Ethan Hawke and Richard Linklater are national treasures and titans of modern cinema. Their truly magical collaboration has spanned more than 30 years and produced 11 films. Their most recent short, “Blue Moon” represents the distinct way they create films and tell stories. That unique blend has spread like wildfire, captivating audiences from their first episode together in 1993. The duo’s chemistry is palpable, and it shines through their collaborative brainstorming sessions, frequently resulting in the development of exciting new projects.
The trip that was started backstage at a musical in 1993—where their collaboration was first born— is about to continue for a new generation. That first meeting grew into a creative partnership that would create many beloved films together, beginning with 1995’s “Before Sunrise.” This Pilcher-penned romantic drama enjoyed massive success. It opened the door for many animated and live-action films to explore such complex ideas as love, time, and what makes us human.
Throughout his career, Hawke has brought rich textures and layers to his performances, drawing from a vast well of life experience. In almost all of his performances, he’s essentially himself or a close facsimile thereof, with a dash of Linklater’s personality thrown in. This increased complexity creates a resonating intimacy in their films which allows audiences to feel personally connected to the characters and story.
In “Blue Moon,” Hawke goes even further, moving past demanding roles to breakthrough territory with an embodiment of the famed lyricist Lorenz Hart. This characterization required a fiercer performance than anything he’d given before. To embody Hart, Hawke even shaved his head and stood in a trench during filming to appear shorter than his co-stars, an effort that speaks to his commitment to authenticity in his craft.
Even after decades of collaboration, Hawke and Linklater concede they have very little in common with Hart. The film explores Hart’s complex life and career while weaving in the duo’s unique filmmaking perspective. And yet the project was truly monumental in scope, accomplished in a blistering 15-day shoot on an Irish soundstage rigged to stand in for midtown Manhattan.
Linklater’s upcoming film about the making of Jean-Luc Godard’s “Breathless” is another testament to his creative prowess. This project is a great example of his talent for capturing what all cinematic history was and hasn’t been. Simultaneously, it stretches the limits of what a modern film can be.
Hawke’s range as an actor is best highlighted through his incredible body of work. He’s given career-best performances in Girlhood, a film shot over an astonishing 12-year-period, and commercially successful horror Black Phone. Consider In “Boyhood,” he captured a father’s evolution in the ongoing struggle to raise children of the future over a decade’s time. This depiction absolutely devastated audiences, and for good reason.
Within their creative partnership exists a shared love for candor and conversation that has an almost alchemical ability to churn out new imaginative film concepts. It’s a powerful dynamic, allowing them to push convention and their stories in new directions. Their collaborative spirit and dedication to the craft of filmmaking breaks down barriers and reaches everyone from hardcore fans to casual moviegoers.