Episode 5: LAUGH ATTACK

I've always thought that this series is about the little things that get overlooked in life (and motion picture media), that end up forming the substance of relationships. To me, this episode seems to push that even further. There's a way that small annoyances, both at home and at work, can add up to a sum greater than the parts. I've certainly had plenty of times when I'm in a really sour mood, but when I stop to think about what caused it, I find only a very trivial string of events.

But there's also a way that this phenomenon can reverse itself, and a small series of annoyances can combine into something very funny. The interaction between Ron and Mary almost becomes a fight, until the humor of how petty the conflict is, and the phallic nature of the unfinished craft, cause laughter instead of conflict.

The knitted phallus also ties in to the discussion of the last episode (Bongo Board) about the imporance of objects and lower extremities. An intersection of two themes? Or just a funny dick joke? 

Re:Episode 5: LAUGH ATTACK

I get it.  The formula that is.  Stuff happens at work.  Stuff happens at home. They relate to and effect one another. 

The element I have responded to on each episode is the reaction of Ron vs. the reaction of Mary.  (As a side note, its weird how they are listed as un-named, and yet they are called by name in the episodes ??)  We get to see Ron's day job and then we get to hear about Mary's time at work.  

This is very familiar to me as when at home I rarely bring up work while my wife seems to speak of nothing else.  I wonder if this is just coincidence but it seems likely that Swanberg has hit upon another tidbit of relationship realism that gives this series its charm and "truthiness."  I found myself chuckling uncomfortably or grimacing during the first section of each short and then grinning during the home interactions.

However, after reading the comments of the other posters from previous episodes, I have begun to wonder if this series is meant for or somehow just more accessible to people in “committed relationships.”  I’m not even talking about the artistic parts of this.  I mean just basic enjoyment.  Going home to a spouse is an experience that not everyone has.  Does that give me a leg up on enjoying this set of shorts?  Are single people less likely to like it?

Re:Episode 5: LAUGH ATTACK

mattypro:

Going home to a spouse is an experience that not everyone has.  Does that give me a leg up on enjoying this set of shorts?  Are single people less likely to like it?

 I think there's something to this. Even with Swanberg's last film, Hanna Takes The Stairs, which is about perpetually dating and becoming single again, the best moments are the ones where I could relate to the interactions because I'd experienced them firsthand.

 I think most movies or shows about relationships, like Jerry Maguire or Me and You and Everyone We Know (which I still think are essentially the same movie dressed up for different audiences), portray relationships in a fantasized way. Because it's romantic fantasy, not reality, I think those movies are meant to speak more to single people than anyone else. Butterknife, on the other hand, seems to have a married (or at least committed) audience in mind. What do you guys think, any single people want to weigh in?

Re:Episode 5: LAUGH ATTACK

mattypro:

Going home to a spouse is an experience that not everyone has.  Does that give me a leg up on enjoying this set of shorts?  Are single people less likely to like it?

 I'm really happy to see the conversation moving in this direction.  As media starts to get more and more specific, and audiences become more fragmented, I think filmmakers are actually given more freedom to make work that doesn't have to appeal to everyone.

 Why not make a web series that is specifically for married couples?  Or to take it even further, why not make a web series that is specifically for married couples where the husband is a detective and the wife works with children?

I hope that everyone can enjoy BUTTERKNIFE, but we were very much going after the feeling of hanging out with your spouse after a frustrating day at work.  And why not?  If the show isn't working for you now, come back to it in 5 years and maybe there will be more of a connection.  The show won't change during that time, but the audience will.