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The song is like having a religious experience with your own mental disorder. And it has a real feel of restlessness to it, almost like stream of consciousness. Burnham then kicks back into song, still addressing his audience, who seem unsure of whether to laugh, applaud, or sit somberly in their chairs. "They say it's like the 'me' generation. Netflix. Performing "Make Happy" was mentally taxing on Burnham. Burnham starts spiraling in a mental health crisis, mentioning suicidal ideation after lamenting his advance into his 30s. He puts himself on a cross using his projector, and the whole video is him exercising, like he's training for when he's inevitably "canceled.". Don't overthink this, look in my eye don't be scared, don't be shy, come on in the water's fine."). I got so much better, in fact, that in January of 2020, I thought 'you know what I should start performing again. Similarly, Burnham often speaks to the audience by filming himself speaking to himself in a mirror. In his new Netflix special, Inside, Bo Burnham sings about trying to be funny while stuck in a room. 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. But now Burnham is showing us the clutter of the room where "Inside" was filmed. Now Burnham is showing us the clutter of the room, where he's almost claustrophobically surrounded by equipment. And the very format of it, as I said, it's very much this kind of sinister figure trying to get you interested. The whole video is filmed like one big thirst trap as he sweats and works out. And now depression has its grips in him. MARTIN: This special is titled, appropriately enough, "Inside," and it is streaming on Netflix now. An existential dread creeps in, but Burnham's depression-voice tells us not to worry and sink into nihilism. 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 Its an instinct I have for all my work to have some deeper meaning or something. One comment stuck out to me: Theres something really powerful and painful about, hearing his actual voice singing and breaking at certain points. MARTIN: You know, about that, because it does move into a deeply serious place at some point. (The question is no longer, Do you want to buy Wheat Thins?, for example. Bo Burnhams latest Netflix special, Inside, is a solo venture about the comedian and filmmakers difficult experience in quarantine thats earned enthusiastic critical acclaim. Likewise. "That's a good start. ", "On September 17, the clock began counting down from seven years, 103 days, 15 hours, 40 minutes and seven seconds, displayed in red," the Smithsonian reported. In Unpaid Intern, Burnham sings about how deeply unethical the position is to the workers in a pastiche of other labor-focused blues. Teeuwen's performance shows a twisted, codependent relationship between him and the puppet on his hand, something Burnham is clearly channeling in his own sock puppet routine in "Inside.". Inside is a tricky work that for all its boundary-crossing remains in the end a comedy in the spirit of neurotic, self-loathing stand-up. True, but it can deepen and clarify art. While this special is the product of evolution, Burnham is pointing out its also a regression. Netflix did, however, post Facetime with My Mom (Tonight) on YouTube. Toward the end, he appears completely naked behind his keyboard. See our analysis of the end of the special, and why Burnham's analogy for depression works so well. Burnham's growth is admirable, but also revealing of how little we expect from men in the industry. In the song "That Funny Feeling," Burnham mentions these two year spans without further explanation, but it seems like he's referencing the "critical window for action to prevent the effects of global warming from becoming irreversible. WebBo Burnham: Inside (2021) Exploring mental health decline over 2020, the constant challenges our world faces, and the struggles of life itself, Bo Burnham creates a. wonderful masterpiece to explain each of these, both from general view and personal experience. It's so good to hear your voice. I got better. While the other songs have abrupt endings, or harsh transitions, "That Funny Feeling" simply fades quietly into darkness perhaps the way Burnham imagines the ending of it all will happen. On the simplest level, Inside is the story of a comic struggling to make a funny show during quarantine and gradually losing his mind. ", He then pulls the same joke again, letting the song play after the audience's applause so it seems like a mistake. The final shot is of him looking positively orgasmic, eyes closed, on the cross. 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. He's the writer, director, editor, and star of this show. So this is how it ends. This line comes full circle by the end of the special, so keep it in mind. 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). An older Burnham sits at a stool in front of a clock, and he says into a microphone that he's been working on the special for six months now. The whole song sounds like you're having a religious experience with your own mental disorder, especially when new harmonies kick in. Its a stupid song, and, uh, it doesnt really mean anything. The video continues. It's a hint at the promised future; the possibility of once again being able to go outside and feel sunlight again. 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.". HOLMES: Yeah. The lead-in is Burnham thanking a nonexistent audience for being there with him for the last year. I cant say how Burnham thinks or feels with any authority, but as text and form-driven comedy, Inside urges the audience to reflect on how they interact with creators. Well, well, buddy you found it, now come out with your hands up we've got you surrounded.". So we broke down each song and sketch and analyzed their meaning and context. Burnham reacts to his reaction to his reaction: Im so afraid that this criticism will be levied against me that I levy it against myself before anyone else can. The video keeps going. Good. Its folly to duplicate the feel of a live set, so why not fully adjust to the screen and try to make something as visually ambitious as a feature? They may still be comical, but they have a different feel. 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. Exploring mental health decline over 2020, the constant challenges our world faces, and the struggles of life itself, Bo Burnham creates a wonderful masterpiece to explain each of these, both from general view and personal experience. I'm sitting down, writing jokes, singing silly songs, I'm sorry I was gone. Went out to look for a reason to hide again. On the other two sides of that question ("no" and "not sure") the flowchart asks if it could be "interpreted" as mean (if so, then it's "not funny") or if it "punches down.". Burnham can't get through his words in the update as he admits he's been working on the special much longer than he'd anticipated. . It's progress. 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. Burnhams online success and an awareness of what kind of his audiences perceived closeness made the comedian key to one of the most prominent discussions in a creator- and influencer-driven era of media: the idea of parasocial relationships. "Healing the world with comedy, the indescribable power of your comedy," the voice sings. To save you the time freeze-framing, here's the complete message: "No pressure by the way at any point we can stop i just want to make sure ur comfortable all this and please dont feel obligated to send anything you dont want to just cuz i want things doesnt mean i should get them and its sometimes confusing because i think you enjoy it when i beg and express how much i want you but i dont ever want that to turn into you feeling pressured into doing something you don't want or feeling like youre disappointing me this is just meant to be fun and if at any point its not fun for you we can stop and im sorry if me saying this is killing the mood i just like ". Now we've come full circle from the start of the special, when Burnham sang about how he's been depressed and decided to try just getting up, sitting down, and going back to work. Released on May 30, 2021, Bo Burnham wrote, recorded, directed, and produced Inside while in lockdown during the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020. 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. "All Eyes On Me" starts right after Burnham's outburst of anger and sadness. After more sung repetitions of get your fuckin hands up, Burnham says, Get up. But, like so many other plans and hopes people had in the early months of the pandemic, that goal proved unattainable. Linda Holmes, welcome. Gross asked Burnham if people "misinterpreted" the song and thought it was homophobic. "Got it? Even when confronted with works that criticize parasocial attachment, its difficult for fans not to feel emotionally connected to performers they admire. It's like Burnham's special has swallowed you whole, bringing you fully into his mind at last. This is a heartbreaking chiding coming from Burnham's own distorted voice, as if he's shaming himself for sinking back into that mental state. He is now back to where he was, making jokes alone in his room, an effort to escape his reality. In the same way that earlier vocal distortion represented God, the effect on his voice in "All Eyes on Me" seems to signal some omniscient force outside of Burnham. Burnham's earlier Netflix specials and comedy albums. It's a hint at the promised future; the possibility of once again being able to go outside and feel sunlight again. Each of the songs from the first half of the special are in line with Burnham's earlier Netflix specials and comedy albums. The title card appears in white, then changes to red, signaling that a camera is recording. The tropes he says you may find on a white woman's Instagram page are peppered with cultural appropriation ("a dreamcatcher bought from Urban Outfitters") and ignorant political takes ("a random quote from 'Lord of the Rings' misattributed to Martin Luther King"). He tries to talk into the microphone, giving his audience a one-year update. A gift shop at the gun range, a mass shooting at the mall. "Any Day Now" The ending credits. BURNHAM: (Singing) Start a rumor, buy a broom or send a death threat to a Boomer. The song made such a splash in its insight that it earned its own episode in Shannon Struccis seminal Fake Friends documentary series, which broke down what parasocial relationships are and how they work. Research and analysis of parasocial relationships usually revolves around genres of performers instead of individuals. He says his goal had been to complete filming before his 30th birthday. For fans who struggle with panic attacks (myself included) its a comfort to see yourself represented in an artist whose work you respect. Thank you, Michel. Burnham wrote out: "Does it target those who have been disenfranchised in a historical, political, social, economic and/or psychological context?". But the lyrics Burnham sings seem to imply that he wants to be held accountable for thoughtless and offensive jokes of his past: "Father please forgive me for I did not realize what I did, or that I'd live to regret it, times are changing and I'm getting old, are you gonna hold me accountable?". "I was in a full body sweat, so I didn't hear most of that," Burnham said after the clip played. A part of me loves you, part of me hates you / Part of me needs you, part of me fears you / [. MARTIN: So Bo Burnham has had a lot of different identities lately. In the song Problematic, Burnham sings about his past problematic behavior, asking the audience, Isnt anyone going to hold me accountable? The specials intermission looks like a clear view into Burnhams room, until Burnham washes a window between himself and the viewer an explicit, but invisible, boundary between creator and audience. I don't think it's perfectly morally defendable.". Some of the narrative of the show can be indulgently overheated, playing into clichs about the process of the brooding artist, but Burnham has anticipated this and other criticisms, and integrated them into the special, including the idea that drawing attention to potential flaws fixes them. But unlike many of us, Burnham was also hard at work on a one-man show directed, written and performed all by himself. There's also another little joke baked into this bit, because the game is made by a company called SSRI interactive the most common form of antidepressant drugs are called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, aka SSRIs. With electro-pop social commentary, bleak humour and sock-puppet debates, the comics lockdown creation is astonishing. "And so, today, I'm gonna try just getting up, sitting down, going back to work. Apathy's a tragedy, and boredom is a crime. At the beginning of "Inside," Burnham is not only coming back to that same room, but he's wearing a very similar outfit: jeans, T-shirt, and sneakers picking up right back where he left off. It's a reprieve of the lyrics Burnham sang earlier in the special when he was reminiscing about being a kid stuck in his room. Other than Fred Rogers, Bo Burnham is one of the most cited single individual creators when discussing parasocial relationships. I actually felt true mutual empathy with someone for the first time, and with someone Ive never even met, its kinda funny.. "Part of me needs you, part of me fears you. Perform everything to each other, all the time for no reason. I have a funky memory and I sometimes can't remember things from something I've watched, even if it was just yesterday. And it has a lot of very clever and very quick wordplay about the specific things you can get on the internet. He also costarred in the Oscar-winning movie "Promising Young Woman," filmed in 2019. Like he's parodying white people who think that by crucifying themselves first they're somehow freed from the consequences of their actions. Feelings of depersonalization and derealization can be very disturbing and may feel like you're living in a dream.". Its called INSIDE, and it will undoubtedly strike your hearts forevermore. His new Netflix special Inside was directed, written and performed all inside one room. 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. Linda, thank you so much for joining us. Get up. ", The Mayo Clinic defines depersonalization-derealization disorder as occurring "when you persistently or repeatedly have the feeling that you're observing yourself from outside your body or you have a sense that things around you aren't real, or both. It's a quiet, banal scene that many people coming out of a depressive episode might recognize. Might not help, but still, it couldn't hurt.". Other artists have made works on the wavelength of Repeat Stuff, but few creators with a platform as large as Burnhams return to the topic over and over, touching on it in almost all of their works. Comedian and filmmaker Bo Burnham used his time alone during the pandemic to create a one-man show. TikTok creator @TheWoodMother made a video about how Burnham's "Inside" is its own poioumenon thanks to the meta scenes of Burnham setting up lights and cameras, not to mention the musical numbers like "Content" and "Comedy" that all help to tell the story of Burnham making this new special. Look at them, they're just staring at me, like '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. At just 20 years old, Burnham was a guest alongside Judd Apatow, Marc Maron, Ray Romano, and Garry Shandling. 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. All Eyes on Me takes a different approach to rattling the viewer. Mirroring the earlier scene where Burnham went to sleep, now Burnham is shown "waking up.". Its an uncanny, dystopian view of Burnham as an instrument in the soulless game of social media. Just wanted to make sure everybody knew about Bo's comedy special transcripts on Scraps. Burnham's hair is shorter in those initial behind-the-scenes moments, but his future-self has a longer, unkempt beard and messy hair. Im talking to you. Bo Burnham's new Netflix comedy special "Inside" is jam-packed with references to his previous work. Like most of Burnhams specials, it includes comedic songs and creative lighting effects. How does one know if the joke punches down? HOLMES: Yeah. Trying to grant his dying father's wish, a son discovers an epic love story buried in his family's distant past. In his first Netflix special (2013's "what. It's self-conscious. He was only 16. our full breakdown of every detail and reference you might have missed in "Inside" here. "), Burnham sang a parody song called "Sad" about, well, all the sad stuff in the world. Let's take a closer look at just a few of those bubbles, shall we? Coined in 1956 by researchers Donald Horton and Richard Wohl, the term initially was used to analyze relationships between news anchors who spoke directly to the audience and that audience itself. He was alone. I did! Thank you so much for joining us. 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. But then the video keeps playing, and so he winds up reacting to his own reaction, and then reacting yet again to that reaction. 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. HOLMES: It felt very true to me, not in the literal sense. The comedy special perfectly encapsulated the world's collective confusion, frustration, and exhaustion amid ongoing pandemic lockdowns, bringing a quirky spin to the ongoing existential terror that was the year 2020. But he meant to knock the water over, yeah yeah yeah, art is a lie nothing is real. 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). BURNHAM: (Singing) The live-action "Lion King," the Pepsi halftime show, 20,000 years of this, seven more to go. Photograph: Netflix Its a measure of the quality of Inside 1.0 that this stuff could end up on the cutting-room floor. It has extended versions of songs, cut songs, and alternate versions of songs that were eventually deleted; but is mainly comprised of outtakes. My heart hurts with and for him. And part of it is sometimes he's just in despair. As he shows in this new sketch, he's aware at a meta level that simply trying to get ahead of the criticism that could be tossed his way is itself a performance sometimes. Most sources discuss fictional characters, news anchors, childrens show hosts, or celebrity culture as a whole. I think this is something we've all been thinking about. A harsh skepticism of digital life (a life the pandemic has only magnified) is the dominant subject of the special. 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. And it's important to remember, you know, this is a piece of theater. Might not help but still it couldn't hurt. I'm talking to you, get the f--- up.". Though it does have a twist. By keeping that reveal until the end of the special, Burnham is dropping a hammer on the actual at-home audience, letting us know why his mental health has hit an ATL, as he calls it ("all time low"). Got it? He had a role in the film "Promising Young Woman." In one interpretation, maybe the smile means he's ready to be outside again. So when you get to the end of a song, it often just kind of cuts to something else. Now get inside.". 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. 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. Daddy made you your favorite. The incentives of the web, those that reward outrage, excess and sentiment, are the villains of this show. But what is it exactly - a concert, a comedy special? Then he moves into a new layer of reaction, where he responds to that previous comment. Netflix Its a lyrically dense song with camerawork that speeds up with its rhythm. Now get inside.". So let's dive into "Inside" and take a closer look at nearly every song and sketch in Burnham's special. The frame is intimate, and after such an intense special, something about that intimacy feels almost dangerous, like you should be preparing for some kind of emotional jump scare. And it portends and casts doubt on a later scene when his mental health frays and Burnham cries in earnest. The song is a pitched-down Charli XCX-styled banger of a ballad has minimal lyrics that are mostly just standard crowd instructions: put your hands up, get on your feet. On June 9, Burnham released the music from the special in an album titled Inside (The Songs), which hit No. Maybe we'll call it isolation theater. I hope to see you inside at some point. Back in 2010, Burnham appeared on Showtime's "The Green Room," a comics round table hosted by Paul Provenza. '", "Robert's been a little depressed, no!" Just as often, Burnhams shot sequencing plays against the meaning of a song, like when he breaks out a glamorous split screen to complement a comic song about FaceTiming with his mom. We see Burnham moving around in the daylight, a welcome contrast to the dark setting of "All Eyes on Me."