I was initially going to cover something from last week’s watchlist but made the executive decision to do a little bump-in because I just couldn’t wait to talk about this film. Something in the Dirt is a madly fun, genre-bending metaphorical experience that berserkers its way right into your head and your heart.
Two strangers-turned-neighbors, bond over a life-changing phenomenon inside their old Los Angeles apartment building. Inspired by the event, they decide to team up and document the phenomena in the hopes that it will bring wealth and fame (but hopefully meaning) into their otherwise mundane existence. As they venture down the rabbit hole to investigate what’s going on, a lot more comes to light than what they are trying to document.
***SPOILERS***
This is more of a precautionary measure than anything else because I’m not actually giving any spoilers when it comes to the plot because that’s not what I am here to talk about. However, that sentiment may not be shared and I’d rather just say proceed with caution.
Symbolism plays a large role in this film, both actively and passively. The characters chain smoke relentlessly and guzzle alcohol as if it were a race to the bottom of the bottle. Both behaviors are prominent symbols of self-destruction and it’s a poignant choice in Justin Benson’s script, especially as aspects of each character’s history get drawn out. There is a lot of focus on a Russian nesting doll wind-chime that hangs in their courtyard and it’s well-positioned as a fairly obvious wink-and-nod that we are dealing with something that has multiple layers.
There are a lot of moving pieces in this puzzle and the tacit participation in the characters’ attempts to solve it is a big part of the fun. However, the deeper the rabbit hole went the more I found myself reading between the lines.
You can take this head-on and still have a perfectly enjoyable adventure waiting to see what the characters discover. On its surface, this film works as a wild and chaotic cosmic mystery and as a dark satire about the notion of belonging and how that vulnerable space fosters conspiracies. However, I couldn’t help but view the entire thing as a more delicately crafted metaphor.
This film isn’t about the “it” in the conventional sense. The mystery at the center of the story is almost irrelevant and I don’t mean that as a negative. It is purposeful and deliberate in Benson’s writing to use the unexpected event as a catalyst. If you have seen Benson and Moorhead’s catalog of work it makes perfect sense because their other films function off the same basic principle of some mystery that needs solving or something hidden that will eventually be revealed to the audience as a reward mechanism for their participation. However, using that familiar narrative structure to look beyond shows the duo’s evolution as filmmakers and storytellers but it challenges their viewers in a new way as well.
I love the visual presentation of this film and how it mixes its aesthetic styles. There are conventional camera shots, home movies, visual aid overlays and interviews (like you’d see in a documentary), security camera footage, flashbacks, and some found-footage handheld stuff that creates all the layers of this very robust ocular experience. Taking a cosmic concept and making it gritty isn’t as easy as it sounds so I’ve gotta show Ariel Vida some love for her production design. So,
This isn’t a conventional mockumentary in the sense that the format isn’t used for the sake of parody. Instead, it’s used to play with the narrative form in some creative ways, and editing this thing must have been a beast. Benson and Moorhead had their long-time collaborator/editor Michael Felker (who has a small cameo in the film) help them stitch it all together in the editing room. The final result is a frenzied experience that pushes the envelope and tests the viewer.
What I really love about these guys as creatives is them. It’s their passion, their creativity, and their energy that reaches through the screen. I’m happy for them that they got the opportunity to work with A-list actors and huge production studios that value them, and I don’t begrudge them any of it. However, one of the things that I love most about this film is that it brought the two of them right back to the center of it all and they delivered in a big way.
Nobody knows these characters better than these two I would argue that these were among the best on-camera performances of their careers. Both John and Levi are sorta sideways characters. Neither of them is a reliable narrator and they’re constantly hiding things about their lives from one another and the audience. Granted they had only just met here, but it’s a thread that they both tug at with occasionally frightening responses. It was a great use of the paranoia-breeds-paranoia atmosphere the story is cultivating in that little apartment building. Despite their very obvious distrust of one another, they don’t really have anyone else so that constant push and pull between them creates very effective tension and also sets the stage for some genuinely funny moments.
Once you look past the mystery that’s being presented, past the supernatural, you realize this is the story of two guys who went to LA to chase their dreams and failed, but they are still holding out hope that they’re just one big idea away from making it. They are both struggling and mostly miserable yet they both still romanticize Los Angeles in a strange but authentic way. Despite their negative experiences, they both still have a hopeful optimism and it’s that glimmer that leads them to ultimately pursue making a documentary film about what is happening inside the apartment. It is fair to say there’s some sadness there but there is also a dark beauty to that.
As the film was reaching its conclusion, I started thinking about the title. Something in the Dirt strikes me as a metaphor of its own. I take it to mean that there’s value to be found in the effort for both the characters on the screen and the filmmakers behind the camera. In this story, John and Levi were basically spinning their wheels through life but the decision to make the documentary (The Dirt) gave them purpose and value (Something). Benson and Moorhead are also filmmakers who started with small independent films and worked their way up to doing high-profile projects for Disney, but here they returned to doing the grittier kind of stuff that more closely defines them as creatives. So, you could say that the “Something in the Dirt” for them is the value of returning to their roots and getting their hands dirty on a project where they are all in at every level.
I have been running film club discussions online for several months now and in the last one, I started talking about how I view the symbiotic nature of artists, their art, and the observers of it. That has been more present in my mind as I have been watching films since that discussion and I realize how I observe Benson and Moorhead’s work and my relationship to it may be entirely different than someone else. It would be an honor to sit down and talk with them about their process because it’s entirely possible that I am way out in the tall grass about the lofty metaphors and the subtextual themes of this film, but that’s where the experience took me.
Recommendation: If you are a fan of these two, it’s a must-see movie. For those who may have only heard of them more recently via Loki or Moon Knight, this is a great introduction to their voice as filmmakers.
Thanks for reading! I still believe word of mouth is the best way to help, so if you enjoy what I’m doing, please tell somebody. And if you have a comment, I’d love to hear it! Liking, subscribing, and sharing go a long way too. As usual, be well, be safe, and have fun no matter how you get your movies!