I did! But then the video keeps playing, and so he winds up reacting to his own reaction, and then reacting yet again to that reaction. Here's a little bit of that. The whole song ping pongs between Burnham's singing character describing a very surface-level, pleasant definition of the world functioning as a cohesive ecosystem and his puppet, Socko, saying that the truth is the world functions at a much darker level of power imbalance and oppression. Bo Burnham: INSIDE | Trailer - YouTube 0:00 / 2:09 The following content may contain suicide or self-harm topics. Hes bedraggled, increasingly unshaven, growing a Rasputin-like beard. Bo Burnham: Inside, was written, edited, and directed by the talent himself and the entire show is shot in one room. Burnham had no idea that his song would be seen more than 10 million times,nor that it would kick start his career in a niche brand of self-aware musical comedy. Likewise, the finale of Burnhams next special, Make Happy (2016) closes in a song called Handle This (Kanye Rant). The song starts as him venting his hyperbolically small problems, until the tone shifts, and he starts directly addressing the audience, singing: The truth is, my biggest problem is you / [. Tapping on a synthesizer, he sings about the challenges of isolation as he sits on a cluttered floor, two striking squares of sunlight streaming in through the windows of a dark room. Known as "Art is a Lie, Nothing is Real," there's a bit Burnham did at the start of his 2013 special "what." I'm talking to you, get the f--- up.". As someone who has devoted time, energy, and years of research into parasocial relationships, I felt almost like this song was made for me, that Burnham and I do have so much in common. One of the most encouraging developments in comedy over the past decade has been the growing directorial ambition of stand-up specials. Likewise. That YouTube commenter might be understood by Burnham if they were to meet him. HOLMES: So, as you'll hear there, on the one hand, there's a lot of sadness in what he's talking about there. Im talking to you. HOLMES: It felt very true to me, not in the literal sense. He was only 16. 1 on Billboards comedy albums chart and eventually climbed to No. He also revealed an official poster, a single frame from the special, and the cover art prior to its release. After about 35 minutes of candy-colored, slickly designed sketch comedy, the tone shifts with Burnhams first completely earnest song, a lovely indie-rock tune with an ear worm of a hook about trying to be funny and stuck in a room. This is the shows hinge. MARTIN: You know, about that, because it does move into a deeply serious place at some point. Burnham's career as a young, white, male comedian has often felt distinct from his peers because of the amount of public self-reflection and acknowledgment of his own privileges that he does on stage and off screen. The clean, tidy interior that first connected "Inside" with "Make Happy" is gone in its place is a mess-riddled space. They Cloned Tyrone. It's wonderful to be with you. And we might. "And so, today, I'm gonna try just getting up, sitting down, going back to work. And I don't think that I can handle this right now. 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. HOLMES: So before he was this celebrated filmmaker, Bo Burnham was himself a YouTube star. Poioumenon (from the Greek word for "product") is a term created by author Alastair Fowler and usually used to refer to a kind of metafiction. Not only is this whiteboard a play on the classic comedy rule that "tragedy plus time equals comedy," but it's a callback to Burnham's older work. BURNHAM: (Singing) Does anybody want to joke when no one's laughing in the background? Burnham watching the end of his special on a projector also brings the poioumenon full circle the artist has finished their work and is showing you the end of the process it took to create it. .] of the internet, welcoming everyone with a decadent menu of options while disco lights twirl. 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). Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. Like, what is it? Bo Burnham In one interpretation, maybe the smile means he's ready to be outside again. See our analysis of the end of the special, and why Burnham's analogy for depression works so well. Inside takes topics discussed academically, analytically, and delivers them to a new audience through the form of a comedy special by a widely beloved performer. Its an origin story of sorts. A harsh skepticism of digital life (a life the pandemic has only magnified) is the dominant subject of the special. Inside (2021) opens with Bo Burnham sitting alone in a room singing what will be the first of many musical comedy numbers, Content. In the song, Burnham expresses, Roberts been a little depressed ii. 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. HOLMES: Right. Toward the end, he appears completely naked behind his keyboard. Burnham may also be trying to parody the hollow, PR-scripted apologies that celebrities will trot out before they've possibly had the time to self-reflect and really understand what people are trying to hold them accountable for. How does one know if the joke punches down? Thematically, it deals with the events of 2020, rising wealth inequality, racial injustice, isolation, mental health, social media, and technologys role in our lives. 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. WebA grieving woman magically travels through time to 1998, where she meets a man with an uncanny resemblance to her late love. The piece also highlights Bos anxieties with becoming older and his legacy as a comedian. And many people will probably remember his 2018 movie, "Eighth Grade." (SOUNDBITE OF COMEDY SPECIAL, "BO BURNHAM: INSIDE"). 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.". And like those specials, Inside implores fans to think about deeper themes as well as how we think about comedy as a genre. "You say the whole world's ending, honey it already did, you're not gonna slow it, heaven knows you tried. Inside Well, well, buddy you found it, now come out with your hands up we've got you surrounded.". Bo Burnham Burnham achieved a similar uncanny sense of realism in his movie "Eighth Grade," the protagonist of which is a 13-year-old girl with extreme social anxiety who makes self-help YouTube videos. BURNHAM: (Singing) Start a rumor, buy a broom or send a death threat to a Boomer. Not only has his musical range expanded his pastiche of styles includes bebop, synth-pop and peppy show tunes Burnham, who once published a book of poems, has also become as meticulous and creative with his visual vocabulary as his language. While talking to the audience during the opening section, Burnham takes a sip out of a water bottle. Bo Burnham But by the end of the tune, his narrative changes into irreverence. But then, just as Burnham is vowing to always stay inside, and lamenting that he'll be "fully irrelevant and totally broken" in the future, the spotlight turns on him and he's completely naked. Gross asked Burnham if people "misinterpreted" the song and thought it was homophobic. 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. While platforms like Patreon mean creators can make their own works independently without studio influence, they also mean that the creator is directly beholden to their audience. ", When asked about the inspiration for the song, like if people he knew thought he was gay, Burnham said, "A lot of my close friends were gay, and, you know, I wasn't certain I wasn't at that point.". Burnham's growth is admirable, but also revealing of how little we expect from men in the industry. A college student navigates life and school while dealing with a unique predicament he's living with a beautiful former K-pop sensation. Years later, the comedian told NPR's Terry Gross that performing the special was so tough that he was having panic attacks on stage. He's freely admitting that self-awareness isn't enough while also clearly unable to move away from that self-aware comedic space he so brilliantly holds. It's a series of musical numbers and skits that are inherently about the creation of comedy itself. Released on May 30, 2021, Bo Burnham wrote, recorded, directed, and produced Inside while in lockdown during the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020. But Burnham doesn't put the bottle down right, and it falls off the stool. Photograph: Netflix Its a measure of the quality of Inside 1.0 that this stuff could end up on the cutting-room floor. And if you go back and you look at a film like "Eighth Grade," he's always been really consumed by sort of the positive and the negative of social media and the internet and the life of of young kids. See our full breakdown of every detail and reference you might have missed in "Inside" here. 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. Instead, thanks to his ultra-self-aware style, he seems to always get ahead of criticism by holding himself accountable first. The lead-in is Burnham thanking a nonexistent audience for being there with him for the last year. People experiencing depression often stop doing basic self-care tasks, like showering or laundry or brushing their teeth. Bo Burnhams Inside: A Comedy Special and an Inspired Experiment, https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/01/arts/television/bo-burnham-inside-comedy.html. His hair and beard were shorter, and he was full of inspired energy. But also, it's clear that there's a lot on his mind. I got so much better, in fact, that in January of 2020, I thought 'you know what I should start performing again. You know, I was not, you know, I was alone, but I was not trapped in one room. It's a quiet, banal scene that many people coming out of a depressive episode might recognize. Inside is the work of a comic with artistic tools most of his peers ignore or overlook. Its called INSIDE, and it will undoubtedly strike your hearts forevermore. Bo Burnhams 2021 special, Inside. A weekly roundup of the best things from Polygon, By submitting your email, you agree to our, Bo Burnhams Inside begs for our parasocial awareness, Sign up for the He was alone. And while its an ominous portrait of the isolation of the pandemic, theres hope in its existence: Written, designed and shot by Burnham over the last year inside a single room, it illustrates that theres no greater inspiration than limitations. One comment stuck out to me: Theres something really powerful and painful about, hearing his actual voice singing and breaking at certain points. Burnhams 2013 special, what., culminates in Burnham, the performer, reacting to pre-recorded versions of himself playing people from his life reacting to his work and fame, trying to capitalize on their tenuous relationship with him. This line comes full circle by the end of the special, so keep it in mind. All rights reserved. How how successful do you think is "Inside" at addressing, describing kind of confronting the experience that a lot of people have had over the past year? 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. Thank you, Michel. A part of me loves you, part of me hates you / Part of me needs you, part of me fears you / [. "Part of me needs you, part of me fears you. 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.". He brushes his teeth, eats a bowl of cereal, and begins editing his videos. 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. He's also giving us a visual representation of the way social media feeds can jarringly swing between shallow photos and emotional posts about trauma and loss. Underneath the Steve Martin-like formal trickery has always beaten the heaving heart of a flamboyantly dramatic theater kid. But when reading songs like Dont Wanna Know and All Eyes On Me between the lines, Inside can help audiences better identify that funny feeling when they start feeling like a creator is their friend. A distorted voice is back again, mocking Burnham as he sits exposed on his fake stage: "Well, well, look who's inside again. "I don't know that it's not," he said. But in both of those cases, similarity and connection would come from the way the art itself connects people, not any actual tie between Burnham and myself, Burnham and the commenter. Thought modern humans have been around for much longer than 20,000 years, that's around how long ago people first migrated to North America. ", And last but not least, for social media he put "sexually pranking unsuspecting women at public beaches" and "psychologically abusive parents making rube goldberg machines" alongside "white people using GIFs of Black people widening their eyes.". Under stand up, Burnham wrote "Middle-aged men protecting free speech by humping stools and telling stories about edibles" and "podcasts. When we saw that projection the first time, Burnham's room was clean and orderly. Only he knows. 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. Right after the song ends, the shot of Burnham's guest house returns but this time it's filled with clutter. The song's melody is oddly soothing, and the lyrics are a sly manifestation of the way depression convinces you to stay in its abyss ("It's almost over, it's just begun. But look, I made you some content. Perform everything to each other, all the time for no reason. HOLMES: I liked a bunch of the songs in this, and a lot of them are silly songs about the things that his comedy has already been concerned with for a long time, right? It's an emergence from the darkness. Bo Burnham also uploaded Welcome to the Internet and White Womans Instagram on his YouTube channel. He grabs the camera and swings it around in a circle as the song enters another chorus, and a fake audience cheers in the background. Bo Burnham: Inside Not a comedy per se, but a masterpiece nonetheless. I actually felt true mutual empathy with someone for the first time, and with someone Ive never even met, its kinda funny.. Soering New insights from various parties come to light that raise questions about Jens Sring's conviction of the 1985 murders of his then-girlfriend's parents. Mirroring the earlier scene where Burnham went to sleep, now Burnham is shown "waking up.". He doesn't really bother with any kind of transitions. Just wanted to make sure everybody knew about Bo's comedy special transcripts on Scraps. From the very beginning of "Inside," Burnham makes it clear that the narrative arc of the special will be self-referential. MARTIN: So a lot of us, you know, artists, journalists have been trying to describe what this period has been like, what has it meant, what's been going on with us. All Eyes on Me takes a different approach to rattling the viewer. Bo Burnham's 'Inside Down to the second, the clock changes to midnight exactly halfway through the runtime of "Inside.". Its a feat, the work of a gifted experimentalist whose craft has caught up to his talent. So this is how it ends. Viewer discretion is advised. Burnham reacts to his reaction to his reaction to his reaction, focusing so intently on his body and image that he panics, stops the videoand then smiles at his audience, thanking them for watching. Other than Fred Rogers, Bo Burnham is one of the most cited single individual creators when discussing parasocial relationships. Were complicated. Most of the comments talk about how visceral it is to hear Burnhams real voice singing the upsetting lyrics. Anyone can read what you share. I think you're getting from him, you know, the entertainment element. Burnham spent his teen years doing theater and songwriting, which led to his first viral video on YouTube a song he now likely categorizes as "offensive.". 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.". And the biggest risk Burnham takes in the show is letting his emotional side loose, but not before cracking a ton of jokes. But, of course, it tangles that right back up; this emotional post was, ultimately, still Content. But now Burnham is back. Yes, Amazon has a pre-order set up for the album on Vinyl. For fans who struggle with panic attacks (myself included) its a comfort to see yourself represented in an artist whose work you respect. 20. Long before the phrase parasocial relationship had entered the mainstream zeitgeist, Burnhams work discussed the phenomenon. Bo Burnham It's like the mental despair of the last year has turned into a comfort. The album peaked at #7 on the Billboard 200 chart, #1 on the Comedy Albums chart, and #18 on the Independent Albums chart. 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. 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. In recent years, he has begun directing other comics specials, staging stand-up sets by Chris Rock and Jerrod Carmichael with his signature extreme close-ups. According to the special, Bo decided he was ready to begin doing stand-up again in January 2020, after dealing with panic attacks onstage during his previous tour, the Make Happy Tour of 2015-2016. We see Burnham moving around in the daylight, a welcome contrast to the dark setting of "All Eyes on Me." In the worst case, depression can convince a person to end their life. Transcript Comedian and filmmaker Bo Burnham used his time alone during the pandemic to create a one-man show. Bo Burnham: Inside - The 10 Funniest Quotes From The Netflix Special You can stream "Inside" on Netflix now, and see our ranking of all 20 original songs from the special here. Audiences who might not read a 1956 essay by researchers about news anchors still see much of the same discussion in Inside. The special is set almost entirely in one cluttered room. Maybe we'll call it isolation theater. Its a stupid song, and, uh, it doesnt really mean anything. The video continues. And notably, Burnhams work focuses on parasocial relationships not from the perspective of the audience, but the perspective of the performer.Inside depicts how being a creator can feel: you are a cult leader, you are holding your audience hostage, your audience is holding you hostage, you are your audience, your audience can never be you, you need your audience, and you need to escape your audience. I mean, honestly, he's saying a lot right there. '", "Robert's been a little depressed, no!" It's conscious of self. At the start of the special, Burnham sings "Content," setting the stage for his musical-comedy. And I think that's what you're getting here. But now Burnham is showing us the clutter of the room where "Inside" was filmed. And many of them discuss their personal connection to the show and their analysis of how Burnham must have been thinking and feeling when he made it. "I didn't perform for five years," he says. HOLMES: That was NPR's Linda Holmes reviewing Bo Burnham's new Netflix special "Inside." As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. ", 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. Burnham's creative background began with being a theater then he transitioned to musical-comedy. Its an uncanny, dystopian view of Burnham as an instrument in the soulless game of social media. A gift shop at the gun range, a mass shooting at the mall. Burnham was just 16 years old when he wrote a parody song ("My Whole Family") and filmed himself performing it in his bedroom. Now get inside.". He uploaded it to YouTube, a then barely-known website that offered an easy way for people to share videos, so he could send it to his brother. Bo Burnham 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. Its a visual that signifies a man exposing himself, until you realize hes in a spotlight. "A part of me loves you, part of me hates you," he sang to the crowd. And then, of course, he had previous standup comedy specials. He says his goal had been to complete filming before his 30th birthday. MARTIN: This special is titled, appropriately enough, "Inside," and it is streaming on Netflix now. "That's a good start. HOLMES: Yeah. I hope to see you inside at some point. Released on May 30, 2021, Bo Burnham wrote, recorded, directed, and produced Inside while in lockdown during the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020. I feel very close and intimate with him in this version. Yes, Bo Burnham posted a trailer via Twitter on April 28, 2021. ", "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. Theres always been a tension in his comedy between an ironic, smarty-pants cleverness and an often melodramatic point of view. Might not help, but still, it couldn't hurt.". Parasocial relationships can be positive too, as outlined in culture critic Stitchs essay On Parasocial Relationships and the Boundaries of Celebrity for Teen Vogue. 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. When the song starts, the camera sitting in front of Burnham's mirror starts slowing zooming in, making the screen darker and darker until you (the audience member at home) are sitting in front of the black mirror of your screen. (The question is no longer, Do you want to buy Wheat Thins?, for example. When you're a kid and you're stuck in your room, you'll do any old s--- to get out of it.". Trying to grant his dying father's wish, a son discovers an epic love story buried in his family's distant past. In Unpaid Intern, Burnham sings about how deeply unethical the position is to the workers in a pastiche of other labor-focused blues. At the forefront of this shift has been Bo Burnham, one of YouTubes earliest stars, who went on to make his own innovative specials with satirical songs backed by theatrical lighting and disembodied voices. That's when the younger Burnham, the one from the beginning of his special-filming days, appears. Bo Burnham He is leaving it to speak for itself in terms of what it says about isolation and sadness. That's what it is. And part of it is sometimes he's just in despair. Later in Inside, Burnham thanks the audience for their support while holding them at knifepoint. So for our own little slice of the world, Burnham's two time spans seem to be referencing the start and end of an era in our civilization. And maybe the rest of us are ready, too.