Todd Solondz
Todd Solondz
Todd Solondzis an American independent film screenwriter and director known for his style of dark, thought-provoking, socially conscious satire. Solondz has been critically acclaimed for his examination of the "dark underbelly of middle class American suburbia," a reflection of his own background in New Jersey. His work includes Welcome to the Dollhouse, Happiness, Storytelling, Palindromes, Life During Wartime, and Dark Horse...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionDirector
Date of Birth15 October 1959
CountryUnited States of America
There can be a blurry line between laughing at the expense of a character and laughing at the recognition of something painful and true. But blurry as it may be, it is nevertheless unmistakable, and sometimes the laughter I hear makes me wince.
One thing I want to say: I don't like victim stories and I don't write them.
Like everything, what compels one to put pen to paper is a great question.
But anonymity is very important to me, and I don't want to be recognized in public more than I already am.
A palindrome is a word or pattern that instead of developing in different directions it folds in on itself so that the beginning and end mirror each other, that they are the same.
Some people see me as dissecting my characters in some kind of heartless, coldblooded, analytical way, when in truth making these movies is a passionate, intensely emotional experience for me. I'm detached from the characters only to the degree that I have to be in order to write honestly about them.
Compromise is part and parcel of making a movie. It's a question of the kinds of compromises that you have to make.
Artwork can be a portal, a kind of rethinking and reseeing of the world as we live it.
I don't make movies with the idea that people are going to walk out of them feeling comfortable or better about themselves or more secure in their own biases or opinions.
I've always said that I myself am not the best audience for my own work, because I'm just not that receptive to comedy.
What makes me angry is the idea that people would be going to a movie because of what I said about it. It makes me feel, I don't know, arrogant, self-important, self-aggrandizing, whatever. Like I'm being used.
I can't please everybody and I don't try to. If I can please myself that's enough. For the rest, I just hope for the best.
We are so defined by our prejudices and our preconceptions, ... that it's sometimes shocking to realise to what extent we are so conditioned.
To be honest, I am often unsettled by the responses some people have had to my movies, and that includes many people who like them.