Necessity is the mother of invention. I just didn’t make it to the multiplex this week, but, fearing reprimand by my masters here at Popdose, figured I had to come up with something. Salvation arrived on Monday, via press release. “Wayne Wang’s The Princess of Nebraska Enjoys Record-Setting Debut on YouTube,” it read. “165,000+ views in a two-day period is the biggest online opening ever for a feature-length studio film.” My razor-sharp journalistic instincts sniffed a story, a thankfully easy-to-get story I could put together between diaper changes (my daughter’s, not my own).
It got better: Beyond the headline, the release said that had the movie opened in theaters, it would have ranked No. 15 for the weekend, ahead of City of Ember, Religulous, and Lakeview Terrace. And, most important, it was free. Hell, yeah: I could sit in front of my MacBook and enjoy the 15th-ranked movie, for free (I wouldn’t pay 50 cents to watch City of Ember), pop out a few comments, and invite you to watch it, too, giving the whole experience a little of that crazy new-media interactivity the kids are always talking about. Stop reading (assuming you started reading, when you realized Saw V would not be on today’s menu) and click on over to YouTube’s Screening Room, “a new channel dedicated to premium film content,” at http://www.youtube.com/ytscreeningroom. Then tune in, and wait for those red heels to start pacing in the big box on the left side of the screen. Those boots are made for walking, and The Princess of Nebraska is gonna walk all over you.
But, whoa, hit pause, or stop. The main event can wait. Let’s look around. I like the clean, red-draped look, very “theatrical” and less busy than the hectic funhouse that is the rest of YouTube. There’s an archive of short films to explore at the bottom, including an expanded (but still short) version of the 2002 Oscar winner in the live-action category, Thoth. Spend 42 minutes on that one if you’d like—it won an Academy Award, after all—then come back. Or multitask, and read and watch at the same time. (more…)
