Director Report Card: Destin Daniel Cretton (2012)

2. I Am Not a Hipster

By the year 2012, there was no insult more cutting than "hipster." It was a term as divisive as "Nazi" or "socialist" and, like those words, soon came to mean simply anyone the person speaking didn't like. Everybody hated hipsters. I did too, as my college girlfriend and I often disparaged them. Yet few people could even agree on what a hipster was. I've always defined it as someone who decided they were the coolest and that everyone else was insufficiently cool. Aside from jokes about "I saw [insert band here] before they sold out" and stereotypes about PBR and mustaches, few people could agree on a definition. The term was so loathed by 2012 that no one would willingly self-identify as a hipster non-ironically. Further muddening the waters was Destin Daniel Cretton's second feature, "I Am Not a Hipster."

The film is about Brooke Hyde, a musician living in San Francisco. His debut album, "Canines," became a critical darling in the local underground music scene. While his follow-up is eagerly anticipated and his work is often lauded by fans, Brooke is experiencing much personal strife. His mom recently died, causing him to self-isolate and lash out at everyone around him. He blows attempts to advertise his music and pushes away anyone interested in helping. As his sisters and father visit to help spread his mother's ashes, Brooke is forced to consider the source of his pain.

Despite the attention-grabbing title, "I Am Not a Hipster" is not a movie about hipsterism and who does or does not fit the definition. Instead, it's another entry into that often derided indie film genre of "mediocre white guy has a midlife crisis." Despite that unpromising premise, the movie actually has some interesting things to say about how people cope with loss. We never learn much about Brooke's mom but she seemingly started his interest in music. Her death causes him to question everything about his identity. His perception of self is so rooted in the pain he's feeling, that it's curdling into self-hatred. Which is further turning into general misanthropy. "People who hurt people are probably just hurting themselves" isn't the most radical of observations but it makes a strong enough foundation for "I Am Not a Hipster."

Brooke isn't just struggling with death in a personal sense. Throughout the film, he repeatedly watches footage from the 2011 Tohoku tsunami. He begins to fixate on the tragedy, often bringing it up unprompted in conversation. This reveals a deeper question anybody making art as climate change spins the world towards global calamity has probably felt: Does art even matter in a world where so many terrible things happen? While the film is tight-lipped about giving a definitive answer to this question, which Brooke asks a few times himself, it seems to conclude that art gives us the ability to contextualize the pain we feel.

This is not the only dilemma pretentious artist types feel that "I Am Not a Hipster" grapples with. Throughout the movie, Brooke meets fans of his music. They repeatedly tell him how good his stuff is, what it means to them, how important and groundbreaking his work is. This achieves nothing but making him uncomfortable. And you get the impression that this is not a recent development. As someone who is also frequently his own harshest critic, this is an impulse I can understand. It's taken years of training not to immediately self-deprecate when I receive a compliment. So I understand where Brooke is coming from there and how that tendency reflects on his own self-loathing. 

As much as I related to "I Am Not a Hipster," the film, from the combative title on down, seemingly dares the viewer not to like it. Brooke Hyde is not a likable guy. He is, in fact, an asshole. He's hateful to a radio deejay, who only wanted to promote his stuff. He insults a would-be groupie by assuming she's Japanese. He's rude to an audience at a house party. In the most prominent scene, he tears down everything his best friend and attempted manager has created at an art show. He refers to it as not real art and fluffy bullshit that distracts from the real world, heaping hatred onto everyone who makes similar artwork. This scene, the movie at its cruelest and most self-destructive, seemingly confirms that the title is a lie. Brooke, as a self-declared arbitrator of what is and isn't cool, of what is and isn't important, most definitely is a hipster. He's also, more than anything else, a massive asshole. 

Yet we see the roots of this behavior as well. In addition to his mom dying, his girlfriend also dumped him. She then started to date an electronic music DJ known as "Space Case." During an extremely awkward meeting with his ex and her new boyfriend, the guy even offers to do a remix of one of Brooke's songs. It becomes completely clear at this point that his rages against fluffy would-be art is more jealousy than anything else. Jealousy of loosing his girl to another guy and jealousy of people able to turn their brains off and engage with art that isn't so serious all the time. 

This particular subplot climaxes with a sequence where Brooke picks a fight with DJ Space Case at one of his concerts. The incredibly awkward scuffle that follows points towards something else about “I Am Not a Hipster.” It's kind of a comedy. The same sort of quirky humor that appeared in Crettin's precise, early shorts is sometimes evident here. The art pieces that Brooke's best friend/would-be manager create are clearly in that mold. Such as a portrait of his parents decorated with cigarettes. Or a video project involving mouths overlaid over eyes, each speaking nonsensical phrases. These aggressively twee subjects, especially when contrasted with Brooke's ever-present surly manner, does make for a nervous kind of comedic energy. I doubt the filmmakers behind “I Am Not a Hipster” would describe it as a comedy but it's still kind of funny.

This kind of gently mocking humor was also present in “Drakmar” and that's not the only thing that carries over from the director's documentary debut. Much like his feature debut, “I Am Not a Hipster” is also a movie about family. Long stretches of the movie center around Brooke and his three sisters. Each one has a hippy-ish name: Joy, Spring, and Merrily. Unlike the perpetually grouchy Brooke, his sisters are frequently upbeat. The film does a good job of suggesting the siblings' shared history. Such as one of the sisters' inability to keep a straight face whenever the other one is lying. We only get hints at Brooke's past or his relationship with his mother but the film does a good job at suggesting the weight these memories hold for him and how the bond with his sisters continue to inform his life.

You can see other elements carrying over from Crettin's feature here. The movie often features a documentary-like visual design. Occasionally, we can see the shaky and naturalistic camera movements. Many scenes are set inside the cramped homes of the characters, the cameras moving around everyone in a way that obviously suggest the operator's presence. This is most obvious during a scene where Brooke is riding his bike, which is very similar to a moment from the end credits of “Drakmar.” One can imagine an alternate universe version of this project which is an actual documentary about the San Francisco indie music scene. That is certainly suggested by the direction, if nothing else.

“I Am Not a Hipster” is mostly about these topics, of grief and family and grappling with a personal crisis. What it isn't, not really, is an exploration of the San Francisco music scene. Yes, there are a number of scenes where Brooke performs. The movie is framed by his proper return to the stage for the first time in a year, the rest of the story playing out in memories. We see his creative process play out several times. He designs songs in his home studio, adding layers of sounds or getting frustrated with the results. We do hear some of his songs – which are perfectly serviceable indie folk-rock – but the film amusingly allows almost none of the songs to play out in full. Brooke wanders off from a set to get a beer from the kitchen. Or is interrupted when performing for a class room. It almost feels like an ironic joke, that this movie ostensibly about music features so few complete songs.

Somebody starring in “I Am Not a Hipster” had a steep hill ahead of them, trying to get the audience to like such a deliberately off-putting lead character. Dominic Bogart – who previously starred in Crettin's short, “Deacon's Mondays” – certainly nails the stubborn, self-centered side of Brooke's personality. Yet he also does a good job at suggesting the intense vulnerability underneath this harsh exterior. The pause when receiving compliments, or other moments when he's clearly lost in thought, make it evident how uncomfortable he can be. Ultimately, Bogart's thoughtful and nuanced behavior won me over, making me relate to – if not entirely like – someone so clearly unhappy. 

”I Am Not a Hipster” would premiere at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival, to some degree of hype. The movie received decidedly mixed reviews, with some critics praising it and others being off-put by it. The latter impulse is an easy one to understand, as this is the kind of movie that outright dares the audience to dislike it. Much like the character of Brooke himself, you have to look pass the prickly outward attitude and see the softer, wounded man inside. If you can manage that – I'd understand if you can – you might find some things to enjoy about this particular motion picture. [Grade: B-]