus groups" to test marketing and sometimes change projects, and he compares overreliance on data and constant communication to a diet heavy in carbs.